Data Activation Lead

Sanderson; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Sanderson in the United Kingdom is seeking an experienced Data Activation Lead to drive activation of customer data across channels, delivering data-driven experiences and commercial growth. This strategic leadership role collaborates with marketing, product, engineering and data teams to unlock personalisation opportunities.

You will lead a specialist team, own activation pipelines, ensure data accessibility and governance, and stay ahead of Martech and AI tech to enhance capabilities and

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading Data Activation, Martech, CRM, or CDP initiatives.
• Experience building and leading multidisciplinary data teams.
• Strong understanding of customer data architecture, data models, and activation pipelines.
• Experience influencing senior stakeholders across product, marketing, engineering, risk, and compliance functions.
• Working knowledge of cloud-based data environments such as AWS or GCP.
• Strong understanding of GDPR, consent management, and privacy-by-design principles.
• Experience integrating first-party data across owned and paid marketing channels.
• Strong commercial mindset with the ability to demonstrate measurable business impact from data initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing Data Activation team.
• Drive the use of customer data to improve customer experiences and commercial outcomes.
• Define and deliver strategic Martech initiatives, including personalisation and targeted engagement programmes.
• Own activation-focused data pipelines and ensure data is accessible, accurate, and actionable.
• Identify new opportunities to utilise customer data across digital and marketing channels.
• Manage and prioritise the Data Activation roadmap in line with business objectives.
• Collaborate with marketing, product, engineering, analytics, and external partners to deliver impactful solutions.
• Ensure Martech platforms align with architecture, compliance, security, and governance requirements.
• Act as the key point of contact for data activation initiatives across the wider business.
• Stay current with emerging Martech and AI technologies, identifying opportunities to enhance capabilities and performance.

Skills

Data Activation

Martech

CRM initiatives

CDP (Segment/Braze)

Team leadership

Data architecture

Stakeholder influence

Cloud: AWS/GCP

GDPR & privacy by design

First-party data integration

Tools

Segment/CDP

Braze

Snowflake

Job description

Data Activation Lead

Salary: circa £90,000 + Excellent Benefits

Location: Bristol or London (Hybrid Working)

The Opportunity

A fantastic opportunity has arisen for an experienced Data Activation Lead to join a forward-thinking organisation on a mission to transform customer engagement through data, analytics, and marketing technology.

This is a strategic leadership role where you'll drive the activation of customer data across multiple channels, unlocking new opportunities for personalisation, customer engagement, and commercial growth. You'll lead a specialist team while working closely with stakeholders across marketing, digital, product, engineering, and data functions to deliver innovative, data-driven experiences.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing Data Activation team.
• Drive the use of customer data to improve customer experiences and commercial outcomes.
• Define and deliver strategic Martech initiatives, including personalisation and targeted engagement programmes.
• Own activation-focused data pipelines and ensure data is accessible, accurate, and actionable.
• Identify new opportunities to utilise customer data across digital and marketing channels.
• Manage and prioritise the Data Activation roadmap in line with business objectives.
• Collaborate with marketing, product, engineering, analytics, and external partners to deliver impactful solutions.
• Ensure Martech platforms align with architecture, compliance, security, and governance requirements.
• Act as the key point of contact for data activation initiatives across the wider business.
• Stay current with emerging Martech and AI technologies, identifying opportunities to enhance capabilities and performance.

Skills & Experience Essential

• Proven experience leading Data Activation, Martech, CRM, or Customer Data Platform initiatives.
• Strong experience with enterpriseMartech platforms such as:
  • Segment (or similar CDP)
  • Braze (or equivalent engagement platform)
  • Snowflake
• Experience building and leading multidisciplinary data teams.
• Strong understanding of customer data architecture, data models, and activation pipelines.
• Experience influencing senior stakeholders across product, marketing, engineering, risk, and compliance functions.
• Working knowledge of cloud-based data environments such as AWS or GCP.
• Strong understanding of GDPR, consent management, and privacy-by-design principles.
• Experience integrating first-party data across owned and paid marketing channels.
• Strong commercial mindset with the ability to demonstrate measurable business impact from data initiatives.

Desirable

• Experience within a regulated industry.
• Knowledge of AI-driven personalisation and customer engagement solutions.
• Experience managing vendors, budgets, governance frameworks, and operational planning.

Reasonable Adjustments:

Respect and equality are core values to us. We are proud of the diverse and inclusive community we have built, and we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and perspectives. Our success is driven by our people, united by the spirit of partnership to deliver the best resourcing solutions for our clients.

If you need any help or adjustments during the recruitment process for any reason, please let us know when you apply or talk to the recruiters directly so we can support you.