At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead AI strategy and drive impactful initiatives across the organisation.
- Company: Join Very, a digital retailer focused on helping families thrive.
- Benefits: Enjoy flexible working, generous holiday, and a £10,000 benefits allowance.
- Other info: Inclusive culture with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
- Why this job: Shape the future of AI in a dynamic environment and make a real difference.
- Qualifications: Experience in strategic leadership and driving organisational change.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.
About us
We’re the team behind digital retailer Very.
Our purpose, helping families get more out of life, powers everything we do.
And we want our people to get more out of life too! If you’re high-performing, ambitious and make the most of every opportunity, we want to hear from you. In return, you’ll enjoy heaps of flexibility, great perks and benefits, and the freedom to be yourself, keep learning and take your career wherever you want it to go.
About the role
As The Very Group accelerates the adoption of AI across the organisation, the Head of AI Strategy will be responsible for translating opportunity into measurable business value.
Working closely with senior leaders across the Group, the role will identify where AI can create the greatest impact, prioritise investment and ensure opportunities are translated into practical solutions that improve how we serve customers, support colleagues and operate the business. The role will help ensure AI becomes a driver of business performance, supported by the right changes to technology, processes, capabilities and ways of working.
AI is not an end in itself. The focus of this role is ensuring AI is applied where it genuinely improves customer outcomes, colleague experience and business performance.
This is a highly visible role at the centre of the organisation, combining strategic thinking, commercial judgement and hands‑on delivery leadership to accelerate AI adoption, embed new ways of working and help the organisation realise the full value of AI through changes to technology, processes and capabilities.
What you'll be doing:
Own the AI strategy and roadmap
- Own and lead the Group’s AI strategy and multi-year roadmap, translating the organisation’s strategic ambitions into clear priorities, initiatives and investment decisions
- Identify, evaluate and prioritise AI opportunities across the Group, focusing on initiatives that create meaningful customer, colleague and commercial value.
- Develop and maintain a clear roadmap for AI adoption, balancing immediate opportunities with longer-term strategic priorities.
- Partner with senior leaders to ensure AI investment remains aligned to business priorities and value creation objectives.
Turn opportunity into impact
- Translate business challenges into clearly defined AI use cases and implementation plans.
- Work across business and technology teams to ensure solutions are practical, scalable and focused on delivering outcomes.
- Ensure AI opportunities are supported by the right changes to processes, ways of working, operating models, capabilities and technology so that benefits are fully realised across the organisation.
Drive adoption and value realisation
- Define and maintain clear success metrics for AI initiatives, ensuring progress, value realisation and impact are consistently measured and reported.
- Champion a test‑and‑learn approach that encourages experimentation, learning and the scaling of successful use cases.
- Build organisational capability, engagement and confidence in AI, helping leaders and teams adopt new ways of working and embed AI into day‑to‑day decision making.
- Ensure AI remains visible and actively discussed across the organisation through regular communication, leadership engagement and colleague participation.
About you
- Experience leading large‑scale strategic, transformation or innovation programmes in a complex organisation.
- Strong commercial acumen with a track record of delivering measurable business outcomes.
- Experience leading organisation‑wide change, embedding new ways of working and driving adoption across complex stakeholder groups
- Ability to identify opportunities, build business cases and prioritise investment.
- Excellent stakeholder management skills, with experience working with senior leaders.
- Strong problem‑solving and structured‑thinking capability, with the ability to simplify complexity and create clarity
- Experience bringing together business, technology and delivery teams to achieve common goals.
- Comfortable engaging with AI technologies and technical teams, while remaining focused on business outcomes rather than technical implementation.
- Passion for helping organisations adopt new ways of working and realise value from change.
Most importantly, you’ll be someone who combines strategic thinking with a bias for action – equally shaping the roadmap, influencing senior stakeholders and rolling up your sleeves to turn AI opportunities into real business outcomes.
Some of our benefits
- Flexible, hybrid working model
- Inclusive culture and environment, check out our Glassdoor reviews
- £10,000 flexible benefits allowance to suit your needs
- 30 days holiday + bank holidays
- LinkedIn learning access
- Bonus potential (performance and business‑related)
- Up to 25% discount on Very.co.uk
- Matched pension up to 6%
- More benefits can be found on our career site
Diversity, inclusion and equal opportunities
We’re building a culture of everyday inclusion, and welcome applications from anyone who believes they can do the job. We don’t discriminate based on age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.
