Chief Professional Services Officer - AI SaaS in Leeds

We are supporting a high-growth AI SaaS business with the appointment of a Chief Professional Services Officer. This is a strategic leadership position offering the opportunity to build, lead and scale a best-in-class professional services, implementation and deployment function from the ground up

Chief Professional Services Officer - AI SaaS

We are supporting a high-growth AI SaaS business with the appointment of a Chief Professional Services Officer. This is a strategic leadership position offering the opportunity to build, lead and scale a best-in-class professional services, implementation and deployment function from the ground up.

Working closely with the CEO and wider leadership team, you will define the AI operating model, delivery strategy, governance framework and team structure required to support ambitious growth plans whilst ensuring customers achieve measurable value from software deployments.

Ideal for an experienced Professional Services, Deployment or Delivery leader, this role combines executive leadership, commercial ownership, implementation excellence and organisational design within a rapidly growing AI technology environment.

• Leeds - Office Based
• 30 Days Holiday + Bank Holidays (rising to 35 with service) + Work Anniversary Day Off

Professional Services Leadership & Strategy:

• Define and execute the AI Professional Services strategy in line with business growth objectives.
• Lead a high-performing implementation function, creating scalable processes, methodologies and delivery standards.
• Partner with senior leadership on strategic planning, budgeting, resource allocation and organisational design.
• Develop, coach and grow a team of project managers, implementation consultants and delivery specialists.
• Establish a culture focused on customer outcomes, accountability, operational excellence and continuous improvement.

Delivery, Implementation & Governance:

• Oversee the successful delivery of customer implementation projects, ensuring high-quality outcomes delivered on time and within budget.
• Introduce robust AI governance, risk management, change control and delivery reporting frameworks.
• Create repeatable deployment methodologies and implementation playbooks that support scalable growth.
• Ensure customers successfully transition from implementation into long-term operational adoption and value realisation.
• Drive continuous improvements in implementation quality, efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Commercial & Operational Management:

• Own departmental budgets, resource planning, utilisation, forecasting and commercial performance.
• Scope projects accurately, produce Statements of Work and maintain strong change control processes.
• Monitor project profitability, delivery margins and deployment capacity.
• Provide executive-level visibility across performance, risks, customer outcomes and operational effectiveness.
• Ensure Professional Services remains a commercially sustainable and scalable function.

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Work closely with Sales, Product, Customer Success and Development teams to ensure seamless customer delivery.
• Support project scoping activities and smooth transitions from sale through to implementation.
• Feed customer insights and operational challenges back into product and service development initiatives.
• Act as the bridge between customer requirements, commercial commitments and technical delivery.

Candidate Profile

• Significant leadership experience within Professional Services, Deployment, Implementation or Delivery functions in an AI SaaS, software, technology or enterprise solutions environment.
• Proven track record delivering complex AI software implementation projects for customers.
• Experience operating at senior leadership or executive level, including strategic planning, budgeting and board-level reporting.
• Strong commercial acumen covering project profitability, forecasting, utilisation, budgeting and resource planning.
• Experience defining Statements of Work, project scope and formal change control processes.
• Demonstrable experience leading and developing Professional Services, Implementation or Delivery teams.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with the ability to engage and influence senior customer and business leaders.
• Strong organisational leadership capabilities with experience building scalable teams, frameworks and delivery operations.
• Ability to translate operational challenges into structured implementation plans and measurable business outcomes.
• Experience with Microsoft, Sage, Salesforce ecosystems, ERP, CRM or enterprise software platforms.
• Background within Field Service Management, AI workflow automation or operational technology environments.
• Experience building, scaling or transforming a Professional Services function during a period of significant growth.
• Knowledge of delivery governance frameworks, reporting structures and performance KPIs.
• Exposure to AI, automation, workflow transformation or integration-led software solutions.
• Experience helping customers redesign processes and embed technology into operational environments.

What Success Looks Like

• Build a scalable AI Professional Services function capable of supporting rapid business growth.
• Implement consistent AI deployment methodologies, governance frameworks and delivery best practices.
• Improve implementation quality, customer satisfaction and time-to-value, ensuring an increase in consultant utilisation, project profitability and delivery margins.
• Deliver predictable project timescales through effective planning, reporting and risk management.
• Establish clear executive reporting across performance, capacity, commercial metrics and customer outcomes.
• Build strong collaboration across Sales, Product, Delivery and Customer Success teams to create a seamless customer journey.
• Create a high-performing team and operating model that positions Professional Services as a key driver of long-term business success.

We are proud to be partnered with a well-funded, ambitious and high-growth SaaS start-up that is helping organisations transform operations through innovative AI software, automation and workflow solutions. Having established strong market traction, the business is now entering a significant growth phase and requires a strategic leader to build their Professional Services capacity that will support future scale and customer success.

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