Senior Director, People Technology, AI and Analytics

At 2U, we are all in on purpose. We are motivated by our mission – to eliminate the back row in education – and connected by our shared passion to deliver world-class digital education at scale. As the parent company of edX, the world’s leading online learning platform, 2U powers more than 4,000 online higher education offerings – from free courses to full degrees. Together with more than 230 colleges, universities, and corporate partners, we are helping to unlock human potential.

What We’re Looking For:

2U is seeking a forward-thinking People Analytics, AI, and People Technology leader to architect and execute a next-generation strategy for how we leverage data, artificial intelligence, and HR technology across the organization. This role leads the People Analytics & Technology team and serves as a strategic thought partner as part of the People Senior Leadership Team. 

In this role, you will drive the design and adoption of an integrated AI-enabled people technology ecosystem - maximizing the value of our platforms, data, and automation capabilities to improve the employee experience, accelerate decision-making, and unlock business performance. You will identify and scale opportunities for applying predictive analytics, machine learning, automation, and advanced people insights to enhance core HR processes and outcomes, including workforce planning, talent acquisition, DEI, employee experience, retention, and organizational health.

You will develop a holistic roadmap for our people technology stack, ensuring systems are optimized and future-ready. You will lead technology-driven transformation projects focused on user experience, cost efficiency, data governance, and system cohesion, while also serving as the strategic integration layer between the People Team, 2U Tech, and our HR technology vendors. This includes translating business needs into technical requirements, aligning SLAs and outcomes, and ensuring effective administration of contracts, spend, and vendor performance.

As the organization’s subject matter expert for People Analytics, AI, and People Tech, you will collaborate deeply with Finance, Tech, and People Team COEs to ensure leaders can access, interpret, and act on insights through scalable self-service tools, dashboards, and advanced analytics products. Your work will empower leadership with data-driven intelligence and predictive capabilities that inform strategic, operational, and talent-related decisions.

Responsibilities Include, But Are Not Limited To:

People Technology Leadership

• Develop and maintain the HR technology strategy and roadmap, ensuring systems, architecture, and integrations are modern, scalable, and aligned to business needs.
• Lead and oversee Workday configuration needed for major enterprise initiatives, including Job Architecture, Pay for Performance, organizational restructuring, and ongoing optimization work.
• Oversee the end-to-end migration of contract workers into Workday, ensuring clean data architecture, sound security design, scalable reporting structures, and a stable long-term operating model.
• Collaboratively assess current and future tech requirements across the People Team; maintain an external awareness of emerging HR tech trends and best practices, implement opportunities to streamline to expand the HR technology landscape, consolidate duplicative systems, and identify gaps in the current tools
• Design and oversee cross-system automation to improve accuracy, reduce manual work, and streamline workflows across platforms such as Greenhouse, Workday, and Pyn.
• Manage the HRIS team and partner with cross-functional tech teams to optimize integrations, execute the roadmap, and deliver against cross-functional Workday needs"
• Manage HR tech vendor relationships and ensure services, SLAs, and integrations meet business needs. Navigate technology contract renewal process, working with procurement, legal, privacy, and business stakeholders to effectively execute or eliminate technology contracts.

People Analytics & Insights Leadership

• Develop a people analytics strategy & roadmap, including shift into predictive analytics, innovation lab, and an action-focused analytics function
• Quantify the success of people team initiatives and identify data-driven challenges that should be prioritized. Partner with key stakeholders to implement data-driven solutions. 
• Oversee the team responsible for producing functional dashboards and delivering the employee listening strategy that support leadership data-driven decision-making.
• Deliver high-quality reporting and analytics covering talent acquisition, attrition, diversity, employee experience, and People Team operational metrics.
• Partner with People team leaders to support strategic workforce planning, in