Director, Cost Transformation & Governance

The Company

PayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. 

We operate a global, two-sided network at scale that connects hundreds of millions of merchants and consumers. We help merchants and consumers connect, transact, and complete payments, whether they are online or in person. PayPal is more than a connection to third-party payment networks. We provide proprietary payment solutions accepted by merchants that enable the completion of payments on our platform on behalf of our customers.

We offer our customers the flexibility to use their accounts to purchase and receive payments for goods and services, as well as the ability to transfer and withdraw funds. We enable consumers to exchange funds more safely with merchants using a variety of funding sources, which may include a bank account, a PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products, a credit card, a debit card, certain cryptocurrencies, or other stored value products such as gift cards, and eligible credit card rewards.  Our PayPal, Venmo, and Xoom products also make it safer and simpler for friends and family to transfer funds to each other. We offer merchants an end-to-end payments solution that provides authorization and settlement capabilities, as well as instant access to funds and payouts. We also help merchants connect with their customers, process exchanges and returns, and manage risk. We enable consumers to engage in cross-border shopping and merchants to extend their global reach while reducing the complexity and friction involved in enabling cross-border trade. 

Our beliefs are the foundation for how we conduct business every day.  We live each day guided by our core values of Inclusion, Innovation, Collaboration, and Wellness. Together, our values ensure that we work together as one global team with our customers at the center of everything we do – and they push us to ensure we take care of ourselves, each other, and our communities.

Job Summary:

PayPal is undertaking a company-wide Cost & AI Transformation Program to deliver approximately $2B in run-rate savings by Q2 2028. The program spans organizational simplification, workforce optimization, geographic strategy, contractor insourcing, procurement, automation, AI, and broader operating efficiencies.

We are seeking a seasoned transformation leader to build and lead the governance model for this enterprise program. This individual will create the operating system that moves opportunities from initial sizing through validation, business case approval, implementation, and realized financial benefits.

The role will also help govern how AI and automation contribute to PayPal’s transformation agenda aligning AI plans across the company, tracking investments and outcomes, and ensuring benefits are realized within the required timelines.

Job Description:

Essential Responsibilities:

• Scope: The project & program responsibilities are focused on internal information system-specific project tasks or non-technical project completion using an internal customer perspective, both typically from initiation through delivery.
• Develop and implement process improvements for program management.
• Manage a variety of programs/projects for completeness and compliance.
• Guide prioritization of projects and utilization of resources.
• Deliver progress reports to leadership.
• Develop performance metrics and dashboards.
• Ensure alignment with strategic objectives.
• Steer programs through the lifecycle with sponsors and stakeholders.

Minimum Qualifications:

• 10+ years relevant experience and a Bachelor’s degree OR Any equivalent combination of education and experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Build the enterprise cost governance operating model, including decision rights, accountabilities, approval thresholds, escalation paths, and required evidence at each stage.
• Establish the stage-gate process from ideation and sizing through validation, business cases, implementation planning, execution, and benefits realization.
• Define consistent standards for pipeline, validated, committed, approved, and realized savings, including net recurring benefit, cost avoidance, one-time costs, investments, and timing.
• Design and run the required executive forums, including CFO and CEO Office reviews, steering committees, workstream reviews, business checkpoints, and benefits-realization reviews.
• Create the ongoing the integrated enterprise view of targets, baselines, opportunities, initiatives, owners, milestones, dependencies, investments, and realized benefits.
• Establish processes for managing target and baseline changes, including reorganizations, employee movements, delayed actions, scope changes, and overlapping benefits.
• Build and maintain the enterprise RAID log, decision log, action tracker, and escalation process, with clear ownership, due dates, service levels, and closure criteria.
• Partner with Finance to reconcile planned and realized savings to budgets, forecasts, actuals, cost centers, and P&L outcomes.
• Govern the AI and automation contribution to the transformation program, including aligning plans across AI teams and business functions, clarifying investment and value expectations, and ensuring initiatives are connected to enterprise priorities.
• Ensure AI and automation plans are aligned with value-realization guidelines and that benefits are recognized in the appropriate planning, budgeting, and financial reporting cycles.
• Define the tooling and data requirements for the program, including integration across HR, Finance, workforce, planning, procurement, project management, AI, automation, and reporting systems.
• Track execution against approved plans and drive course correction when milestones, savings, AI adoption, or benefits are delayed or at risk.
• Manage cross-program dependencies, sequencing constraints, shared investments, resource conflicts, and potential double counting.
• Challenge assumptions, sizing, timing, investment requirements, and execution plans when the evidence or expected value is not credible.
• Develop governance playbooks, templates, standards, and training that can be reused across future cost, AI, and enterprise transformation programs.

