Head of Data & AI

Harnham; Hartford (CT); Hybrid; USD 230,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model (3 days)

Executive sponsorship

Career growth opportunities

Comprehensive benefits package

Job summary

Harnham in the Greater Hartford Area is seeking a Director of Data to lead the enterprise Data, Analytics, and AI strategy. This role partners with senior leaders to define governance, data quality, and scalable foundations across ERP, BI, and reporting platforms.

The position is hybrid (3 days on-site) with a strong emphasis on building a high-performing team and driving business value through data initiatives.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading enterprise Data/Analytics/AI programs.
• Experience establishing data governance, ownership, stewardship, and data quality frameworks.
• Experience building trusted enterprise reporting and analytics capabilities.
• Experience deploying AI solutions at scale in a business environment.
• Strong ERP, BI, data architecture, and enterprise data management knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Lead the enterprise Data, Analytics, and AI strategy.
• Establish data governance, data quality frameworks, and ownership models across the organization.
• Build scalable data foundations to support business decision-making and AI initiatives.
• Partner with commercial, operational, and functional leaders to identify opportunities for analytics, automation, and process improvement.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and select platforms and capabilities delivering business value.
• Lead and develop analytics and data teams and define future structure.
• Drive alignment across ERP, reporting, BI, and data platforms for an integrated tech ecosystem.
• Champion data literacy and communicate the commercial importance of high-quality data.

Skills

Data leadership

Analytics strategy

AI transformation

Data governance

Team leadership

Stakeholder management

ERP knowledge

Tools

ERP platforms

BI platforms

Data modeling tools

Job description

Greater Hartford Area – 3 days/week hybrid

$230,000-250,000 Base Salary + Bonus

THE COMPANY

Harnham is partnering with a leading industrial manufacturing business serving the commercial construction and building products sector across North America and Europe.

The organization has built a strong market position through product innovation, operational excellence, and deep customer relationships. As part of a broader technology transformation, the company is investing heavily in modernizing its data landscape, advancing AI capabilities, and creating a more connected, insight-driven organization.

Having already fostered significant grassroots AI adoption across the business, the company is now seeking an experienced leader to build the strategic framework, governance, and data foundations required to scale these initiatives and unlock long-term competitive advantage.

This represents an exceptional opportunity to shape a modern enterprise data function from the ground up while partnering directly with senior business leaders to drive meaningful transformation.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the development and execution of the enterprise Data, Analytics, and AI strategy.
• Establish and implement robust data governance, data quality, and data management frameworks across the organization.
• Build trusted, consistent, and scalable data foundations to support business decision-making and AI initiatives.
• Partner closely with commercial, operational, and functional leaders to identify opportunities for analytics, automation, and process improvement.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and determine which platforms, tools, and capabilities will deliver the greatest business value.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a growing analytics and data team while defining future organizational structure and capability requirements.
• Drive alignment across ERP, reporting, business intelligence, and data platforms to create a more integrated technology ecosystem.
• Champion data literacy and help business stakeholders understand the commercial importance of high-quality data.

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Required

• Proven experience leading enterprise Data, Analytics, AI, or Digital Transformation programs.
• Strong background establishing data governance, ownership, stewardship, and data quality frameworks.
• Experience building trusted enterprise reporting and analytics capabilities.
• Practical experience deploying, governing, and scaling AI solutions within a business environment.
• Strong understanding of ERP ecosystems, business intelligence platforms, data architecture, and enterprise data management.
• Ability to translate technical concepts into meaningful business outcomes for senior stakeholders.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing teams.
• Strong commercial acumen with the ability to partner effectively across business functions.

Preferred

• Experience within manufacturing, industrial, engineering, distribution, construction-products, or other operationally focused environments.
• Exposure to ERP modernization or enterprise transformation programs.
• Experience building or scaling data and AI functions in growing organizations.

BENEFITS

• Opportunity to lead a highly visible enterprise-wide Data, Analytics, and AI transformation.
• Significant influence over technology strategy, data governance, and AI adoption.
• Ability to build and shape a growing team and operating model.
• Collaborative, innovation-focused culture with strong executive sponsorship.
• Long-term career growth within a market-leading industrial business.
• Comprehensive benefits package available.

KEY TERMS

Director of Data | Head of Data | Data & Analytics Leadership | AI Strategy | Artificial Intelligence | Data Governance | Data Quality | Business Intelligence | Data Architecture | ERP | Analytics Transformation | Manufacturing | Industrial | Digital Transformation | Enterprise Data Management | Data Strategy | AI Adoption | Data Leadership | Machine Learning | Reporting & Insights | Data Platform | Commercial Analytics | Operational Analytics | Data Management | Leadership Role