Head of Data and Intelligence, SEAA

Role overview

CHANEL is looking for a Head of Data & Intelligence for South East Asia and Australia (SEAA) to shape the region’s enterprise data, analytics and AI direction. This position is focused on turning data and AI capabilities into practical business value, supporting key priorities across the region, and strengthening adoption, literacy and governance around data use.

The role will lead a specialist team and collaborate closely with business units, corporate functions and technology partners to identify the highest-impact opportunities and deliver data products and solutions that are relevant, scalable and aligned to business needs.

It will also build the operating model, governance and working practices required to make data and AI part of everyday decision-making, while helping define the region’s data architecture and platform direction so the technical foundation remains coherent, scalable and future-ready.

Ultimately, the role exists to help teams make sharper decisions, improve performance, support growth and enhance luxury client experiences across the region.

Key responsibilities

• Own and continuously refine the SEAA Data & AI roadmap so it stays aligned with regional business priorities, brand ambition and overall data direction.
• Spot and rank the most valuable opportunities where analytics, data and AI can improve client insight and strengthen business performance.
• Set clear goals and measurable outcomes so every Data & AI initiative has a defined purpose and is delivered to Chanel standards.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to senior stakeholders across SEAA by turning business needs into clear data priorities and actionable recommendations.
• Work across divisions and functions to build alignment, gain sponsorship and shape initiatives that solve meaningful business problems.
• Translate insights into persuasive business narratives that help leadership teams make better decisions and realize tangible value from data work.
• Oversee the regional Data & Intelligence portfolio, including both BAU activities and strategic Data & AI programs.
• Manage prioritization, delivery planning, resources, risks, dependencies and stakeholder communication to keep execution disciplined and consistent.
• Maintain reliable delivery standards while improving data services as business demands evolve.
• Guide the region’s data and AI architecture and platform strategy with Global and Technology teams to ensure consistency across platforms, analytics tools and AI infrastructure.
• Support movement toward target architectures such as Microsoft Fabric and Databricks, balancing enterprise standards with business requirements and promoting scalable, governed and reusable foundations.
• Ensure models, pipelines and AI solutions are built for interoperability across the full journey from ingestion to reporting and AI-enabled experiences.
• Partner with Technology, Legal, Global Data and business teams to embed appropriate data governance across the portfolio.
• Improve data quality, shared definitions, ownership, access principles and privacy awareness so business users can trust the data they rely on.
• Promote responsible AI and responsible data use by ensuring initiatives are designed with clear intent, human oversight, suitable controls and governance aligned to Chanel’s standards.
• Drive data literacy across SEAA and encourage adoption of data products and AI-enabled solutions.
• Build a culture in which data strengthens judgment, creativity and client-focused decision-making.
• Lead, coach and develop the SEAA Data & Intelligence team, strengthening capability in analytics, data product thinking, AI adoption, stakeholder engagement and insight storytelling.
• Set priorities, service expectations, ways of working and development paths so the team operates with precision, speed and strong business proximity.
• Create a culture of curiosity, collaboration, accountability and continuous learning so the team acts as a proactive business partner.

Success measures

• The regional Data & Intelligence portfolio is clearly structured, prioritized and aligned with business goals, brand ambition and global standards.
• Data, analytics and AI initiatives contribute measurably to decision-making, operational efficiency, client experience, activation and growth.
• Priority data products and analytics capabilities are actively used and embedded into regular business routines and decision processes.
• Business requests are challenged, clarified and prioritized based on impact, feasibility, urgency, data readiness and available capacity.
• Portfolio reviews, steering meetings, decisions, risks and dependencies are handled transparently with timely escalation and resolution.
• Business, technology and data stakeholders provide positive feedback on transparency, coordination, relevance and executive communication.
• Business teams become more confident using data products, understanding insights and applying analytics to decisions.

What this role is energized by

• Bringing structure and discipline to a complex portfolio of data, analytics and AI initiatives.
• Converting complex opportunities into measurable business value and stronger decisions.
• Moving teams from passive reporting to active insight use and performance improvement.
• Helping leaders balance regional needs, market realities and global direction with greater clarity.
• Coaching talent and building a high-performing data team.
• Strengthening data culture and helping people use data with confidence and responsibility.
• Helping evolve the function from an incubation-stage team into a lasting enterprise capability.

Capability requirements

• Strong background in data strategy, analytics, business intelligence and AI transformation.
• Proven ability to define and lead a Data & AI roadmap while translating technical complexity into commercial value, client experience gains and operational impact.
• Experience managing analytics products, BI platforms, client intelligence, AI/GenAI use cases and BAU data services in a regional or multi-market setting.
• Solid fluency in the modern data ecosystem, including cloud data platforms, BI and visualization tools, machine learning and GenAI.
• Ability to guide technical teams credibly and contribute to architecture decisions around lakehouses, semantic models and cloud-native AI platforms.
• Experience creating effective governance rhythms, decision forums, role clarity and escalation paths across business, technology and data teams.
• Strong executive communication skills with the ability to explain complex portfolio and data topics clearly to senior leaders.
• Confidence in driving change, adoption and data literacy activities that help business teams trust and use data and AI solutions.
• Ability to balance regional business needs with enterprise standards while working across global, regional, market and corporate stakeholders.

Culture and inclusion

CHANEL emphasizes an inclusive environment that supports personal growth and collective progress. The company values the uniqueness of each person and encourages applications from candidates whose perspective, experience and potential can contribute to the team.

Location

Singapore, Singapore