Director - Data and Intelligence

GMG; Dubai; On-site; AED 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

GMG is seeking a visionary Director of Data and Intelligence to lead data strategy, analytics, and BI in a fast-paced retail environment. You will drive data-driven decisions by leveraging AI/ML, modern BI tools, and integrated data platforms across POS, CRM, ERP, and supply chain.

Collaboration with executive leadership and cross-functional teams is essential to unlock insights that enhance customer experience and revenue growth.

Qualifications

• Minimum 15+ years in data science, analytics, or BI with at least 5 years in leadership.
• Deep retail industry expertise (merchandising, supply chain, e-commerce, customer analytics).
• Experience building scalable data platforms and deploying predictive analytics in retail.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute enterprise data and intelligence strategy, aligning with business goals.
• Lead a team of data scientists, engineers, and analysts to deliver actionable insights.
• Oversee data platforms and modern data stack (ETL, data lakes, real-time analytics).
• Collaborate with Marketing, Merchandising, and Supply Chain to optimize campaigns and forecasting.
• Provide workforce analytics and performance insights to store operations and IT teams.

Skills

Data strategy

AI/ML leadership

Retail analytics

Stakeholder management

Team leadership

Data governance

Tools

Power BI

Tableau

AWS

Azure

GCP

SQL

Python

R

Data warehouses

CDPs

Job description

Who we are:

GMG is a global well-being company retailing, distributing and manufacturing a portfolio of leading international and home-grown brands across sport, everyday goods, health and beauty, properties and logistics sectors. Under the ownership and management of the Baker family for over 45 years, GMG is a valued partner of choice for the world's most successful and respected brands in the well-being sector. Working across the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia, GMG has introduced more than 120 brands across 12 countries. These include notable home-grown brands such as Sun & Sand Sports, Dropkick, Supercare Pharmacy, Farm Fresh, Klassic, and international brands like Nike, Columbia, Converse, Timberland, Vans, Mama Sita's, and McCain.

Who we are:

GMG is a global well-being company retailing, distributing and manufacturing a portfolio of leading international and home-grown brands across sport, everyday goods, health and beauty, properties and logistics sectors. Under the ownership and management of the Baker family for over 45 years, GMG is a valued partner of choice for the world's most successful and respected brands in the well-being sector. Working across the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia, GMG has introduced more than 120 brands across 12 countries. These include notable home-grown brands such as Sun & Sand Sports, Dropkick, Supercare Pharmacy, Farm Fresh, Klassic, and international brands like Nike, Columbia, Converse, Timberland, Vans, Mama Sita's, and McCain.

Role Summary:

We are seeking a visionary Director of Data and Intelligence to lead our data strategy, analytics, and business intelligence initiatives in a fast-paced retail environment. This role will drive data-driven decision-making across the organization by leveraging advanced analytics, AI/ML, and business intelligence tools. The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of retail operations, customer behavior, supply chain, and merchandising, combined with strong technical expertise in data platforms, AI, and predictive modeling.

As a key leader within the Technology team, you will collaborate with executive leadership, merchandising, marketing, supply chain, and store operations to unlock insights that enhance customer experience, optimize operations, and drive revenue growth.

Responsibilities:

Data Strategy & Leadership

• Define and execute the enterprise-wide data and intelligence strategy, ensuring alignment with business goals.
• Lead team to create policy and guardrails for safe usage of AI at GMG
• Lead a high-performing team of data scientists, engineers, and analysts to deliver actionable insights.
• Partner with the senior leadership to integrate data-driven decision-making into all aspects of the retail business.
• Champion a data-first culture, ensuring data governance, quality, and security best practices.

Business & Retail Analytics

• Develop advanced predictive and prescriptive analytics to optimize pricing, inventory, demand forecasting, and customer personalization.
• Leverage AI/ML models to enhance customer segmentation, recommendation engines, and loyalty programs.
• Provide insights into omnichannel retail performance, including e-commerce, in-store, and mobile commerce.
• Analyze market trends, competitive intelligence, and customer behaviour to identify growth opportunities.

Technology & Data Infrastructure

• Oversee the selection, implementation, and optimization of data platforms (e.g., cloud data warehouses, BI tools, CDPs).
• Drive the adoption of modern data stack (ETL, data lakes, real-time analytics) to enable scalable insights.
• Ensure seamless integration of data across POS, CRM, ERP, and supply chain systems.
• Evaluate and implement AI/ML solutions to automate and enhance retail operations.

Stakeholder Collaboration

• Partner with Marketing to optimize customer acquisition, retention, and personalized campaigns.
• Work with Merchandising & Supply Chain to improve demand forecasting and inventory efficiency.
• Support Store Operations with workforce analytics and performance optimization.
• Collaborate with IT & Engineering to ensure scalable and secure data architecture.

People Management

The incumbent holds no direct supervisory responsibilities but is expected to engage effectively within their function and collaboratively across cross-functional teams. This role contributes meaningfully, whether through operational contributions and/or by offering specialized expertise, guidance, and support, to ensure alignment with either functional and/or strategic organizational goals and objectives.

Technical Competencies:

• Strategic thinking and data leadership
• Advanced analytics and predictive modeling
• Data architecture and infrastructure design
• AI/ML model deployment in a retail setting
• Business intelligence and reporting (Power BI, Tableau)
• Cloud data platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), Languages SQL, Python, R
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication
• Strong program and team management

Experience:

• 15+ years of experience in data science, analytics, or business intelligence, with at least 5 years in a leadership role.
• Deep retail industry expertise (e.g., merchandising, supply chain, e-commerce, customer analytics).

Expertise in developing AI Data, experience in handling enterprise -scale data systems.

• Proven track record of building scalable data platforms and deploying predictive analytics in retail.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and real-time data processing.