ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, CDP & DATA ACTIVATION

BlueSteps Connect; United States; On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

BlueSteps Connect seeks an experienced Associate Director of CDP & data activation to drive customer data strategy, composable architecture, and cross-channel personalization. This role blends consulting, solution design, and hands-on execution, leading client engagements from strategy to activation.

You will guide audiences across CRM, web, app, offline, and media, presenting first-party data roadmaps to executives and shaping governance, operating models, and scalable data strategies.

Qualifications

• At least five years in CRM, customer data strategy, or MarTech consulting.
• Three+ years in a senior, client-facing role with VP to C-level exposure.
• Hands-on CDP experience; familiarity with privacy regulations and identity resolution.

Responsibilities

• Lead client engagements and present data roadmaps to executives.
• Architect activation strategies across CRM, web, app, and paid media.
• Build audiences in CDP platforms and configure data activation pipelines.
• Collaborate with data, UX, CRM, and marketing teams to align activation with customer experience.
• Mentor teammates in activation QA and delivery frameworks.

Skills

CRM

Data strategy

Executive presence

Stakeholder management

SQL

Cross-functional leadership

Tools

CDP platforms

Reverse ETL

Data integration tools

Job description

the client is seeking an experienced associate director of CDP & data activation to support customer data strategy, composable architecture, and cross-channel personalization. This role combines consulting, solution design, and hands-on execution, including leading client engagements, architecting activation strategies, building audiences within platforms, and presenting first-party data roadmaps to executive stakeholders. You will also configure data activation pipelines and help determine the most appropriate architecture based on a client’s maturity, goals, and technology environment.

You will collaborate closely with teams across data collection, data engineering, user experience, CRM/lifecycle marketing, and paid media to ensure audience strategy and activation are integrated across the customer experience. Responsibilities include serving as a senior strategic and technical advisor across customer experience, data strategy, personalization, and MarTech transformation; facilitating executive workshops and discovery sessions; designing and overseeing implementations of customer data and personalization platforms that unify CRM, web, app, offline, and media data for real-time activation; and developing scalable first-party data strategies, audience frameworks, governance guidance, and operating models. You will own the data activation layer end to end, including audience segment creation, data flow management, and integration configuration for marketing platforms.

As this practice grows, you will contribute to team development by helping shape delivery frameworks, standards, and overall customer data and activation excellence, while mentoring team members in audience operations and activation QA. The role may involve driving innovation through reusable frameworks and scalable solutions, and contributing to emerging capabilities such as AI-driven or automated activation approaches. Qualifications include at least five years in CRM, customer data strategy, or MarTech consulting with three or more years in a senior, client-facing role, strong experience leading large-scale digital transformation initiatives, and proven executive presence with VP to C-level stakeholders; additionally, hands-on experience with CDP implementations, familiarity with composable and reverse ETL approaches, and expertise designing solutions for multi-channel customer data unification for personalization are expected, along with SQL proficiency, experience managing data integrations across customer engagement and media ecosystems, and knowledge of privacy regulations, identity resolution, and data collaboration frameworks.