Director, Data Acquisition

Job Description:

Job Title:  Director, Data Acquisition

Location: Remote | Canada, USA
Reports to: VP, Data Operations & Governance

Employment Type: Full-time

This is an existing vacancy

About the Role:

The Director, Data Acquisition leads the strategy, procurement, acquisition, and management of vehicle source data for the Data Operations organization. This role ensures the company has reliable, cost-effective, and scalable access to various types of OEM vehicle data used in the processing of data for JD Power products and analytics solutions.

The Director works closely with Data Operations leadership, Procurement, Legal, Technology, and Commercial teams to oversee data supplier relationships, licensing, sourcing coverage, and supply continuity. The role requires a strategic and proactive approach to data acquisition while maintaining strong governance, cost discipline, and risk mitigation across the data supply ecosystem.

In this role, you will:

Data Sourcing & Acquisition

• Lead the sourcing and acquisition strategy for Data Operations, building on its existing network foundation to meet future needs.
• Identify and evaluate new data sources and various acquisition approaches that improve Data Operations sourcing coverage and operational requirements.
• Partner with Data Operations and Product leaders to understand evolving data needs and priorities.
• Make strategic sourcing decisions that balance quality, coverage, cost, and business value.
• Partner with commercial teams to build strategic relationships at OEMs, expanding Data Operations access to global and digital data streams.

Team Leadership

• Lead and develop the data acquisition team, setting clear priorities, goals, and performance expectations.
• Grow the team's relationship network across data assets, including OEM, data supplier, and digital data relationships.
• Coach team members on negotiation, supplier management, and governance practices, and build backup coverage for critical supplier relationships.

Supplier & Licensing Management

• Manage relationships with external data suppliers and strategic partners.
• Lead supplier evaluations, contract negotiations, renewals, and performance reviews.
• Oversee data licensing, usage rights, and contractual obligations.
• Partner with Procurement, Legal, and Data Governance to ensure effective oversight.

Supply Management & Resiliency

• Establish contingency and backup sourcing plans for critical data assets.
• Monitor supplier risk and develop mitigation strategies to ensure uninterrupted data access.
• Ensure primary and secondary source coverage for critical data assets.

Cost & Performance Management

• Manage data supplier spend and identify opportunities to improve value and efficiency.
• Develop reporting and performance measures for sourcing, costs, and supplier effectiveness.
• Provide leadership with clear visibility into data supply risks, opportunities, and investment needs.

Governance & Continuous Improvement

• Establish standards and processes for data sourcing, acquisition, and supplier management.
• Promote consistent practices across all data domains and business areas.
• Drive continuous improvement to enhance sourcing efficiency, scalability, and effectiveness.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Data Management, Technology, Supply Chain, Finance, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in business development, data acquisition, data operations, supplier management, procurement, business operations, or a related discipline, including Director-level leadership.
• Experience leading teams.
• Experience negotiating supplier agreements and managing third-party relationships.
• Working knowledge of data licensing, contracts, governance, and risk management practices.
• Strong financial, analytical, and stakeholder management skills.
• Proven ability to influence decisions and drive outcomes across complex organizations.
• Polished presentation and negotiation skills.
• Ability to personally own key supplier relationships while leading a team.  

Preferred Qualifications:

·       Experience in the automotive industry, dealership operations, automotive finance, or incentive administration.

·       Background in Finance, Mathematics, Statistics, Data Analytics, Data Science, Business, or a related field.

·       Experience with Microsoft Power Platform, Power Automate, Power BI, Copilot Studio, or similar technologies.

·       Experience with SQL, Python, VBA, or other automation and data tools.

·       Understanding of regular expressions (RegEx) for data validation and pattern recognition.

·       Knowledge of data governance and data quality frameworks.

·       Experience developing standard operating procedures and process documentation.

·       Customer service or customer support experience.

·       Experience participating in process improvement or operational excellence initiatives.

Compensation and Benefits

This position has a starting salary range of $121,000 - 141,000 USD / $112,000 - 131,000 CAD. The range represents what we reasonably and in good faith expect to pay for the role at the time of posting. An employee’s pay within the range is determined by a number of factors, including relevant skills, education, qualifications, experience, performance, business or organizational needs, and geographic location.

Eligible employees may participate in medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance, retirement savings programs, paid time off, wellness programs, and other company-sponsored benefits. Benefits vary by country and employment status.

Why Join JD Power

JD Power powers auto-related decisions through proprietary data, advanced analytics, deep industry expertise, and workflows that connect insight to action. Operating across North America, Europe, and Australia, we help customers make better decisions and achieve better outcomes.

As a virtual-first company, we offer flexible work arrangements, opportunities for learning and development, and a culture centered on the Values that guide how we work every day.

·       We power our customers’ success. Everything we do is focused on helping customers make better decisions and achieve better outcomes.

·       We are innovative, collaborative, and grounded in data. We combine advanced analytics with human expertise to deliver insight that holds up in the real world.

·       We make things easy. We turn complexity into clarity so teams can act faster and with confidence.

·       We get it done. We focus on execution, accountability, and results.

·       We start with trust and prove it every day. Independence, integrity, and credibility are the foundation of our work.

Equal Opportunity & Accommodations

JD Power is committed to employing a diverse workforce. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability.

JD Power is committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process for individuals with disabilities or other protected needs under applicable local laws. Please contact careers@jdpower.com for accommodation request.

Data Privacy

JD Power does not disclose your personal data to unauthorized third parties. However, as a global corporation consisting of multiple affiliated companies in various countries, JD Power has international sites and JD Power uses resources located throughout the world. JD Power may from time to time also use third parties to act on JD Power’s behalf. You agree to the fact that to the extent necessary your personal data may be transferred and/or disclosed to any company within JD Power group of companies as well as to third parties acting on JD Power’s behalf, including also transfers to servers and databases outside the country where you provided JD Power with your personal data. Such transfers may include for example transfers and/or disclosures outside the European Economic Area and in the United States of America. If you are a California or United Kingdom resident, additional disclosures about the information we collect and how we use that information can be found by clicking here.  

Applications

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the country where employment is offered. JD Power does not provide employment sponsorship for this position.

This position is posted exclusively on https://www.jdpower.com/business/careers and select trusted job boards such as LinkedIn or Indeed. All official communication comes from email addresses ending in @jdpower.com or @jdpa.com. We will never ask for payment, equipment purchases, or upfront fees. We may take additional steps to verify candidate information to protect the integrity of our recruitment process.

To all recruitment agencies: JD Power does not accept unsolicited agency resumes and we are not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.