Manager, Data Analytics

Western Governors University; Salt Lake City (UT); On-site; USD 117,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonuses

Health insurance

Dental & Vision

HSA/FSA

Retirement plan

Paid holidays

Tuition discount

Wellbeing program

Job summary

Western Governors University is seeking a Manager, Data Analytics in Salt Lake City to lead a team of data analysts and deliver insights that drive academic delivery and school analytics. You will translate complex business questions into actionable analytics, partnering with leaders to improve student outcomes and foster data-informed decision-making.

You will oversee reports, dashboards, forecasts, and analytical solutions, collaborating with data engineering to enhance data pipelines and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required or equivalent.
• Minimum 5 years of Data Analytics/BI/DS experience.
• 1 year of people leadership experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of data analysts.
• Partner with Academic Delivery, School Analytics to identify analytics needs.
• Drive analytics initiatives from planning through execution and monitor progress.
• Develop reports, dashboards, forecasts, and analytical insights for decision-making.
• Collaborate with Data Engineering to improve data pipelines and data sources.
• Communicate findings to drive action and improve student outcomes.
• Support KPI development and data governance across the university.

Skills

Data analytics

Team leadership

OKRs

SQL

Tableau/Power BI

Agile

Excel

Data pipelines

Data governance

Communication

Education

Bachelor's Degree in a related field

Tools

SQL

Tableau/Power BI

JIRA/Trello

Job description

• Hiring manager interview (30 minutes)

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you’re committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career.

Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.

The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.

At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is:

Grade: Management_Executive 609

Pay Range: $116,600.00 - $209,900.00

Job Description

At WGU, data is a powerful tool for understanding student experiences, driving institutional effectiveness, and improving outcomes at scale. As the Manager, Data Analytics, you will lead a team of data analysts responsible for delivering insights that support Academic Delivery and School Analytics stakeholders across the university.

In this role, you will combine people leadership, technical expertise, and strategic thinking to help leaders make informed decisions that enhance student success. You will partner closely with academic and operational leaders to translate complex business questions into actionable analytics, foster a culture of data-informed decision-making, and contribute to WGU's commitment to equity and extraordinary student outcomes.

What You'll Do

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of data analysts while fostering a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing team culture.
• Partner with Academic Delivery, School Analytics, and cross-functional stakeholders to identify analytics needs, define priorities, and translate business requirements into actionable analytical solutions.
• Drive complex analytics initiatives from planning through execution, including project management, stakeholder communication, resource allocation, risk mitigation, and ongoing monitoring.
• Lead the development and delivery of reports, dashboards, forecasts, and analytical insights that support strategic and operational decision-making.
• Collaborate with Data Engineering and technical partners to identify appropriate data sources, improve data pipelines, and support the development of scalable data products.
• Use data visualization, storytelling, and analytical rigor to communicate findings and recommendations that drive action and improve outcomes.
• Support data literacy, KPI development, operational excellence, and responsible data governance across the university.

What You'll Bring

• Bachelor's Degree in a related field.
• 5 years of experience in a Data Analysis, Business Intelligence, Data Science, Statistics, Decision Intelligence, Computer Science, Marketing Analytics, Mathematics, or a related domain.
• 1 year of experience in people leadership.
• Ability to create healthy work environments conducive to collaboration, learning, accountability, and high performance, including experience with hiring, onboarding, coaching, performance management, and succession planning.
• Experience defining team and individual objectives utilizing OKRs, SMART metrics, and similar frameworks.
• Demonstrated proficiency handling diverse data sources and advanced data manipulation techniques, including experience measuring, collecting, analyzing, and reporting data to optimize student outcomes.
• Advanced SQL proficiency, including joins, aggregations, window functions, common table expressions (CTEs), views, data modification statements, and performance tuning.
• Experience with Tableau, Power BI, or similar data visualization platforms.
• Experience applying forecasting methods, descriptive statistics, experimentation, hypothesis testing, and diagnostic analytics to solve complex business problems.
• Experience using Agile project management methodologies and tools such as JIRA, Trello, or similar platforms.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Excel.
• Experience using diagramming and collaboration tools such as Miro, Lucidchart, or similar applications.
• Ability to operate with a high degree of autonomy, reliability, initiative, and accountability while managing multiple priorities effectively.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous learning, professional development, innovation, and growth.

Bonus Points

• Familiarity with Python and/or R.
• Experience working within higher education.
• Familiarity with higher education data sources such as IPEDS, National Student Clearinghouse, Burning Glass, EMSI, or similar data sources supporting analytics and institutional decision-making.

Experience in Lieu of Education

Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this role may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as one year of experience for one year of education and is at the discretion of the hiring manager.

What to Expect

• Recruiter Screen (30 minutes)
• Hiring manager interview (30 minutes)
• Peer interviews (60 minutes)
• Stakeholder interview (30 minutes)
• Stakeholder interview (30 minutes)

Work Location

This is a full-time, in-office position requiring five days per week in our Salt Lake City, Utah office, designed to foster the collaboration and connection that fuel our best work.

Visa Sponsorship

While we welcome applicants from all backgrounds, WGU is not able to provide visa sponsorship for this role.

Travel Requirement

This position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements.

Position & Application Details

Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.

Additional Information

Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It’s not all-inclusive.

Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at [e-mail].

Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.