AI Development Lead

Working hours: This role is available on a part‑time, job‑share or full‑time basis.

Location: UK flexible/hybrid/home working.

Zurich is at an exciting point in its journey to embrace AI, and this role sits at the heart of driving our transformation. You will join the Global Life team and work on cutting‑edge AI solutions at scale, collaborating with the AI Lab and mentoring colleagues in the art‑of‑the‑possible.

Responsibilities

• Support colleagues across Zurich Life, Health and Bank Distribution in becoming confident and self‑sufficient with AI to develop value‑driving use‑cases.
• Lead in prototyping ML/AI solutions, working with colleagues to make these ready for production, leveraging cloud tools and MLOps workflows using CI/CD and automated testing.
• Stay on top of current developments in AI/ML and assess their relevance to Zurich, including potential ethical impacts, and help the team stay informed.
• Understand company challenges and how integrating AI capabilities can help create solutions; work to solve business problems using ML/AI where requirements may be ambiguous.
• Collaborate with colleagues to identify and prioritise key areas of the business where AI solutions can drive significant business benefit.
• Ensure high ethical standards are set and maintained when using ML/AI at Zurich.
• Provide technical guidance and inject advanced AI capabilities into projects in close collaboration with colleagues; be a mentor to colleagues working on their own problems.
• Translate technology to business users, to motivate and excite them to use and apply AI technology.
• Act as an advocate for AI/ML in the business, communicating our work to stakeholders and emphasising its business value.
• Act as a thought‑leader on AI for Zurich and a point‑of‑contact for designing advanced AI/ML solutions, whom colleagues will look to for support.

Qualifications

• Experience applying leading AI methods to practical, comprehensive technology solutions; have worked on end‑to‑end AI solutions in a commercial environment that have gone into production.
• Proven expertise and thought leadership in machine learning and AI; comfortable working with various data types including big data, text data and documents (e.g. XML, JSON).
• Experience working with LLMs to deliver value in a commercial organisation, including how to manage and monitor LLM‑based applications to maximise performance.
• Experience with Microsoft Power Platform and CoPilot Studio.
• Experience using Microsoft Azure cloud services and Python to prototype and deliver machine learning and AI solutions, as part of an end‑to‑end environment, working within CI/CD and MLOps practices.
• Proficient in Python and modern software development practices within a team of developers, e.g. use of Git.
• Passion for mentoring and supporting colleagues in AI/ML best‑practice.
• Exceptional communication skills, including the ability to articulate complex data and AI issues and to gain support from executive stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, structured and interdisciplinary thinking and working, including the ability to think creatively with data and be comfortable with complex and ambiguous problem‑solving.
• Comfortable working in a business environment where stakeholders will not have all of the answers, understanding the need to be practical and deliver for the business.
• Ability to think proactively and ‘join the dots’ across a complex landscape to see the bigger picture.
• An understanding of the importance of team culture and a demonstrable ability to act as a role model to maintain a culture of curiosity, support and honesty.

Nice to have

• Knowledge of SQL and R.
• Experience using Databricks and Spark with Python.
• Experience with AWS cloud services to deliver machine learning solutions.
• Experience in mentoring or teaching.
• Master’s degree or PhD in Physics, Mathematics, Data Science or Computer Science or related equivalent.

Benefits

• 12% defined non‑contributory pension scheme.
• Annual company bonus.
• Income protection.
• Life cover – four times your salary.
• 28 days holiday a year plus bank holidays; option to buy up to an additional 20 days or sell some of your holiday.
• Three days paid volunteering.
• Up to 16 weeks’ full pay for maternity, paternity and adoption leave.
• Access to private medical insurance.
• Virtual GP appointments; discounted gym membership; free flu jab.
• Subscription to a wealth of wellbeing support.

We are an inclusive employer and committed to equality and diversity. All candidates will be treated fairly and with respect, irrespective of background, beliefs or disability.