Optimization Manager

Adyen provides payments, data, and financial products in a single solution for customers like Meta, Uber, H&M, and Microsoft - making us the financial technology platform of choice. At Adyen, everything we do is engineered for ambition. 

For our teams, we create an environment with opportunities for our people to succeed, backed by the culture and support to ensure they are enabled to truly own their careers. We are motivated individuals who tackle unique technical challenges at scale and solve them as a team. Together, we deliver innovative and ethical solutions that help businesses achieve their ambitions faster.

We are looking for an experienced Optimization Manager in Chicago to join our Performance Optimization Team. The role of an Optimization Manager (OM) is ideal for those who excel at managing the full funnel payments to create business impact, uncover growth opportunities, and optimize payments & fraud rate at scale.

As an OM, you will be a key contributor in delivering our optimization strategies and value add to our customers. You will partner with Commercial, Professional Services, and Product teams to develop data-driven insights, self-service analytics, and scalable automation solutions. You will also engage directly with key customers to enhance payment performance across risk, authentication, tokenization and authorization rates, driving higher approval rates, lower fraud, and cost efficiencies through optimization. Additionally, you will help upsell Adyen’s optimization products (e.g., Protect, Uplift) by acting as a bridge between customers , commercial and product teams, translating actionable data insights into value propositions that highlight Adyen’s capabilities.

The ideal candidate has a strong background in payments optimization strategies and cross-functional collaboration with the ability to translate complex findings into actionable recommendations.

• →Partner with commercial teams: Showcase Adyen’s value proposition and drive adoption within commercial environments and merchant facing communications.
• →Leverage data-driven insights: in collaboration with Data Analysts to inform merchant conversations.
• →Lead discussions: Hold expertise on leading discussions at a high level with existing and prospective customers , equipping commercial teams with tools and training to enhance their merchant engagements.
• →Act as a payment optimization expert: Able to offer both internal guidance and direct merchant-facing support.
• →Deploy sophisticated optimization playbooks: Analyze across Adyen’s customer portfolio using existing tools.
• →Upselling Adyen’s Products: Identify opportunities to introduce and drive adoption of Adyen solutions (such as Protect and Uplift) by bridging the gap between customers  and product teams, ensuring that key customers maximize their performance potential.
• →Lead training and education sessions: Support internal and external learning by hosting training sessions, workshops, and drop-in Q&A sessions around optimization and risk.
• →Support team operations: Assist with various tasks to help keep the Optimization team running smoothly.
• →Build strong relationships: Develop positive relationships with key regional customers and become a trusted point of contact.

• 3+ years of experience in Risk, Payment Performance , Data or a similar role within the payments industry.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, engaging with customers  and cross-functional teams to define needs and drive impact.
• Ownership and entrepreneurial mindset, with the ability to prioritize and drive execution independently.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, able to present insights and synthesize complex topics clearly.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment with global teams and international customers.
  
• Ability to effectively communicate the importance of risk management in payments optimization.
  
• High level of self-motivation and always looking for ways to improve and make our processes more efficient
  
• Strong data analysis and correlation skills with ability to work through complex and unfamiliar data sets. Experience creating impactful dashboards using BI tools (such as Looker or Tableau) is a plus.

This role is based in our Chicago office. We're an office-first company and expect employees to work in-office at least 3 days a week on average. This approach helps strike a balance between bringing people together for in-person collaboration and learning from each other, while also supporting flexibility.

We actively seek different perspectives to sharpen our ideas. Our unique culture is a product of our diverse backgrounds and experiences. No matter who you are or where you’re from, you’re welcome to be your true self at Adyen. 

If you need accommodations or support during the recruitment process to perform at your best, you’ll have the opportunity to let our team know in your application. We encourage people from all backgrounds and abilities to apply.

Ensuring a smooth and enjoyable candidate experience is critical for us. We aim to get back to you regarding your application within 5 business days. Our interview process tends to take about 4 weeks to complete, but may fluctuate depending on the role. If you have specific time constraints, please communicate them with your recruiter, and we’ll do our best to accommodate them where possible.

Adyen is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, marital status or any legally protected status. All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

You must be work authorized in the United States without the need for new visa sponsorship. The company can support visa transfers but will not sponsor individuals for H-1B CAP applications.

This role is based out of our Chicago office. We are an office-first company and value in-person collaboration; we do not offer remote-only roles.