VP, Product Analytics

About the position

At Cengage Group, our employees have a direct impact in helping students around the world discover the power and joy of learning. We are bonded by our shared purpose - driving innovation that helps millions of learners improve their lives and achieve their dreams through education. We are seeking a dynamic and data-driven Vice President of Product Analytics to lead our organization's product analytics strategy and execution. In this role, you will be responsible for the design, development, and implementation of advanced analytics that drive innovation, improve user experiences, ignite our digital products development, and support our key business objectives. This high-impact leadership position requires a strategic problem solver who can unify cross-functional teams, champion a culture of data-driven decision-making, and build scalable analytics practices.

Responsibilities

• Define Vision & Strategy: Develop a comprehensive product analytics vision aligned with company's objectives, ensuring the strategy supports user engagement, product performance, and revenue goals.
• Collaborate with executive leadership to create and maintain a roadmap for product analytics initiatives that address short-term needs while supporting long-term growth.
• Communicate product analytics strategies and progress to senior leaders, board members, and multi-functional teams, gaining consensus and ensuring continuous alignment.
• Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing product analytics organization.
• Champion the establishment of a Product Analytics Center of Excellence, defining best-in-class approaches, governance, and standard processes for data collection, reporting, product design, testing and experimentation.
• Set clear goals, deliver regular feedback, and evaluate performance for individuals in your organization.
• Work closely with Technology and Data teams to ensure data pipelines, warehousing solutions, and business intelligence systems meet the evolving needs of the organization.
• Identify, define, and track the most relevant product metrics (e.g., engagement, retention, conversion funnels, user cohorts, feature usage) to inform decision-making.
• Oversee end-to-end initiatives, from exploratory analysis and data mining to experimentation and causal inference, translating findings into actionable recommendations.
• Ensure the delivery of intuitive dashboards and reporting tools that empower collaborators to self-serve insights and make timely, informed decisions.
• Collaborate with product managers and technology to inform roadmap decisions, validate hypotheses, and continuously improve products based on usage data.
• Work with marketing and sales teams to connect user behavior data with acquisition, conversion, and retention strategies, driving a unified view of the customer journey.
• Partner with finance to align product analytics investments with budgeting and forecasting efforts, and regularly brief executive leadership on return on investment and strategic priorities.
• Act as an evangelist for data-led decision-making, evangelizing product analytics thinking across the organization.
• Stay ahead of emerging product analytics methodologies, tools, and technologies, ensuring the organization remains competitive and innovative.
• Foster an environment of experimentation, learning, and agile iteration to rapidly test, measure, and refine strategies.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in Statistics, Computer Science, Economics, or a related field; advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) in a quantitative field highly preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive experience in analytics or data science roles, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership position leading large or multi-functional teams.
• Deep understanding of product analytics platforms (e.g., Amplitude, Mixpanel, Pendo) and data warehousing (e.g., Snowflake, Redshift).
• Proficiency in statistical analysis, experimentation frameworks (A/B testing), and machine learning approaches.
• Familiarity with data visualization tools (e.g. Power BI, Tableau) and scripting languages (Python, R, SQL).
• Proven ability to translate complex data insights into clear, actionable strategies.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a track record of partnering effectively across multiple disciplines and presenting insights to executive leadership.
• Demonstrated success in driving revenue, product innovation, and user growth through data-led initiatives.

Benefits

• Comprehensive and rewarding Total Rewards package designed to support and empower employees.
• Incentive compensation program beyond base pay range.