Associate Director, AI Enterprise Architect, EY-Parthenon in London

At EY, we’re all in to shape your future with confidence. We’ll help you succeed in a globally connected powerhouse of diverse teams and take your career wherever you want it to go. Join EY and help to build a better working world.

Your Key Responsibilities

• Providing strategic and technology advisory leadership across AI strategy, transformation and transaction engagements.
• Advising clients on AI target architectures and evaluating architectural options against business objectives, value creation opportunities, investment constraints and risk considerations.
• Structuring ambiguous client problems into hypotheses, analyses and actionable recommendations.
• Designing end-to-end AI target architectures spanning data foundations, models, orchestration, integration, security, enterprise systems and the operating model required to run them.
• Assessing AI, technology and data maturity of enterprises including the credibility of data/AI claims, the durability of application landscape, infrastructure and data to scale AI in an enterprise context.
• Defining AI solutions for targeted use cases or complex AI products that span across value streams.
• Developing board-ready recommendations on AI-enabled growth, productivity and transformation opportunities.
• Developing the technical and economic case for AI, including inference and token costs, infrastructure requirements, cost-to-serve, gross-margin sensitivity and build, buy or partner decisions.
• Advising on AI governance, security, data residency, responsible AI and relevant regulatory requirements.
• Guiding prototyping teams and using prototypes to test strategic, operational, commercial and technical assumptions.
• Defining architecture standards, reference patterns, assessment frameworks, strategy and reusable technical assets for the practice.
• Communicating strategic implications, investment trade-offs, architecture decisions and technical risks clearly to boards, investment committees, executive teams and non-technical stakeholders.
• Supporting proposals, technical workshops and pursuit meetings, acting as a credibility anchor on complex AI questions.
• Coaching colleagues and building AI architecture capability across EY-Parthenon and the wider EY organisation.

Skills And Attributes for Success

• Deep technical expertise with the ability to operate effectively in a strategy consulting environment.
• Strong enterprise architecture experience across AI, data, applications, integration, infrastructure, security and operating-model considerations.
• A practical understanding of generative AI, machine learning, foundation models, retrieval architectures, orchestration, agentic patterns and modern data platforms.
• Experience designing AI or machine-learning systems that progressed beyond proof of concept into sustained production use.
• Practical familiarity with Python and AI development approaches sufficient to review technical designs, guide prototyping efforts and challenge technical assumptions.
• Experience with cloud-native and hybrid environments, including at least one of AWS, Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud Platform.
• Working knowledge of modern data platforms such as Databricks or Snowflake, and integration with core enterprise systems.
• A strong understanding of AI unit economics and the difference between a successful demonstration and a system that is affordable, scalable and supportable in production.
• Familiarity with emerging AI architectures, agentic systems and enterprise AI design patterns.
• Strong answer-first communication and the ability to structure complex technical questions under demanding deadlines.
• The ability to explain an architecture decision, technical risk or investment requirement clearly to a non-technical executive audience.
• Evidence of constructively influencing senior stakeholders.
• A collaborative and low-ego working style.
• The ability to translate technology choices into implications for value, cost, scalability, risk, competitive differentiation and strategic control.

To Qualify for the Role, You Must

• 7+ years spanning technology strategy, AI advisory, enterprise architecture, solution architecture, technology consulting or related disciplines.
• Have hands-on experience designing AI architectures or machine-learning systems that reached and remained in production.
• Have experience working at the intersection of business strategy and technology.
• Have demonstrable enterprise architecture experience across cloud-native or hybrid technology environments.
• Have experience integrating AI and data solutions with enterprise systems.
• Practical familiarity with Python and AI development approaches.
• Have experience assessing the scalability, security, reliability, performance and cost of AI systems.
• Have strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Be able to work effectively across multidisciplinary teams.
• Be comfortable delivering high-quality answers under tight deadlines.
• Be able to provide vendor-neutral advice and objectively evaluate competing technologies.
• A masters degree or equivalent in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Data Science or related analytical discipline from a reputable university.

Ideally, You Will Also

• Have experience supporting technology, digital or AI diligence engagements.
• Have experience evaluating AI-enabled products, software businesses, data assets or technology-led investment theses.
• Bring sector expertise in one or more industries.
• Have experience advising on responsible AI, AI governance, model risk, AI security, regulatory compliance or technology assurance.
• Have worked with major enterprise technology platforms.
• Have experience developing reusable assessment frameworks, architecture patterns, strategic recommendations or reference assets.
• Be an effective coach and mentor.
• Be a highly collaborative team player.

What We Offer

• An attractive remuneration package where you’ll be rewarded for your performance.
• Support for flexible working and career development.
• Continuous learning through training, coaching and mentorship.
• Opportunities to advise senior business leaders and investors.
• The opportunity to shape architecture standards and reusable assets.
• A diverse and inclusive culture.
• Tools and flexibility to make a meaningful impact.

If you can demonstrate that you meet the criteria above, please contact us as soon as possible.