Head of Data Science

Linktree; California (MO); On-site; USD 320,000 - 340,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Wellbeing allowance

Medical/dental/vision insurance (US)

Retirement contribution

Employee stock option program

Generous time off

Job summary

Linktree is seeking a dynamic Head of Data to lead our data organization from vision to delivery in an AI-driven product environment. You will partner with Product, Engineering, Design, and leadership to set strategy, build scalable data and AI platforms, and drive a data-driven culture across the company.

You will mentor senior leaders, recruit top talent, and evangelize data science and AI practices both internally and externally, shaping how data informs decision making at scale.

Qualifications

• 12+ years in data-related fields, with 5+ years leading managers or directors in fast-paced environments.
• Track record designing and launching large-scale user-facing data or AI-enabled capabilities with measurable impact.
• Transformational leadership to drive a data-driven culture including self-service insights and experimentation.
• Deep technical expertise in data science, ML and AI and related engineering aspects.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the company-wide data strategy end-to-end, from collection to AI features and internal decision making.
• Lead and grow the data organization; mentor senior leaders; recruit and retain top data talent.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Product and Design to embed data and AI into product development at high velocity.
• Represent Data to executives; surface insights and communicate tradeoffs to non-technical stakeholders.
• Establish governance across data lifecycle and ensure monitoring, reliability, and secure, scalable systems.

Skills

Data leadership

Strategic thinking

AI/ML

Cross-functional collaboration

Mentorship

Hiring

Data architecture

Stakeholder communication

Job description

Los Angeles, CA • Melbourne, VIC • San Francisco, CA

Data

In office

Full-time

The Role

We are seeking a dynamic, hands‑on Head of Data who will lead our data organization from vision and through delivery and operations. This person works closely with Product, Engineering, Design, the Leadership Team, and other stakeholders, and will both set strategy and roll up their sleeves when needed to drive a fast moving, dynamic product and growing Data organisation in the AI era.

What you'll Do

Technical Leadership & Strategy

• Define and drive the company-wide data strategy end-to-end, from how raw data is collected until it’s used in user‑facing AI features or for internal decision making.
• Ensure teams at Linktree have the capabilities to make sound data‑driven decisions and build the platforms and frameworks to hold teams accountable to high standards in decision making.
• Advance Linktree’s transformation into an insights- and AI‑powered product with a clear, differentiated value proposition for our users.
• Make critical architecture and systems design decisions, ensure that systems are scalable, maintainable, secure, and performant.
• Stay current with technology trends/innovations and evaluate/adopt where beneficial, particularly in rapidly evolving areas like modern AI.

Hands‑On Execution

• Contribute to major technical components, critical feature‑launches, etc. and occasionally contribute to code or insights deep dives.
• Being involved in solution design for high‑complexity or high‑risk data or AI investments to maintain technical quality and help unblock teams.
• Lead or participate in technical deep‑dives, especially for cross‑team initiatives or for when the design has broad implications.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with Engineering, Product, and Design to deeply integrate the right data capabilities into teams, ensuring data and AI are core to how we build.
• Ensure our data & AI platforms empower the user‑facing teams to build valuable product functionality at a high velocity while maintaining effectiveness and correctness.
• Represent Data to the executive team, surface key insights, communicate technical tradeoffs, risks, and timelines in terms non‑tech stakeholders understand.
• Collaborate on budget, resource allocation, technology investment decisions.
• Evangelize data science and AI practices both internally and externally through thought leadership like conference speaking.

Team Building, Mentorship & Management

• Build, grow, and mentor senior leaders, both as managers and ICs. Ensure strong leadership across your team.
• Recruit and retain top data talent, help define hiring strategy, interviewing, and onboarding.
• Ensure our teams leverage data to its full potential to make sound data‑driven decisions and foster a culture of learning, decision quality, ownership, psychological safety, and accountability.
• Lead adoption of AI‑driven tools to drive productivity and ensure we’re on the forefront of modern engineering and product building workflows.

Process, Governance & Scaling

• Establish best practices across the entire data lifecycle (instrumentation, data engineering, insights, experimentation, ML and AI validation) and the frameworks to hold teams accountable to these practices.
• Maintain effectiveness and reliability of AI and user‑facing insights solutions by establishing monitoring, alerting and remediation processes.
• Continuously partner with Product and Engineering to evaluate and evolve the cross‑functional product org structure to match the company’s growth, ensuring clarity of ownership, effective collaboration, and decision‑making velocity.

