At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead AI strategy and implementation, driving innovative solutions across the organisation.
- Company: Dynamic tech company focused on AI growth and transformation.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, quarterly bonuses, hybrid work, and career progression.
- Other info: High autonomy and influence in a growing business with exciting challenges.
- Why this job: Shape the future of AI in a fast-paced environment with significant impact.
- Qualifications: Proven AI leadership experience and expertise in Python and AI frameworks.
A growing technology-led business is looking to appoint a Head of AI to lead the development, implementation, and long-term adoption of AI capabilities across the organisation. This is a strategic and hands-on leadership role focused on shaping the company’s AI direction while overseeing the successful delivery of AI solutions from concept through to live deployment and business adoption.
Working closely with IT, operational, commercial, and leadership teams, you will drive practical AI initiatives using Azure, LLMs, machine learning, and AI agents — ensuring solutions are secure, scalable, integrated, and delivering measurable business impact. The organisation is already investing heavily in AI and exploring a broad range of initiatives. They are now looking for an experienced AI leader who can combine technical expertise with strategic thinking, helping define the AI roadmap while building internal capability and leading implementation across the business.
This role would suit someone who enjoys building and scaling AI functions, leading innovation, solving operational challenges, and delivering transformational business outcomes in a fast-moving environment.
Role PurposeLead the organisation’s AI capability, strategy, and implementation roadmap. Responsible for identifying, prioritising, and delivering AI solutions that create measurable operational and commercial value. Working across the business, you will oversee the design, deployment, governance, and adoption of AI technologies while helping shape the future AI direction of the organisation.
Key Responsibilities- Define and lead the organisation’s AI strategy, roadmap, and long-term capability development
- Identify and prioritise AI opportunities across operational, commercial, and customer-facing areas of the business
- Design and oversee the development of high-performing AI models tailored to business needs
- Lead AI initiatives from proof of concept and rapid prototyping through to enterprise-scale production deployment
- Work closely with IT Infrastructure and Development teams to deploy secure, scalable AI solutions into production environments
- Ensure AI solutions meet enterprise-grade security, governance, and compliance standards including Private Endpoints and secure integrations
- Drive adoption of AI technologies across the organisation and ensure solutions become embedded within day-to-day workflows
- Establish AI governance, operational standards, and best practices for deployment, monitoring, scalability, and risk management
- Implement monitoring and evaluation frameworks for production AI environments, including hallucination detection, drift monitoring, performance optimisation, and GenAIOps processes
- Ensure AI solutions integrate effectively with existing systems, APIs, and data platforms
- Collaborate with senior stakeholders to evaluate business value, project feasibility, and ROI before implementation
- Measure and report on AI project outcomes including efficiency gains, automation improvements, productivity, and customer impact
- Provide leadership, mentorship, and technical direction to internal teams and future AI hires
- Stay informed on emerging AI technologies, trends, and opportunities to maintain competitive advantage
Essential
- Proven experience leading AI strategy, implementation, or AI transformation initiatives within a business environment
- Deep expertise in Python and modern AI/ML frameworks and SDKs
- Strong experience building and deploying production-grade AI solutions, including RAG pipelines and LLM-based applications
- Hands-on experience with AI deployment, operationalisation, monitoring, and scaling
- Strong understanding of enterprise infrastructure concepts including VNets, Entra ID, API Gateways, Private Endpoints, and secure integrations
- Experience working with at least one major enterprise AI cloud platform (Azure preferred)
- Strong SQL skills and experience working with both structured and unstructured data
- Experience building AI agents, workflow automation, and tool/API integrations
- Strong commercial awareness with the ability to assess business value and prioritise AI initiatives effectively
- Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to engage both technical and non-technical audiences
- Strong leadership, problem-solving, and strategic thinking capabilities
Desirable
- Experience leading or building internal AI functions or teams
- Experience with LLMOps / GenAIOps tooling and monitoring frameworks
- Exposure to OCR, computer vision, voice AI, or conversational AI solutions
- Experience working within operational, retail, automotive, or customer-focused businesses
- Familiarity with AI governance, security, and scalability best practices
- Experience driving organisation-wide AI adoption and change management initiatives
- Competitive salary depending on experience
- Quarterly bonus scheme
- Hybrid working arrangements — 3 days office / 2 days remote
- Opportunity to shape and lead AI capability within a growing business
- Significant long-term career progression opportunities
- High level of autonomy and influence within the organisation
Interested? Please click Apply Now!
Head of AI in Manchester employer: Adria Solutions Ltd
Join a forward-thinking technology-led business in Manchester as the Head of AI, where you will have the opportunity to shape and lead the AI strategy within a dynamic environment. With a strong focus on employee growth, the company offers significant long-term career progression opportunities, a competitive salary, and a hybrid working model that promotes work-life balance. Embrace a culture of innovation and collaboration, driving impactful AI initiatives while enjoying a high level of autonomy and influence across the organisation.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of AI in Manchester
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Get out there and connect with people in the AI field. Attend meetups, conferences, or webinars where you can chat with industry leaders and potential colleagues. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings!
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio showcasing your AI projects, especially those involving Azure, machine learning, or LLMs. This will give potential employers a taste of what you can do and how you can drive their AI initiatives.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by brushing up on your technical knowledge and strategic thinking. Be ready to discuss how you've led AI transformations in the past and how you can help shape the future of AI in their organisation.
✨Tip Number 4
Don't forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets noticed. Plus, we love seeing candidates who are proactive about their job search!
We think you need these skills to ace Head of AI in Manchester
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter to highlight your experience with AI strategy and implementation. We want to see how your skills align with our needs, so don’t hold back on showcasing your relevant achievements!
Showcase Your Technical Skills:Since this role is all about leading AI initiatives, be sure to emphasise your expertise in Python, machine learning frameworks, and any cloud platforms like Azure. We’re looking for someone who can hit the ground running, so let us know what you’ve built!
Demonstrate Leadership Experience:We value strong leadership skills, so share examples of how you've led teams or projects in the past. Highlight your ability to mentor others and drive AI adoption across an organisation — we want to see your impact!
Apply Through Our Website:Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for this exciting opportunity. We can’t wait to hear from you!
How to prepare for a job interview at Adria Solutions Ltd
✨Know Your AI Stuff
Make sure you brush up on your knowledge of AI technologies, especially those mentioned in the job description like Azure, LLMs, and machine learning. Be ready to discuss your hands-on experience with these tools and how you've successfully implemented AI solutions in the past.
✨Showcase Your Strategic Thinking
This role is all about shaping the AI direction of the company. Prepare examples of how you've defined and led AI strategies in previous roles. Think about how you can demonstrate your ability to identify and prioritise AI opportunities that deliver real business value.
✨Engage with Stakeholders
Since you'll be working closely with various teams, practice how you would communicate complex AI concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences. Have examples ready of how you've successfully managed stakeholder relationships and driven adoption of AI technologies in your previous roles.
✨Prepare for Problem-Solving Questions
Expect to face questions that assess your problem-solving skills, especially in operational challenges. Think of specific instances where you've tackled issues related to AI deployment or governance, and be ready to explain your thought process and the outcomes.
