Director of AI Analytics

Welcome to the Table. At Sur La Table, community, culinary joy, and celebration are at the heart of who we are. From monthly spotlights to the Golden Whisk awards and cooking class perks, our culture blends recognition with hands-on experiences. New team members are welcomed with care and inspired by wellness events, inclusive stories, and a personal touch that makes you feel right at home.

Reports to: Senior Director of Ecommerce

Location: Remote - US

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About the RoleAs our Director of AI Analytics, you will serve as the analytical hub of Sur La Table — partnering across eCommerce, Marketing, Finance, Retail, Merchandising, Inventory Planning, and Operations to transform raw data into clear, decision-driving insight. This is a foundational leadership role: you will define analytical standards, govern AIenabled workflows, and establish the frameworks that ensure every corner of the business is operating from a single, trusted view of performance.
 
Success at 6–12 months looks like a company-wide KPI framework that is documented and adopted, repeatable AI-assisted insight workflows embedded into planning cycles, and senior leaders who consistently turn to you to frame what the data means and what to do next. You will not just surface what happened — you will explain why, model what comes next, and drive the organization from insight to action.
 
This is a lean team. You will own a lot, move fast, and make decisions with full end-to-end responsibility.

What You'll Do

Company-Wide Insight Leadership

• Serve as the primary analytics leader across eCommerce, Marketing, Finance, Retail, Merchandising, Inventory Planning, and Operations.
• Own problem definition for analytics — determining which business questions matter and what decisions insights should inform.
• Move analysis beyond "what happened" to "why it happened," "how it happened," and "what we should do next."
• Proactively mine data to identify risks, opportunities, inefficiencies, and performance drivers.
• Influence senior leaders through clear implications and actionable recommendations.

Data Integrity, Metrics & Standards

• Own the integrity, governance, and usability of core commerce, customer, and operational datasets across platforms (eCommerce, POS, CDP, email, data warehouse).
• Validate insights using business context and commercial logic — not just technical correctness.
• Define, document, and continuously evolve company-wide KPI frameworks in partnership with Finance and functional leaders.
• Identify and resolve cross-functional metric misalignment to ensure a single, trusted understanding of performance.
• Establish standards for data quality, documentation, and analytical transparency across the organization.

AI-Enabled Analytics & Insight Workflows

• Leverage AI as a core component of advanced analytical work, including hypothesis generation, exploratory analysis, pattern detection, insight synthesis, and narrative development.
• Design, operationalize, and scale repeatable AI-assisted workflows that support recurring company-level decisions (growth, margin optimization, inventory productivity, forecast alignment).
• Establish validation frameworks to pressure-test AI-generated outputs against source data, historical performance, customer behavior, and commercial logic.
• Embed AI-enabled insights into planning, forecasting, and executive performance reviews.
• Promote responsible, explainable, and outcome-driven AI usage across analytics workflows.

Web, Customer & Commerce Analytics (Heap)

• Own web and digital analytics strategy using Heap, including funnel performance, customer journey analysis, and conversion optimization.
• Ensure tracking integrity and event schema accuracy, including review of structured data formats (e.g., JSON, data layers) in partnership with Product Engineering.
• Translate behavioral data into commercial implications that influence merchandising, marketing, inventory, and operational decisions.
• Ensure behavioral insights are aligned with downstream systems and financial realities.

Cross-Functional Integration

• Reconcile demand, margin, inventory, and operational perspectives into cohesive performance narratives.
• Support planning, forecasting, and performance alignment across Finance, Retail, Merchandising, and Operations.
• Challenge assumptions and reframe business narratives using data-backed insight.
• Serve as a connector between commercial strategy and operational execution.

Leadership & Enablement

• Establish analytical standards that prioritize clarity, trust, commercial relevance, and decision impact.
• Reduce reactive ad hoc work by building scalable, decision-focused reporting and automation frameworks.
• Design the structure, workflows, and expectations for the analytics function.
• Hire, mentor, and develop junior analytics talent once foundational systems are established.
• Champion a modern, insight-driven analytics culture across the company.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in Analytics, Strategy, or Data Leadership roles.
• Demonstrated experience leading analytics across multiple business functions.
• Strong experience in commerce-driven businesses (retail, eCommerce, CPG, marketplace).
• Comprehensive knowledge of all traffic acquisition channels and their downstream impact on site behavior, using that expertise to develop reliable forecasts that drive strategic decision-making.
• Advanced SQL and strong analytical modeling capabilities.
• Demonstrated experience designing and governing AI-enabled analytics workflows.
• Strong capability to pressure-test AI-generated insights against data, customer behavior, and commercial logic.
• Hands-on expertise with Heap or similar event-based web analytics platforms.
• Comfort working with structured data formats (e.g., JSON), event schemas, and data instrumentation.
• Experience defining KPI frameworks and resolving cross-functional metric misalignment.
• Proven ability to translate complex data into clear, compelling stories that inform and influence executive decisionmaking — moving leadership from insight to action with confidence and conviction.
• Track record of proactive insight generation, not reactive reporting.
• Ability to work standard Eastern Time business hours.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with dbt, Looker, or similar modern data stack tools.
• Proficiency in Python for analytical modeling or automation.
• Prior experience building or scaling an analytics function from an early-stage foundation.
• Familiarity with CDP platforms (e.g., Segment, Klaviyo) and their integration into analytics workflows.
• Experience presenting to C-suite or board-level stakeholders in a retail or eCommerce context.

Why JoinThe people who do best here are builders. They take ownership, move fast, and want to see the direct impact of their work.

• Company-Wide Impact: You will shape how a $1B+ omnichannel retailer makes decisions — from eCommerce to Retail to Finance — with your analytical frameworks and AI-enabled workflows influencing strategy at the highest levels.
• Build Something That Lasts: This is a greenfield opportunity to define the analytics function, establish the standards, and create the infrastructure that the business will operate from for years to come.
• Full Ownership: You will set the direction, own the output, and have the authority to move from insight to recommendation to action — without layers of approval slowing you down.
• Competitive Benefits: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, 401(k) with company match, generous PTO, employee discounts across Sur La Table and CSC Generation brands, and access to cooking classes.

Interview Process

1. Recruiter Screen: A  conversation with our recruiting team to discuss your background, the role, and what success looks like.
2. Hiring Manager Interview: A deeper conversation with the Senior Director of Ecommerce focused on your analytics philosophy, AI experience, and cross-functional leadership approach.
3. Skills Assessment: A take-home or live exercise designed to evaluate your analytical thinking, AI workflow design, and ability to translate data into executive-level recommendations.
4. Cross-Functional Panel: Interviews with key stakeholders across eCommerce, Finance, and Merchandising to assess cross-functional fit and communication style.
5. Reference Checks: Conducted in parallel with the final stages where possible.
6. Offer: We move quickly for the right candidate.

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