Director, Data Science - Growth Products & Partnerships

Company Description

Visa is a world leader in payments technology, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories, dedicated to uplifting everyone, everywhere by being the best way to pay and be paid.

At Visa, you'll have the opportunity to create impact at scale — tackling meaningful challenges, growing your skills and seeing your contributions impact lives around the world. Join Visa and do work that matters — to you, to your community, and to the world.

Progress starts with you.

Job Description

Global Data and AI team is seeking a Director to lead analytics for the Growth Products and Partnerships (GPP) organization. This role supports both emerging product innovation (e.g., crypto, agentic systems) and strategic partnerships (e.g., Google, Meta). The Director will manage a small, agile team and partner closely with GPP leadership to deliver data-driven insights, facilitate implementation of scalable infrastructure, and AI-powered solutions that accelerate product development and partner success – all aligned with Visa’s 2030 growth initiatives.

The ideal candidate is a strategic and hands-on data science leader with a passion for innovation and growth. They bring a strong technical foundation in AI/ML, a product-oriented mindset, and a proven ability to translate complex data into actionable business insights. They thrive in ambiguity, excel at cross-functional collaboration, and are energized by building new capabilities from the ground up. Experience working with Big Tech clients or in emerging domains like crypto and agentic systems is highly valued. This leader is equally comfortable mentoring a team and engaging with senior stakeholders to shape strategy and drive measurable impact.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define and execute the analytics strategy for GPP, aligned with Visa’s 2030 North Star priorities
• Facilitate building data pipelines, dashboards, and reporting to track new product performance
• Conduct deep-dive analyses to inform product iteration and partner engagement
• Support zero-to-one product development with scalable data infrastructure and experimentation frameworks
• Deliver client-ready insights and design assets to support Big Tech partnerships and commercial deal success
• Apply AI/ML techniques to solve growth challenges and enhance product performance, drive AI transformation and optimization
• Guide model development, validation, and deployment in collaboration with engineering and AI COE teams
• Manage and mentor a high-performing team of data scientists, fostering innovation and technical excellence
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Strategy, Finance, Business Development and other functions to embed analytics into decision-making

This is a hybrid position. Expectation of days in office will be confirmed by your hiring manager.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications:
5 or more years of relevant work experience with a Bachelors Degree or at least 2 years of work experience with an Advanced degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or 0 years of work experience with a PhD

Preferred Qualifications:
6 or more years of work experience with a Bachelors Degree or 4 or more years of relevant experience with an Advanced Degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or up to 3 years of relevant experience with a PhD
Strong programming skills in Python and SQL, experience with ML libraries and cloud data platforms
Proven ability to translate data into business impact and influence product or partnership strategy
Excellent communication skills, able to present complex insights to technical and non-technical audiences
Demonstrated leadership in managing teams and delivering high-impact analytics in fast-paced environments
Hands-on experience with generative AI, LLMs, or agentic systems
Strong business acumen and a track record of driving measurable outcomes through data
10+ years in data science or analytics in payments, fintech, or innovation-focused domains
Experience with big data tools (e.g., Spark, Hadoop, Kafka) and cloud platforms (e.g., Azure, GCP, AWS)
Familiarity with MLOps, model deployment, and data governance best practices
Prior experience with growth or innovation-focused products (e.g. cryptocurrencies, digital wallets, emerging payment technologies) or Big Tech client engagements is a strong plus.
Proven experience with AI transformation initiatives

Additional Information

Work Hours: Varies upon the needs of the department.

Travel Requirements: This position requires travel 5-10% of the time.

Mental/Physical Requirements: This position will be performed in an office setting.  The position will require the incumbent to sit and stand at a desk, communicate in person and by telephone, frequently operate standard office equipment, such as telephones and computers.

Visa is an EEO Employer.  Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status.  Visa will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with EEOC guidelines and applicable local law.

Visa will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable local law, including the requirements of Article 49 of the San Francisco Police Code.

U.S. APPLICANTS ONLY: The estimated salary range for this position is 219,100.00 to 350,800.00 USD per year, which may include potential sales incentive payments (if applicable). Salary may vary depending on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location. In addition, this position may be eligible for bonus and equity. Visa has a comprehensive benefits package for which this position may be eligible that includes Medical, Dental, Vision, 401 (k), FSA/HSA, Life Insurance, Paid Time Off, and Wellness Program.