Shaping strategy through data: A conversation with Chime’s VP of Analytics
When Sanford Morrow joined Chime® as VP of Analytics, it wasn’t just his resume that stood out—though it’s an impressive one. From analytical consulting with IBM for the U.S. Postal Service to leadership roles at Google, Pinterest, and Upwork, he’s worked across some of the most influential tech companies of the past two decades. But ask Sanford how he got his start, and he’ll tell you it was almost by accident.
As a business major in college, Sanford originally set his sights on a career in brand strategy. But after a short stint at an ad agency—an experience he quickly realized wasn’t for him—a friend encouraged him to explore a role in analytics consulting. That opportunity, supporting the USPS, became a pivotal moment. Sanford taught himself to code, learned SQL and SAS, and began navigating slow-moving data warehouses. But the real unlock, he says, wasn’t technical. It was discovering how to translate data into stories—ones that revealed what was happening in complex systems and drove more informed conversations and decisions.
Following the questions that matter
That ability to bridge the technical and the strategic became a throughline in Sanford’s career. At Google, he worked closely with sales teams, helping them prepare data-rich pitches and partnering with CMOs and heads of data at some of the world’s biggest brands. Early on, he focused on online travel, surfacing insights on consumer search trends and competitiveness by origin and destination. Later, he moved into consumer electronics—a very different, brand-heavy space that challenged him to adapt his measurement techniques and sharpen his perspective.
Throughout it all, Sanford kept following his curiosity. “The number one thing you need to be successful in analytics is curiosity,” he says. “You can always refine your technical skills or get better at stakeholder management, but if you’re not curious, you’re not going to ask the right questions or find the most meaningful answers.” That mindset has shaped his approach to choosing roles, building teams, and thinking about the evolving role of analytics in business. It’s also what ultimately brought him to Chime.
Why Chime?
When Sanford first started exploring his next chapter, he was looking for a company at a pivotal moment—one with a strong foundation but a wide-open future. “Chime has built a really successful business serving a core audience,” he says. “Now it’s thinking about how to evolve, expand its offerings, and grow over the next two, five, ten years, and that’s my favorite kind of challenge.” He’s experienced similar transitions before, having been at Pinterest pre-IPO and Upwork post-IPO. He knew how important operational rigor, structure, and clarity of vision would be. And when he met Barkha Saxena, Chime’s Chief Data Officer, he was immediately inspired. “I thought, this is someone I’d be excited to work for,” he remembers.
Since joining Chime, Sanford has focused on reshaping how data informs the business—from reframing which metrics matter most, to helping executives understand performance in more nuanced ways and rallying his team around a shared vision. “It’s not about how much code you write,” he says. “It’s about the impact you have. Are you helping the business grow? Are you removing roadblocks so the team can do more of the fun, meaningful work and less of the routine?”
What makes a great analytics team
Sanford is quick to note that building a strong analytics function is as much about people as it is about data. He wants his team to be proactive, not reactive—to be deeply engaged partners who bring insight, not just answers. That means encouraging a high level of ownership, asking tough questions, and having the confidence to push back when needed. “The best partnerships are the ones where both sides make each other better,” he says.
Looking ahead, Sanford is excited about what’s on the horizon, including new product launches and expanded offerings for Chime members. Internally, he’s focused on helping the analytics team find its rhythm and grow together. And he’s committed to nurturing the next generation of leaders: “We want to build from within. Most of our leaders have grown here. I’m proud of that—and I want to keep creating those opportunities.”
That focus on growth—of the business, the team, and each individual analyst—has been a constant throughout Sanford’s career. Curiosity drives the work, but so does a belief in building things that last: better ways of measuring, clearer paths to impact, and stronger teams.
At Chime, that means developing a function that doesn’t just respond to questions, but asks the right ones—and uses data to help shape where the company goes next.