Candidate Profile

• Seasoned leader with 10+ years experience in cost transformation, operating model transformation, restructuring, AI transformation, or another large-scale enterprise program.
• Track record managing complex, multi-workstream programs with material financial targets and measurable outcomes.
• Experience building governance models, executive forums, stage gates, escalation processes, RAID management, and benefits-realization mechanisms.
• Strong financial acumen and understanding of how operating actions and technology investments translate into P&L results.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders, challenge assumptions, and drive accountability without relying solely on formal authority.
• Excellent executive communication, judgment, and problem-solving skills.
• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and building structure where processes, data, and ownership are still developing.

Subsidiary:

PayPal

Travel Percent:

0

-

The base pay for this role will depend on where you work and the relevant experience and expertise you bring. The expected range of pay for this role by location is:


Primary Location | Pay Range:

New York City, New York: ($159,500.00 - $236,500.00 Annually)


Additional Location(s) | Pay Range:

No other locations are assigned to this requisition currently.

Additional compensation for this role may include an annual performance bonus, equity, or other incentive compensation, as applicable.

PayPal does not charge candidates any fees for courses, applications, resume reviews, interviews, background checks, or onboarding. When making an application directly, we will never ask you to share passwords, one-time passcodes (OTP), or verification codes.  Any such request is a red flag and likely part of a scam. All communication regarding your application will come from official PayPal email domains. If you suspect fraudulent activity, please report it immediately.  To learn more about how to identify and avoid recruitment fraud please visit https://careers.pypl.com/contact-us. 

For the majority of employees, PayPal's balanced hybrid work model offers 3 days in the office for effective in-person collaboration and 2 days at your choice of either the PayPal office or your home workspace, ensuring that you equally have the benefits and conveniences of both locations.

Our Benefits:

At PayPal, we’re committed to building an equitable and inclusive global economy. And we can’t do this without our most important asset-you. That’s why we offer comprehensive, choice-based programs, to support all aspects of personal wellbeing—physical, emotional, and financial—delivering meaningful value where it matters most. We strive to create a flexible, balanced work culture with a holistic approach to benefits, including generous paid time off, healthcare coverage for you and your family, and resources to create financial security and support your mental health.

Who We Are:

Click Here to learn more about our culture and community.

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion 

PayPal provides equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.  In addition, PayPal will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.  If you are unable to submit an application because of incompatible assistive technology or a disability, please contact us at [email protected].

Belonging at PayPal: 

Our employees are central to advancing our mission, and we strive to create an environment where everyone can do their best work with a sense of purpose and belonging. Belonging at PayPal means creating a workplace with a sense of acceptance and security where all employees feel included and valued. We are proud to have a diverse workforce reflective of the merchants, consumers, and communities that we serve, and we continue to take tangible actions to cultivate inclusivity and belonging at PayPal.

Any general requests for consideration of your skills, please Join our Talent Community.

We know the confidence gap and imposter syndrome can get in the way of meeting spectacular candidates. Please don’t hesitate to apply.

Notice to Applicants and Employees who reside within New York City. Click here to view the notice.