Sr. Director, Data Platform Engineering & Operations at PlayStation Global

<div class="content-intro"><p><strong>Why Sony Interactive Entertainment?</strong></p> <p>Sony Interactive Entertainment isn’t just the Best Place to Play — it’s also the Best Place to Work. Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) is the company behind the PlayStation brand. As a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation, we’re part of a proud legacy of innovation and excellence. SIE is a dynamic technology company, delivering cutting-edge hardware and network services to more than 100 million people and an entertainment leader, home to some of the most beloved and recognizable intellectual properties (IP) in the world. Our role at SIE is to create and nurture the experiences under the PlayStation brand, a name synonymous with entertainment excellence and creativity.</p></div><p><strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sr. Director Data Platform Engineering &amp; Operations</span></strong></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">San Mateo, CA</span></strong></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The&nbsp;<strong>Sr. Director Data Platform Engineering &amp; Operations</strong>&nbsp;is a critical leadership role at SIE, responsible for driving innovation and scalability across the company’s <strong>data and AI platform ecosystem</strong>. This role oversees platforms including <strong>Data Infrastructure</strong> (Streaming, Ingestion, Warehouse, and Data Ocean), <strong>Experimentation and Audience Platforms</strong>, and <strong>Governance</strong> &amp; <strong>Data Observability</strong> tools.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In this role, you will ensure SIE’s platforms process massive volumes of data, delivering insights that enhance <strong>Player, Creator, Publisher</strong>, and <strong>Enterprise</strong> experiences. By enabling data-driven decisions at scale, you will drive the future of personalized gaming, efficient operations, and enterprise productivity through advanced AI and machine learning technologies.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">As a strategic leader, you will define and execute the vision for SIE’s <strong>data and AI platform ecosystem</strong>, ensuring scalable solutions that support key business objectives across gaming, content creation, and enterprise operations. Reporting to the VP of Data &amp; AI, you will lead global teams of engineers and experts to build platforms that democratize data and transform decision-making across the company. &nbsp;Priority consideration will be given to candidates with proven experience in a previous or current Sr. Director level role.&nbsp;</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This highly cross-functional role works closely with senior leadership in engineering, product, and business to align the platform ecosystem with the organization’s strategic goals.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Key Responsibilities</strong>:</span></p> <h3><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Strategic Leadership</strong>:</span></h3> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Define the long-term vision for SIE’s Data and AI Platform ecosystem, aligning with business goals and driving value across <strong>Player</strong>, <strong>Creator</strong>, <strong>Publisher</strong>, and <strong>Enterprise</strong> touchpoints.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Lead the development of platforms that process large-scale, real-time data from millions of users, delivering insights to enhance gaming experiences, content creation, and enterprise productivity.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Build scalable platforms for personalized player experiences, content creation tools, and enterprise efficiency, optimizing performance and cost-effectiveness.</span></li> </ul> <h3><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Platform Development &amp; Operations</strong>:</span></h3> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Provide <strong>thought leadership</strong> in the design, architecture, and execution of the platform ecosystem, ensuring innovation and seamless integration with SIE’s global gaming services and enterprise operations.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ensure platforms are optimized for performance, scalability, and reliability, processing billions of data points daily across <strong>Player</strong>, <strong>Creator</strong>, <strong>Publisher</strong>, and <strong>Enterprise</strong> activities.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Champion operational excellence by driving continuous improvements in platform cost efficiency, performance, and security to support SIE’s global user base.</span></li> </ul> <h3><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Cross-functional Collaboration</strong>:</span></h3> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Collaborate with senior leaders to deliver data and AI solutions that drive value across gaming, content creation, and enterprise operations.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Work with teams to ensure data platforms improve engagement, content creation, monetization, and efficiency.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ensure compliance with privacy, security, and regulatory requirements while supporting scalable data operations.</span></li> </ul> <h3><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Innovation &amp; Efficiency</strong>:</span></h3> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Lead efforts to optimize platform performance, reduce costs, and improve data accessibility across gaming and enterprise operations.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Implement innovative solutions to scale data operations and maximize value from <strong>Player</strong>, <strong>Creator</strong>, <strong>Publisher</strong>, and <strong>Enterprise</strong> data.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Drive AI/ML adoption to enhance gaming experiences, content discovery, operational efficiency, and enterprise workflows.</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Qualifications</strong>:</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Bachelor’s or Master’s degree</strong> in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or a related field.