What Success Looks Like

Linktree has a unique value proposition in the market due to data and AI‑driven capabilities.

• Decision making throughout the organization is based on sound insights.
• Team attrition is healthy, team members are growing in their roles and the management pipeline is strong.
• Stakeholders (Product, Customers, Execs) trust data and insights.
• The data function is a key partner in business decision making, not just a delivery engine.
• You’ll work directly with the CEO, who is product‑led and values data as a thought partner, not just a delivery function.

What You’ll Bring

• 12+ years in data‑related fields, such as data science, data engineering, ML engineering with at least 5+ years leading managers or directors in growing, fast‑paced environments.
• Track record of designing and launching large scale user‑facing data or AI driven product capabilities with measurable impact.
• Track record of transforming organisational culture to become data driven, including self‑service insights and experimentation.
• Deep technical expertise in data science, ML, AI as well as relevant engineering aspects such as data and AI platforms.
• Proven track record of direct contributions at technical level, even as leader.
• Excellent leadership, mentoring, and people‑management skills; ability to recruit and retain strong talent.
• Strong collaboration, communication, ability to simplify & explain technical issues to executives and cross‑functional teams.
• Preferred / Nice‑to‑Haves
  • Experience scaling teams across multiple geographies
  • Prior experience in Saas / Consumer tech

Linktree is committed to providing a fair and competitive compensation package including cash, equity, and benefits. The base salary offered for this role is targeted at $320,000-$340,000 for roles based in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Final offers depend on multiple factors including location, experience, expertise, and role scope, and may vary from the range listed.

Our Story

We’re on a mission to empower anyone to curate, grow, and monetize their digital universe. We created the “link in bio” category — and we’re just getting started. From creators, artists, and entrepreneurs to global brands, we’re redefining how people connect with their communities, showcase their content and promote products — all in one link.

Today, a community of 70+ million use Linktree, including icons like Adidas, TikTok, the UN Environmental Program, The NFL, Manchester United, World Central Kitchen, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo, and Selena Gomez. With 48,000 new accounts created every day, Linktree is the fastest‑growing leader in our space.

We’ve teamed up with some of the world’s biggest platforms including TikTok, Snap, YouTube, GoFundMe, Spotify, Google, Stripe, Reddit, Laylo, and Kajabi, to unify Linkers’ digital spaces, and we partner with retail brands Amazon, Lululemon, Nike, Target, Sephora, Lululemon, and more to share products they love.

We’re a tight‑knit, passionate team building best‑in‑class tools that make online presence simple, powerful, and yours. If you're excited by the idea of shaping a new category, setting the standard, and making space for everyone to be seen and succeed, we’d love to meet you.

Where and How We Work

We're a global, diverse team spread across continents with offices in London, Los Angeles, Melbourne, and San Francisco. We work together flexibly and you can choose the setup that works best for you: fully remote or a hybrid mix of office and home.

We offer autonomy in how you structure your days and weeks. While we’re mindful of time zones and occasionally collaborate outside the typical 9–5, we lean into async work to keep things flowing. Our culture is family‑friendly and Zoom‑casual where kids, pets, and delivery drivers are welcome.

How we’ll help you thrive

Our approach to benefits considers the whole person and the unique contributions they bring to Linktree. We want the experience at Linktree to be one that enables people to truly thrive so we can Go Further Together (one of our values). Some ways we support you:

• An annual wellbeing allowance to use on things like (but not limited to) fitness memberships, development courses, childcare, travel, charitable donations, pet insurance, home office set‑up - the choice is yours!
• 100% coverage (and 80% for your dependents) of your monthly premiums for medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance for US‑based employees.
• Employer contribution towards your retirement.
• Generous time off for vacation, holidays, parental leave, volunteer time, and other categories.
• Employee stock option program - we want each and every employee to share in the company’s success.

At Linktree, we believe in promoting a culture that celebrates unique backgrounds, talents, and experiences, and we’re proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are creating an inclusive workplace where every individual feels valued, respected, and has equal opportunities to thrive. Linktree welcomes all people regardless of sex, gender identity, race, ethnicity, disability, pregnancy, age, or other lived experience. If you require accommodations to fully participate in our opportunities, please don't hesitate to reach us at [e-mail] – your needs are important to us.