Director, AI Center of Excellence

About the role

We're standing up an AI Center of Excellence, and we're looking for a Director, AI Transformation to lead it. You'll own the system that makes Instructure an AI-native company: shared infrastructure, governance, a cross-functional roadmap, and a clear, honest read on impact. You'll partner with leaders in every function to turn AI from scattered pilots into a capability that gets sharper every quarter.

What you will be doing

• Build the foundation. Stand up and run the shared AI infrastructure — integrations, data boundaries, the approved-model registry, and a standard AI stack with single sign-on and data-loss prevention that every function can build on.
• Set the guardrails. Charter and run the governance council, and put in place the security, privacy, approval, and quality monitoring that let teams move fast without creating risk.
• Own the roadmap. Set AI COE priorities in collaboration with other departments.
• Prove the impact. Define the standard metrics for cost, throughput, and quality, and report progress through the AI efficiency scorecard.
• Create centralized training libraries and enablement programs along with HR team, and build the place where teams share what works so the whole company benefits.
• Lead the operating model. Run a centralized-expertise, decentralized-execution model where the Center of Excellence owns the system, functions own the outcomes.
• Build and grow the team. Hire, coach, and develop the Center of Excellence team, including forward-deployed AI engineers, admins etc

What you need to know and have

• 12 or more years of experience in technology, data, or product roles, including 5 or more years leading teams, with a track record of delivering measurable operational impact at scale — not just pilots.
• 2 or more years working directly with AI or machine-learning systems, including hands-on familiarity with modern AI tooling, agentic systems, and large language models.
• Deep understanding of the infrastructure, data, and security that production AI requires, including model registries, integrations, single sign-on, and data-loss prevention.
• Strong governance instincts. You know how to set guardrails for security, privacy, and quality that speed teams up rather than slow them down.
• Proven ability to influence across an organization, from individual contributors to executives, and to build coalitions in a decentralized operating model.
• Bias for clear metrics and honest reporting. You measure what matters and you tell the truth about progress.
• Experience building enablement and training programs that change how people actually work.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to make complex technical topics clear to non-technical audiences.
• A bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, data, business, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience. An advanced degree is a plus.

Pay

Compensation Range: $200K - $220K