Executive Director of Applied AI

Location: Cambridge or East Hanover – 3 days/week in office

About the Role

Novartis is making a significant long-term investment in becoming an AI-first organization, with sponsorship at the highest levels of the company. This is a rare opportunity to shape how generative AI and agentic systems are engineered, deployed, and adopted across a global enterprise whose work ultimately supports patients and healthcare systems worldwide.

As Executive Director of Applied AI, you will combine technical depth, product thinking, and enterprise influence to turn high-value business challenges into secure, scalable AI products and intelligent workflows. You will lead a small, globally distributed team of applied AI engineers and work directly with senior business and technology leaders to deliver measurable value at scale.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead the applied AI deployment strategy, execution roadmap, and business integration model across enterprise business units.
• Act as a forward-deployed AI engineering leader, partnering directly with business teams to translate strategic priorities into deployable products, intelligent workflows, and redesigned processes.
• Lead technical solution architecture for complex AI deployments, making hands-on decisions on application architecture, system integration patterns, model orchestration, APIs, security controls, and production infrastructure.
• Lead end-to-end implementation, customization, integration, and scaling of generative AI, agentic systems, and workflow automation solutions in production environments.
• Build, lead, and coach a small, globally distributed team of forward-deployed AI engineers, establishing engineering excellence through technical review processes, coding standards, and career development while actively guiding delivery on critical engagements.
• Establish delivery frameworks and engineering standards that support scalability, reliability, security, maintainability, and sustained operational adoption.
• Create reusable AI services, accelerators, evaluation frameworks, blueprints, and integration patterns that reduce time to value across business domains.
• Partner with data, infrastructure, information security, architecture, compliance, and business teams to align solutions with enterprise priorities and regulated-environment requirements.
• Track solution performance, adoption, and business value through monitoring, feedback loops, user analysis, and continuous service optimization.
• Guide modernization of existing systems and processes so they can integrate with agentic AI products, applied AI models, and enterprise technology platforms.
• Communicate business impact, technical transformation vision, delivery progress, risks, and investment needs to senior executives and key stakeholders.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, data science, or a related field.
• At least 15 years of progressive experience in technology leadership, enterprise AI transformation, or complex solution delivery, including leadership of senior technical and cross-functional teams.
• Deep, hands-on expertise in applied AI delivery, including taking machine learning, generative AI, and agentic solutions from concept through production and enterprise-scale adoption.
• Strong software and product engineering grounding, with experience integrating AI into complex enterprise platforms, data environments, and operational workflows.
• Hands-on proficiency with modern AI engineering stacks, including Python, cloud platforms (e.g., AWS), LLM orchestration frameworks, vector databases, MLOps/LLMOps, and software delivery practices.
• Demonstrated success defining and scaling enterprise-level AI initiatives, with measurable business value, automation, or performance outcomes.
• Experience leading forward-deployed, solutions engineering, or technical consulting teams, translating ambiguous business problems into production-grade software systems in enterprise environments.
• Consulting or professional-services experience partnering with senior technology and business leaders on enterprise transformation, operating models, or technology strategy.
• Proven people leadership and organizational development capability, including building high-performing teams, developing leaders, and establishing effective governance.
• Strong executive communication and cross-functional influence skills, with the ability to align priorities, investment decisions, and delivery across a complex matrixed organization.

Qualifications

• Master of Science, engineering postgraduate degree, or MBA.
• Experience delivering AI solutions in healthcare, life sciences, or another complex regulated environment, or prior zero-to-one startup experience.

Pay

The salary for this position is expected to range between $225,400.00 - $418,600.00 per year. The final salary offered is determined based on factors like, but not limited to, relevant skills and experience, and upon joining Novartis will be reviewed periodically. Novartis may change the published salary range based on company and market factors.

Your compensation will include a performance-based cash incentive and, depending on the level of the role, eligibility to be considered for annual equity awards.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health, life, and disability benefits.
• 401(k) with company contribution and match.
• Generous time off package including vacation, personal days, holidays, and other leaves.