Senior Technical Program Manager, Data

ABOUT KHAN ACADEMY

Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the mission to deliver a free, world-class education to anyone, anywhere. Our proven learning platform offers free, high-quality supplemental learning content and practice that cover Pre-K - 12th grade and early college core academic subjects, focusing on math and science. We have over 155 million registered learners globally and are committed to improving learning outcomes for students worldwide, focusing on learners in historically under-resourced communities.

OUR COMMUNITY 

Our students, teachers, and parents come from all walks of life, and so do we. Our team includes people from academia, traditional/non-traditional education, big tech companies, and tiny startups. We hire great people from diverse backgrounds and experiences because it makes our company stronger. We value diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging as necessary to achieve our mission and impact the communities we serve. We know that transforming education starts in-house with learning about ourselves and our colleagues. We strive to be world-class in investing in our people and commit to developing you as a professional.

THE ROLE

At Khan Academy, our Data Insights Group (DIG) is critical in leveraging data to evaluate our impact on learners and educators. By ensuring our data is accurate, actionable, and well-documented, we help measure effectiveness, identify areas for improvement, and support data-informed decision-making. The team includes Data Scientists, Analytics Engineers, Machine Learning Researchers, and Efficacy & Research Scientists.

We’re seeking an experienced Senior Technical Program Manager, Data, to help us change the world. We’ve built a talented team of people from a variety of backgrounds. We believe the best way to provide impactful education is to create a diverse team of people from different backgrounds, races, religions, genders, sexual orientations, ages, and experiences. Together, we’re a team that is deeply invested in your future. 

As a Senior Technical Program Manager, Data in the Data Insights Group (DIG), you will lead the planning and coordination of the delivery of complex data initiatives, aligning multiple engineering teams to enhance DIG’s efficiency and impact. Your work will empower DIG to discern our users' needs better and measure product efficacy, enabling us to build the best products to serve our mission. 

What you'll do:

• Translate Data Initiatives into Actionable Requirements– Work with Data Analysts, Data Scientists, and Efficacy & Research Scientists to translate analytic/research asks into data requirements for high-priority, complex, and large in-scope data initiatives. You will then coordinate with Analytics Engineering to bridge and translate this work by facilitating discussions so that Analytics Engineering can define and build the data solution.
• Facilitate Cross-Team Data Alignment – Partner with engineering and DIG to deeply understand and communicate fit-for-purpose data requirements. Bridge gaps between teams by surfacing key insights, resolving misalignment, and ensuring data needs are well understood. Use your technical expertise, product mindset, and prioritization skills to influence decisions, drive consensus, and keep data initiatives aligned with strategic priorities.
• Monitor Product Changes & Mitigate Data Risks– Stay informed about product changes and proactively alert DIG leaders to updates that could impact data interpretation or disrupt data pipelines. Ensure cross-functional teams have the necessary visibility to prevent inconsistencies and maintain data integrity.
• Develop & Optimize Data Processes– Collaborate with engineering leadership to design, implement, and refine data-related processes that accelerate and simplify data capturing and validation.

WHAT YOU BRING

• 8+ years of experience as a Technical Program Manager, successfully leading big data-focused programs (or multiple projects)  from inception to execution.
• Technical background in software development, data engineering, or analytics.  We do not expect you to apply the technical skills of a software engineer or data scientist. However, having prior experience in a technical role is necessary to be effective, make informed decisions, and collaborate effectively with technical teams. Familiarity with entity-relationship diagrams and basic SQL skills, or willingness to learn, are preferred.
• Proficient in program/project management tools (e.g., JIRA, Confluence, Gantt charts, spreadsheets,  presentations, etc.); comfortable collaborating in an online/cloud-based environment (e.g., Google Workspace, Slack, etc.).
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to build relationships and influence across multiple levels of the organization comprised of technical and non-technical individuals. You are the kind of person who can't help but get in there and listen deeply and help bridge information gaps between teams by asking deep questions about the data models and pulling out each teams ideas to share with the rest.
• Excellent organization skills, acute attention to detail, and ability to balance multiple tasks in an ever-changing environment.
• The ability to think creatively and use data to solve ambiguous and complex problems
• Motivated by the Khan Academy mission “to provide a free world-class education for anyone, anywhere."
• Proven cross-cultural competency skills demonstrating self-awareness, awareness of other, and the ability to adopt inclusive perspectives, attitudes, and behaviors to drive inclusion and belonging throughout the organization.

