Sr Director, Head of Data & Analytics

AI overview

Drive Natera's data and analytics platforms while advancing the integration of Generative AI to enhance usability, reliability, and operational excellence across the organization.

Role Overview

 

The Head of Data & Analytics Engineering (Senior Director) is an entrepreneurial and visionary engineering leader who will build and scale our Data & Analytics team. You will be responsible for building our data + Generative BI strategy, governance, and delivery across the organization while aligning them with the organization’s strategic goals.

 

A core focus of the role is improving data delivery velocity and reliability at scale. You will identify systemic bottlenecks across ingestion, modeling, access, governance, and consumption, and drive structural improvements that reduce time-to-insight while maintaining high standards for quality, security, and compliance. This includes setting clear delivery expectations, success metrics, and service levels for data products.

 

Key Responsibilities

 

Set Data Platform Strategy & Direction

  • Define and execute a multi-year strategy for data and analytics platforms aligned with business priorities and AI roadmaps

  • Establish clear architectural principles across centralized platforms and domain-owned data products

  • Drive the company’s evolution toward a federated or data mesh operating model, balancing domain autonomy with platform-enforced standards

  • Advanced the integration of Generative AI into data platforms to enable self-service and accelerate insight

Build & Operate Scalable Data Platforms

  • Own the design and operation of enterprise data platforms supporting analytics, reporting, machine learning, and Generative AI applications

  • Build unstructured vector store and RAG capabilities to power Generative AI applications

  • Define platform capabilities that enable domains to publish, manage, and operate high-quality data products

  • Ensure platforms are reliable, secure, cost-effective, and scalable

Own Data Delivery & Business Outcomes

  • Own end-to-end data delivery for analytics, reporting, and AI use cases, from intake and prioritization through production delivery

  • Establish operating models that balance central platform capabilities with domain-led data product delivery

  • Ensure data products are delivered with clear ownership, quality expectations, and measurable business impact

  • Drive improvements in data delivery speed, reliability, and predictability, reducing time from request to usable insight

  • Partner with business and analytics leaders to define success metrics and ensure data delivery aligns to strategic priorities

Integrate Generative AI for Data & Analytics

  • Lead the application of Generative AI within data and analytics platforms to improve usability and adoption

  • Enable capabilities such as natural language data discovery, intelligent metadata and documentation, and guided analytics

  • Partner with AI/ML leadership to ensure GenAI capabilities are reliable, governed, and production-ready

Enable Trusted, Self-Service Data

  • Establish platform-level standards for data quality, lineage, metadata, and observability

  • Ensure governance, security, and compliance are embedded by design and appropriate for regulated environments

  • Reduce time-to-insight by enabling intuitive discovery, consistent metrics, and clear data contracts

Lead & Scale the Organization

  • Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing organization of data platform and analytics engineering leaders

  • Establish clear operating models, accountability, and delivery cadence across teams

  • Foster strong cross-functional partnerships with application engineering, AI/ML, product, and business leadership

 

Qualifications

Required:

  • 15+ years of experience in data engineering, analytics platforms, or related technical domains

  • 5+ years leading and scaling data engineering or data platform organizations

  • Proven experience applying Generative AI and LLM’s to data platforms or data products

  • Proven experience building unstructured vector stores and RAG solutions

  • Proven experience designing and operating data mesh architectures and domain-oriented data platforms

  • Strong understanding of modern cloud data platforms and analytics ecosystems

  • Demonstrated experience enabling self-service analytics at enterprise scale

  • Experience operating in regulated environments with strong governance and compliance requirements

  • Exceptional communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.

  • Excellent stakeholder engagement, prioritization, and communication skills.

Preferred:

  • Advanced degree (MS/PhD) in Computer Science, AI/ML, engineering or related field.

  • Experience in healthcare, pharma, diagnostics, or other regulated industries.

  • Familiarity with AI governance frameworks, bias detection, explainability, and compliance (e.g., HIPAA, CLIA, FDA).

The pay range is listed and actual compensation packages are based on a wide array of factors unique to each candidate, including but not limited to skill set, years & depth of experience, certifications and specific office location. This may differ in other locations due to cost of labor considerations.
Remote USA
$217,400$271,800 USD

OUR OPPORTUNITY

Natera™ is a global leader in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) testing, dedicated to oncology, women’s health, and organ health. Our aim is to make personalized genetic testing and diagnostics part of the standard of care to protect health and enable earlier and more targeted interventions that lead to longer, healthier lives.

The Natera team consists of highly dedicated statisticians, geneticists, doctors, laboratory scientists, business professionals, software engineers and many other professionals from world-class institutions, who care deeply for our work and each other. When you join Natera, you’ll work hard and grow quickly. Working alongside the elite of the industry, you’ll be stretched and challenged, and take pride in being part of a company that is changing the landscape of genetic disease management.

WHAT WE OFFER

Competitive Benefits - Employee benefits include comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life and disability plans for eligible employees and their dependents. Additionally, Natera employees and their immediate families receive free testing in addition to fertility care benefits. Other benefits include pregnancy and baby bonding leave, 401k benefits, commuter benefits and much more. We also offer a generous employee referral program!

For more information, visit www.natera.com.

Natera is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to ensuring a diverse and inclusive workplace environment, and welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives. Inclusive collaboration benefits our employees, our community and our patients, and is critical to our mission of changing the management of disease worldwide.

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply, and will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, age, veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with applicable laws.

If you are based in California, we encourage you to read this important information for California residents. 

Link: https://www.natera.com/notice-of-data-collection-california-residents/

Please be advised that Natera will reach out to candidates with a @natera.com email domain ONLY. Email communications from all other domain names are not from Natera or its employees and are fraudulent. Natera does not request interviews via text messages and does not ask for personal information until a candidate has engaged with the company and has spoken to a recruiter and the hiring team. Natera takes cyber crimes seriously, and will collaborate with law enforcement authorities to prosecute any related cyber crimes.

For more information:
- BBB announcement on job scams 
- FBI Cyber Crime resource page 

Perks & Benefits Extracted with AI

  • Health Insurance: Employee benefits include comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life and disability plans for eligible employees and their dependents.
  • Free testing for employees and families: Additionally, Natera employees and their immediate families receive free testing in addition to fertility care benefits.
  • Paid Parental Leave: Other benefits include pregnancy and baby bonding leave.

Natera specializes in cell-free DNA testing, providing advanced genetic testing services for oncology, women's health, and organ health to help families diagnose and manage genetic diseases.

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Salary
$217,400 – $271,800 per year
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