</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Experience</strong>:</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Technical Expertise:</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>15+ years of experience</strong> in data engineering, platform engineering, or related fields, with deep expertise in designing and building <strong>distributed data systems</strong> and <strong>large-scale data warehouses</strong>.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Proven track record of architecting platforms capable of processing <strong>petabytes of data</strong> and supporting the <strong>real-time ingestion and processing of billions of data points</strong> daily across gaming and enterprise domains.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Extensive experience in building and scaling <strong>cloud-native architectures</strong> (AWS, Azure, GCP) for data platforms, with a strong focus on <strong>high availability</strong>, <strong>fault tolerance</strong>, and <strong>cost-efficiency</strong>.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Demonstrated success in growing and evolving data platforms to meet the needs of a rapidly scaling business, ensuring <strong>data-driven decisions</strong> are made at all levels of the organization.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Extensive experience with <strong>Kafka</strong> for data streaming and real-time data ingestion.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strong hands-on knowledge of <strong>Databricks</strong> and <strong>Snowflake</strong> for scalable data engineering, analytics, and cloud data warehousing.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Proven experience making <strong>buy vs. build</strong> decisions, assessing in-house development versus integrating third-party platforms based on <strong>cost</strong>, <strong>scalability</strong>, and <strong>business needs</strong>.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Expertise with <strong>Data Governance</strong> tools such as <strong>Alation</strong> and <strong>Collibra</strong> for managing data catalogs, compliance, and data quality.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Knowledge and experience with <strong>Data Observability</strong> tools to monitor data pipelines and ensure data accuracy, reliability, and transparency.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience with experimentation platforms such as <strong>Optimizely</strong>, <strong>Statsig</strong>, and <strong>LaunchDarkly</strong>, with a focus on <strong>A/B testing</strong> and <strong>feature management</strong>.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Expertise in AI/ML platforms like <strong>AWS SageMaker</strong> and <strong>Databricks MLflow</strong> for machine learning model development, deployment, and MLOps practices.</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Leadership &amp; Strategic Skills</strong>:</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Proven leadership in building and leading high-performing global engineering teams, balancing short-term execution with long-term strategic growth.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strong strategic mindset, translating business objectives into scalable technical solutions that deliver value across the organization.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Excellent communication and collaboration skills, driving impactful solutions across engineering, product, and business teams.</span></li> </ul> <p>#LI-GD1</p><div class="content-pay-transparency"><div class="pay-input"><div class="description"><p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong><em>Please refer to our <a href="https://www.playstation.com/en-us/legal/careers-privacy-notice/">Candidate Privacy Notice</a>&nbsp;for more information about how we process your personal information, and your data protection rights.</em></strong></span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">At SIE, we consider several factors when setting each role’s base pay range, including the competitive benchmarking data for the market and geographic location.<br></span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br>Please note that the base pay range may vary in line with our hybrid working policy and individual base pay will be determined based on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location.&nbsp;<br></span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br>In addition, this role </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">is eligible</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> for SIE’s top-tier benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, matching 401(k), paid time off, wellness program and coveted employee discounts for Sony products. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">This role also may be eligible for a bonus package.</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Click&nbsp;</span><a href="https://careers.playstation.com/benefits" target="_blank"><strong>here</strong></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to learn more.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p></div><div class="title">The estimated base pay range for this role is listed below.</div><div class="pay-range"><span>$312,000</span><span class="divider">&mdash;</span><span>$468,000 USD</span></div></div></div><div class="content-conclusion"><p class="p1">Please note, Sony Interactive Entertainment conducts background checks at the offer stage for all new employees (which may include criminal background checks for some roles) and will need to process personal information to support these checks.</p> <p class="p1">Please refer to our&nbsp;<a href="https://www.playstation.com/legal/careers-privacy-notice/" target="_blank">Candidate Privacy Notice</a>&nbsp;for more information about what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and your data protection rights.</p> <p><strong>Equal Opportunity Statement:</strong></p> <p><em>Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All persons will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender (including gender identity, gender expression and gender reassignment), race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, marital or civil partnership status, disability, age, sexual orientation, pregnancy, maternity or parental status, trade union membership or membership in any other legally protected category.</em></p> <p><em>We strive to create an inclusive environment, empower employees and embrace diversity. We encourage everyone to respond.&nbsp;</em></p> <p><em>Sony Interactive Entertainment is a Fair Chance employer and qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for employment.</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p></div>