- Company Name
- AppFolio
- Job Title
- Chief Data & Automation Officer
- Job Description
-
**Job Title:** Chief Data & Automation Officer
**Role Summary:**
Lead the design, implementation, and operations of the enterprise data strategy and intelligent automation pipeline for a public SaaS real‑estate platform. Report directly to the CTO, partner with finance, compliance, revenue, and HR leaders, and own the end‑to‑end data infrastructure, governance, and AI‑enabled automation that drive measurable operational efficiency and scale enterprise‑wide.
**Expectations:**
- Deliver quantifiable efficiency gains through automation across finance, HR, revenue operations, customer success, and other business functions.
- Build a governed semantic layer and cloud data platform (Snowflake) that provides trusted, lineage‑aware, queryable data for people and AI agents.
- Scale an AI‑native operating model, defining decision rights, intake processes, ownership, and metrics for agentic systems.
- Champion data governance, embedding classification, access controls, retention, and compliance into all capabilities.
- Translate functional needs into data and automation roadmaps, ensuring adoption and continuous improvement.
**Key Responsibilities:**
1. **Operational Automation Leadership** – Identify high‑impact workflows, prioritize automation initiatives, and measure delivered outcomes.
2. **Enterprise Data Platform Architecture** – Design and operate a governed semantic layer, data lakehouse, and data warehouse (Snowflake) with source lineage, data quality, and access controls.
3. **Data Science & Analytics Lead** – Direct the Data Science & Analytics team to develop trusted data products, applied AI/ML models, and analytics that inform decisions and automation.
4. **AI‑Native Operations Scale** – Define and implement a repeatable operating model for agentic systems, ensuring consistent accountability and scalability across functions.
5. **Data Governance Champion** – Partner with the Trust organization to embed data classification, access policies, and retention standards into all capabilities.
6. **Cross‑Functional Partnership** – Work with CFO, CLO, CRO, CHRO, and other C‑suite leaders to map operational requirements to executable roadmaps.
7. **Technology Portfolio Rationalization** – Continuously assess and streamline the enterprise technology stack to reduce complexity and improve cost‑efficiency.
8. **Change Management & Adoption** – Lead change programs to drive adoption of new data and automation tools, ensuring they are used and scaled.
**Required Skills:**
- Hybrid product and engineering leadership experience, responsible for both defining what to build and how it is built.
- Builder‑operator mindset: ownership of architecture, delivery, and shipping end‑to‑end solutions.
- Deep expertise in modern data architecture: semantic layers, Snowflake, cloud data platforms, and enterprise data governance.
- Hands‑on AI/ML practitioner with experience in LLMs, agentic frameworks, and automation platforms that solve real business problems.
- Strong technical judgment across data platforms, AI/ML, and enterprise systems.
- Proven ability to partner with C‑suite leaders, translate business needs into data/automation roadmaps, and manage cross‑functional teams.
- Change‑management skills and experience driving adoption and scalability of new tools.
**Required Education & Certifications:**
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Data Science, or equivalent (advanced degree or relevant certifications preferred).
- Certifications in data architecture (e.g., Snowflake Specialist), data governance (e.g., DCAM), and AI/ML (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch, or equivalent).