(Remote) Vice President of Research & Development

About the role

Cayenta, a division of Harris, is seeking a Vice President of Research & Development to lead the AI-centric transformation of our core product suite and evolve a large, tenured engineering organization.

Responsibilities

• Drive the AI-powered transformation of Cayenta's core product suite.
• Translate AI capabilities into revenue-generating or cost-saving initiatives.
• Accelerate the CayentaOne roadmap by championing and implementing AI-assisted development (AI-DLC) practices to modernize our legacy stack faster.
• Evolve Cayla from a feature into a core, agentic AI platform that becomes a key competitive differentiator.
• Act as the key technical advisor to the EVP and GM, translating complex concepts into business terms to inform executive decision-making.
• Own and articulate the business case for the technology roadmap, defending strategic priorities with executive peers in Sales, Professional Services, and Support.
• Manage the entire R&D P&L, balancing the budget between market-driven features, managing technical debt, and strategic AI and platform investments.
• Lead a resilient change-ready team, fostering a culture of pragmatic innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

The ideal candidate must hold a current, valid passport and be legally eligible to travel internationally. This includes either passport-based visa exemption or possession of any required travel visas for entry into Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean.

Qualifications

• A proven track record as a trusted technology partner.
• Demonstrated experience moving AI initiatives from ideation to live production with measurable P&L impact.
• Deep, hands-on experience leading the multi-year modernization of a mature, revenue-generating enterprise software product.
• High emotional intelligence (EQ) with demonstrated success turning around or re-energizing a change-resistant engineering culture.
• Financial acumen and an understanding of how to run R&D with P&L discipline, preferably within a company with a similar operational model to Harris.

Skills

• An AI mindset that sees technology as a tool to solve business problems.
• Experience with AI-enabled technologies, including copilots, chat-based AI assistants, and automation tools.
• Strong communication and leadership skills to act as a strategic business partner.
• Ability to manage a 70-person organization and foster a culture of pragmatic innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Benefits

• 3 weeks' vacation and 5 personal days.
• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision benefits starting from your first day of employment.
• Employee stock ownership and RRSP/401k matching programs.
• Lifestyle rewards, including remote work and more!

Pay

$130,000 - $200,000 CAD / $91,000 - $141,000 USD

Schedule

This is a remote role requiring approximately 50% travel. Candidates must be legally eligible to travel internationally.