PERKS AND BENEFITS

We may be a non-profit, but we reward our talented team extremely well! We offer:

• Competitive salaries
• Ample paid time off as needed – Your well-being is a priority.
• Remote-first culture - that caters to your time zone, with open flexibility as needed, at times
• Generous parental leave
• An exceptional team that trusts you and gives you the freedom to do your best
• The chance to put your talents towards a deeply meaningful mission and the opportunity to work on high-impact products that are already defining the future of education
• Opportunities to connect through affinity, ally, and social groups
• And we offer all those other typical benefits as well: 401(k) + 4% matching & comprehensive insurance, including medical, dental, vision, and life

At Khan Academy we are committed to fair and equitable compensation practices, the well-being of our employees, and our Khan community. This belief is why we have built out a robust Total Rewards package that includes competitive base salaries, and extensive benefits and perks to support physical, mental, and financial well-being.

The target salary range for this position is $165,446 - $175,000 / $223,569 - $236,250 CAD. The pay range for this position is a general guideline only. The salary offered will depend on internal pay equity and the candidate’s relevant skills, experience, qualifications, and job market data. Exceptional performers in this role who make an outsized contribution can make well in excess of this range.  Additional incentives are provided as part of the complete total rewards package in addition to comprehensive medical and other benefits.

MORE ABOUT US

• Sal’s TED talk from 2011
• Sal’s TED talk from 2015
• Sal's TED talk from 2023
• Our team:  http://www.khanacademy.org/about/the-team

OUR COMPANY VALUES

Live & breathe learners

We deeply understand and empathize with our users. We leverage user insights, research, and experience to build content, products, services, and experiences that our users trust and love. Our success is defined by the success of our learners and educators.

Take a stand

As a company, we have conviction in our aspirational point of view of how education will evolve. The work we do is in service to moving towards that point of view. However, we also listen, learn and flex in the face of new data, and commit to evolving this point of view as the industry and our users evolve.

Embrace diverse perspectives

We are a diverse community. We seek out and embrace a diversity of voices, perspectives and life experiences leading to stronger, more inclusive teams and better outcomes. As individuals, we are committed to bringing up tough topics and leaning into different points of view with curiosity. We actively listen, learn and collaborate to gain a shared understanding. When a decision is made, we commit to moving forward as a united team.

Work responsibly and sustainably

We understand that achieving our audacious mission is a marathon, so we set realistic timelines and we focus on delivery that also links to the bigger picture. As a non-profit, we are supported by the generosity of donors as well as strategic partners, and understand our responsibility to our finite resources. We spend every dollar as though it were our own. We are responsible for the impact we have on the world and to each other. We ensure our team and company stay healthy and financially sustainable.

Bring out the joy

We are committed to making learning a joyful process. This informs what we build for our users and the culture we co-create with our teammates, partners and donors.

Cultivate learning mindset

We believe in the power of growth for learners and for ourselves. We constantly learn and teach to improve our offerings, ourselves, and our organization. We learn from our mistakes and aren’t afraid to fail. We don't let past failures or successes stop us from taking future bold action and achieving our goals.

Deliver wow

We insist on high standards and deliver delightful, effective end-to-end experiences that our users can rely on. We choose to focus on fewer things — each of which aligns to our ambitious vision — so we can deliver high-quality experiences that accelerate positive measurable learning with our strategic partners.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, or Veteran status. We value diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we encourage candidates from historically underrepresented groups to apply.

As part of this commitment, Khan Academy will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations for the hiring process. If reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact careers@khanacademy.org