Role Details:
- Salary: Competitive (Plus Bonus and incentives)
- Location: Head Office - One City Place, Chester (Hybrid)
- Reporting to: Group CTO
About Us
Forge Holiday Group is a leading UK holiday lettings business, connecting millions of customers with great holiday experiences. With award-winning brands like Sykes Holiday Cottages and Forest Holidays, we’re 1,700+ people strong and powered by four values: One Business One Team, Keep it Simple, Grow & Learn, Sustainable Impact.
Data is already central to how we operate - and we’re now investing to take it further.
We’re building a modern, AI-ready data platform to create a single, trusted view of our business - powering insight, decision-making, and over 300 AI agents already in use.
The Role
This is a builder’s role - not maintenance.
As Director of Data, you will define and deliver our end-to-end data strategy, platform, and capability.
You will:
- Architect and scale a modern data platform (data vault, knowledge graph, insight layer)
- Enable AI, analytics, and product innovation through trusted data
- Build and lead high-performing data teams
- Build the Future of Data at Scale -Define the strategy, infrastructure, and operating model that will power data across multiple brands and markets.
- Drive a true data-first culture across the organisation
- Drive Real Commercial Impact - Every initiative will connect directly to revenue growth, customer experience, and owner success.
- Join a Strong Technology Leadership Team - Work alongside senior leaders driving product, platform, and AI transformation across the group
Why Now?
We’re moving from fragmented data to a single version of the truth - trusted, accessible, and compounding in value over time
Strong foundations are already in place - now we need the right leader to accelerate and deliver.
Our Approach: Grow and Learn
One of our core values is Grow and Learn.
We’ve applied that directly to this search - listening, refining, and evolving the role based on what we’ve learned.
We welcome both new applicants and those who have previously applied.
What You’ll Bring
Essential:
- Experience delivering large-scale data platform transformations
- Deep expertise in modern data architecture (data vault, lakehouse, semantic layers)
- Cloud data platform experience (Microsoft Fabric highly advantageous)
- Experience supporting AI/ML or agent-based systems
- Proven leadership and stakeholder management capability
Desirable:
- Experience in travel, e-commerce, or marketplace businesses
- Knowledge of knowledge graphs and data democratisation
- Strong commercial acumen
Why Join Us
- A transformational, CEO-sponsored programme
- A business already leveraging AI at scale
- The opportunity to build a platform and team from strong foundations
- A culture that lives its values - including Grow and Learn
Forge Holiday Group Benefits:
- Annual STIP Company-wide Bonus Scheme offering up to an additional 30% of your salary through our performance-based bonus program
- ✈️ 33 days’ holiday (including bank holidays), plus up to 5 extra with long service.
- Option to purchase extra holiday days if you wish.
- A day off for your birthday
✋- 2 volunteering days per year.
- Enhanced parental leave (24 weeks maternity, 3 weeks paternity at full pay).
- Pension scheme with employer contributions
- Discounted and last-minute stays at Forest Holidays and Sykes Cottages for you, your friends & family.
- ️ Special offers and discounts designed to enhance your overall wellbeing.
❤️- Health cash plan & life assurance.
- Training & development opportunities.
- 24/7 mental health support.
- ️ On-site gym and parking at Chester HQ (near train station).
- Employee savings scheme
- Long service awards and company events
We’re all about diversity, inclusion, and bringing your authentic self to work. Need adjustments for the recruitment process? Just ask.
Apply
We’re doing things slightly differently.
Alongside your CV, as part of your application, we will ask you to record a short video (2–3 minutes) explaining:
Why are you the right person to lead this transformation?
Following your application, we will send you a link to record your video
If you’ve applied before - we’d love to hear from you again if you believe you meet this brief and we’ve missed a trick
