VP, Data Engineering

Job Description

Quick take: Axios is a growth-stage company dedicated to providing trustworthy, award-winning news content in an audience-first format. We’re hiring a VP of Engineering, Data, to own the engineering function for Data within Axios.  Within this role, the individual is responsible for managing the leadership team that supports Data Engineering, Data Science, and Data Analytics.  They will also act as lead architect and take responsibility for the ownership of the data platform itself. 

Why it matters: Our product and technology teams, including the data teams at Axios, enable our mission of delivering the cleanest, smartest, most efficient, and trustworthy content to our users. Our data teams are vital to making data-informed decisions, engaging our audiences, creating data products, and staying competitive in the digital age. The data teams at Axios directly impact revenue, strategic decisions, and products across the company at large.

This is an executive role and will have a seat at the table with executives across Axios.

Go deeper: In this role, you will make an impact on Axios through the following responsibilities:

• Directly manages data engineering leadership and some engineering directs through 1:1s, coaching, and feedback as well as takes ownership for all administrative functions
• Owns and is responsible for all aspects, including infrastructure and architecture of the data platform within the data ecosystem
• Sets the vision and strategy for the data platform, with input from Data and AppDev Engineering Leadership, with strong focus on company goals
• Supports Data Leadership to maintain and evolve engineering best practices
• Partners with Product and Data Leadership to develop team roadmaps and assure delivery of agreed to initiatives
• Partners with key stakeholders, most often in the realm of legal & compliance
• Defines and owns product health metrics with input from Data Leadership
• Provides technical guidance, staying informed on industry best practices, and emerging technologies in all relevant areas
• Partners across the engineering department to assure alignment with standards, vision, and engineering culture
• Supports cross-functional teams to work productively, with effective prioritization and resourcing
• Owns technical relationships with relevant key vendors and supports the contract review and vendor selection process
• Hires, onboards, manages, and supports a diverse team of individual contributors while actively fostering an inclusive environment
• Maintains a culture that balances healthy urgency with the need for downtime and recuperation

The details: Ideal candidates will embody an entrepreneurial spirit and passion for Axios’ mission and preferably have many of the following skills:

• 10+ years of experience leading data-focused engineering teams, with some of that time managing managers
• 5+ years of data science & machine learning experience
• Experience working with stakeholders at an executive level 
• An expert grasp of data engineering including skills in data architecture design, data pipeline development, data modeling, data quality, and governance
• Skilled in working hands-on with columnar data warehouses, business intelligence tools, and the Python ecosystem 
• Understanding of modern ML infrastructure and tooling to support data initiatives.
• Knowledge of applicable principles, methodologies, and tools in the data engineering & analytics field
• A track record of approaching management with a human-first mindset, while maintaining a healthy sense of urgency on deliverables
• Excellent listening and communication skills that translate well to a remote work environment

Starting salary for this role is in the range of $177,150 - $236,200 and is dependent on numerous factors, including but not limited to location, work experience, and skills. This range does not include other compensation and benefits. Axios' compensation philosophy takes into account cost of labor differentials across the country. Because this is a remote-optional job posting, this salary range takes into account all possible locations within the United States, but candidates will only be eligible for the salary range for their location. 

What Axios brings to the table besides salary:

• 401(k) with employer match
• Robust PPO and High Deductible health insurance options on the Blue Cross Blue Shield network
• Employer Health Savings Account (HSA) contribution for the high deductible health plan option
• Dental and vision coverage
• Primary caregiver 12-week paid leave
• Generous vacation policy, plus holidays
• One mental health day per quarter
• Annual learning and development stipend
• $100 monthly work-from-home stipend
• Tele-mental health services through Headspace
• OneMedical membership, including tele-health services
• Personal health advocacy resources through HealthAdvocate
• Inclusive fertility, hormonal health and family forming benefits through Carrot Fertility
• Access to the Axios “Family Fund”, which was created to allow employees to request financial support when facing financial hardship or emergencies
• Increased work flexibility for parents and caretakers
• Virtual company-sponsored social events
• A strong and positive work environment
• A commitment to an open, inclusive, and diverse work culture

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement 

Axios is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, age, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. Axios makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.