Senior Data Strategy & Operations Lead

About the role

You will be the operational backbone of the Data and Applied AI team and a trusted partner to the VP. You will own the team's planning cadences and drive cross-functional alignment across the organization. You will keep strategic initiatives on track and ensure stakeholders have clear visibility into team progress and impact. You will identify inefficiencies and design practical improvements to how the team operates. You will thrive in a technical environment while focusing on strategy and execution. You will help define the future of learning at global scale by enabling data and AI to deliver their full potential.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Own and run the operational rhythm of the Data and Applied AI organization, including team syncs, roadmap reviews, OKR cycles, quarterly planning, and retrospectives.
• Lead the annual and quarterly planning processes for the team, linking data and AI initiatives to company-level goals and product strategy.
• Manage the VP's leadership calendar and key team meetings, including agenda setting, preparation of materials, coordination with presenters, and follow-ups for cross-functional reviews, executive updates, and offsites.
• Own the preparation cycle for leadership forums and company-wide reviews where the Data and Applied AI team presents, ensuring the right content, framing, and data are ready.
• Serve as the connective tissue between the Data and Applied AI team and Product, Engineering, Commercial, and other functions, ensuring priorities are aligned and dependencies are visible.
• Own stakeholder communication by delivering regular updates, progress reports, and dashboards that give leadership and partner teams clarity on what the team is delivering and why.
• Represent the Data and Applied AI team in company-wide planning processes, such as product planning, OKR alignment, and resource allocation.
• Track progress on key data and AI initiatives end-to-end, from scoping through delivery, identifying risks early, and driving resolution.
• Support the VP in managing the team's portfolio of work, ensuring the right things are prioritized, resourced, and moving forward.
• Drive accountability across workstreams without being a bottleneck, using lightweight but effective tracking and reporting mechanisms.
• Continuously identify friction in how the team works, whether in processes, tooling, collaboration patterns, or information flow, and design practical improvements.
• Build and maintain scalable processes that help the team operate efficiently as it grows, such as intake workflows, documentation standards, and knowledge sharing practices.
• Support headcount planning, resource allocation, and team capacity analysis with data-driven models.
• Lead or support high-impact strategic projects that span the Data and Applied AI organization, such as evolving the team's operating model, defining AI adoption frameworks, or assessing build-vs-buy decisions for data infrastructure.
• Ensure that data and AI initiatives are clearly framed, resourced, and delivered against company objectives, enabling transparent decision-making at all levels.
• Act as a central point for coordination and communication, reducing ambiguity and accelerating execution across the Data and Applied AI organization.

Requirements

• You have 8+ years of experience in data, operations, strategy, or a similar cross-functional role that requires translating strategy into execution.
• You have experience working in a fast-growing, tech-enabled company where processes are constantly evolving.
• You are comfortable working in a technical environment and can communicate effectively with data scientists, engineers, and product teams.
• You have a strong track record of running planning cadences, OKR frameworks, and performance reporting at scale.
• You have excellent written and verbal communication skills and can present complex information clearly to senior stakeholders.
• You are highly organized, able to manage multiple priorities, and comfortable operating in a dynamic, ambiguous environment.
• You are proactive at identifying problems and designing practical improvements to people, processes, and tools.
• You are comfortable using data to inform decisions and collaborating closely with technical and product teams.
• You are based in or able to work from Barcelona, aligning with our primary location requirement.

Nice to have

• Experience in the edtech sector or a passion for education and learning innovation.
• Background in applied AI or data strategy within a product-driven environment.
• Experience supporting executive leadership and running high-stakes forums or leadership communications.
• Familiarity with Preply's product, marketplace, and data initiatives.
• Any experience that demonstrates a bias for action, ownership, and continuous improvement.

Practical notes

This role is full time and based in Barcelona. The successful candidate will be expected to work from the Barcelona office as the primary work location. No specific travel requirements are outlined, and no visa information is provided in this posting. The role reports directly to the VP of Data & Applied AI.