We want our recruitment process to be accessible to everyone. If you need reasonable adjustments to apply, interview, or perform a role, let us know via talentacquisition@theverygroup.com. We’ll be happy to support you.
We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Committed Employer and have nine brilliant colleague networks – including DAWN (Disability Awareness at Very) and Think (Neurodiversity at Very) – that are helping us make Very an even more inclusive place to work.
Head of AI Strategy in Liverpool employer: Very Group
At Very, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that champions flexibility and personal growth. Our inclusive culture fosters collaboration and innovation, allowing you to thrive in a dynamic environment while working with leading beauty brands. With a generous benefits package, including a £1,000 flexible allowance and 30 days of holiday, we empower our employees to achieve their career aspirations and make a meaningful impact for millions of customers.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of AI Strategy in Liverpool
✨Get Involved in Data Science Meetups
Tap into local data science meetups or workshops to connect with fellow enthusiasts and professionals. These events are goldmines for networking, and sometimes even lead directly to job openings at companies like Very Group!
✨Show Off Your Projects
Start building a public portfolio showcasing your data science projects on platforms like GitHub or personal websites. Highlight unique analyses or models you've developed. This not only demonstrates your skills but also gets your name out there for roles like Head of AI Strategy at Very Group.
✨Leverage Professional Networks
Join professional bodies related to data science, like the Data Science Society or similar organisations. Getting involved can lead to mentorship opportunities and insider knowledge about full-time positions at companies like Very Group.
✨Apply Directly through Our Website
When you find a suitable opening like Head of AI Strategy at Very Group, make sure to apply directly through our website. It gives you an edge and shows you're keen to join our team. Plus, who doesn’t love a direct application? It’s easier than navigating through job boards!
We think you need these skills to ace Head of AI Strategy in Liverpool
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Projects:In the world of data science, your projects can speak volumes about your skills. Make sure to showcase a few key projects in your CV or portfolio, especially those that highlight your ability to work with data sets, build models, or use relevant tools like Python, R, or SQL. Don’t forget to include links to any GitHub repositories if applicable!
Quantify Your Achievements:Employers love numbers! When drafting your CV, highlight your achievements with quantifiable results. For instance, mention how your data analysis led to a certain percentage increase in efficiency or revenue at a previous job or project. These details can really make your application pop!
Craft a Tailored Cover Letter:For a full-time role at Very Group, your cover letter should reflect your passion for data science and your excitement about the specific projects or values of the company. Dive into why you’re a good fit, how your skills align with their needs, and any unique perspectives you can bring to the team.
Stand Out with Relevant Courses and Certifications:Although experience talks, relevant courses or certifications can be your ticket to impressing hiring managers at Very Group. Mention any standout courses you've completed that equipped you with essential skills, such as machine learning certifications or data visualisation courses. This shows your commitment to continuously developing your skills in the field!
How to prepare for a job interview at Very Group
✨Brush Up on Your Statistics
For a data science role, we need to seriously sharpen our statistics skills. Get ready to tackle technical questions on probability distributions, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis. These are often the bread and butter of data science interviews, so don't just skim over them!
✨Showcase Your Projects
Prepare a killer portfolio showcasing your data science projects. We should include details about the datasets used, the tools and techniques applied, and the impact of your findings. If we can walk them through a particularly challenging project or a cool visualisation that had real-world implications, it’ll really make us stand out!
✨Get Comfortable with Python and R
Most data science positions require us to be proficient in programming languages like Python and R. We should practice common libraries like pandas, NumPy, and scikit-learn, and be ready for live coding exercises or algorithm questions. Showing off our coding chops can really impress the interviewers at Very Group!
✨Prepare for Case Studies
Expect to encounter real-world case studies during the interview. We might be asked how we’d approach a data problem or analyse a dataset to extract insights. It's essential to think out loud and demonstrate our problem-solving process so that the interviewer can see our logical thinking in action.
