Principal Business Intelligence Capability Lead

First Central Services UK; Haywards Heath; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hybrid working

Job summary

1st Central is seeking a Principal BI Capability Lead to steer the evolution of our enterprise BI and drive a step-change in analytics delivery. You will shape BI standards, governance and ways of working, creating a scalable AI-enabled analytics ecosystem across the business.

You’ll lead the introduction and adoption of AI-powered development, champion self-service analytics, and ensure consistency in KPI definitions and reporting.

Qualifications

• Technical BI & Data Expertise: Power BI, SQL, ThoughtSpot, Databricks, semantic & dimensional modelling.
• Development & Data Engineering Practices: Azure DevOps, source control, CI/CD for BI.
• BI Strategy & Governance: Enterprise standards for modelling, reporting, visualisation, governance.
• AI-Enabled BI Delivery & Transformation: AI-assisted development, automate delivery, improve speed.
• Dashboard Design & Data Storytelling: Strong dashboard design and storytelling.
• Analytical & Problem-Solving Skills: Strong analytical thinking.
• Planning, Organisation & Delivery: Manage priorities with minimal direction.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership and governance for the organisation's BI and analytics capability.
• Define and implement enterprise standards for semantic modelling, reporting, visualisation, development and governance.
• Ensure BI solutions are scalable, reusable, performant and aligned with data strategy.
• Champion self-service analytics through reusable semantic models, data marts and certified analytical assets.
• Drive KPI consistency across the organisation.
• Maximise value from investments in Power BI, ThoughtSpot, Databricks and related analytics technologies.
• Maintain strategic oversight of the BI landscape, identifying opportunities for standardisation and reuse.
• Lead the evolution of enterprise reporting frameworks.

Skills

Technical BI & Data Expertise

Development & Data Engineering

BI Strategy & Governance

AI-Enabled BI Delivery

Dashboard Design & Storytelling

Analytical & Problem-Solving

Planning & Delivery

Tools

Power BI

SQL

ThoughtSpot

Databricks

Azure DevOps

CI/CD

Job description

At 1st Central, everything starts with our people. As one of the UK's leading motor and home insurers, we use smart technology, data and great service to make insurance fast, fair and simple for over 1.4 million customers. We're proud to create an environment where people feel supported, trusted and able to grow - whether that's developing new skills, taking on fresh challenges or making a real impact every day. If you're looking for a role where you can make a difference, we'd love to hear from you.

We're looking for a Principal Business Intelligence Capability Lead to lead the evolution of our enterprise BI capability and drive a step-change in how analytics solutions are designed, developed and delivered across the organisation.

In this senior technical leadership role, you'll define the future direction for BI platforms, standards, governance and ways of working, helping to create a trusted, scalable analytics ecosystem that enables better decision-making across the business.

A key aspect of this role will be leading the introduction and adoption of Agentic AI across the BI development lifecycle. You'll be expected to challenge traditional approaches to BI delivery, identify opportunities to automate manual activities, and embed AI-powered development practices that increase delivery speed, improve quality and allow teams to focus on higher-value analytical work. This is an opportunity to drive a genuine transformation in how Business Intelligence is delivered, creating a modern, AI-enabled BI function that sets new standards for efficiency, innovation and business value.

Working closely with central data teams and federated BI communities, you'll ensure reporting, semantic data models, analytics and insight solutions are delivered consistently, effectively and in line with organisational objectives, maximising business value from data and analytics investments.

You’ll act as the technical authority for BI and data visualisation, providing expert guidance, governance and mentorship to BI developers and analysts, promoting high standards of quality, performance, usability and governance. The role drives innovation, consistency and reuse across analytical products, semantic models and KPI frameworks, fostering a scalable, trusted and high-performing analytics ecosystem while championing modern BI, AI-assisted development and data-driven decision-making.

We're big on flexible hybrid working . Our teams are based across Haywards Heath (West Sussex), Salford Quays (Manchester) , and Guernsey you'll spend your time working either at home or in the office, with an average of one day a week in the office. But if you prefer to be in the office more often, that's good with us too.

Core skills we're looking for to succeed in the role:

• Technical BI & Data Expertise : Expert in Power BI, SQL, ThoughtSpot and Databricks, with a strong understanding of semantic modelling, dimensional modelling, and reporting data structures.
• Development & Data Engineering Practices : Experience of Azure DevOps, source control and CI/CD approaches for Business Intelligence development.
• BI Strategy & Governance : You'll define and implement enterprise standards for semantic modelling, reporting, visualisation, development and governance.
• AI-Enabled BI Delivery & Transformation: Demonstrable experience introducing AI-assisted or agentic development practices within analytics, software engineering or data environments. Able to identify opportunities to automate manual activities, redesign delivery processes and drive adoption of AI technologies that improve productivity, quality and speed of delivery.
• Dashboard Design & Data Storytelling: Expert dashboard and visualisation design capabilities, with a strong focus on storytelling and user experience.
• Analytical & Problem-Solving Skills : Strong problem-solving and analytical thinking skills.
• Planning, Organisation & Delivery : Able to operate with minimal direction and manage competing priorities effectively, good time management and organisation skills.

What's involved:

• You’ll provide technical leadership and governance for the organisation's Business Intelligence and analytics capability.
• You’ll define and implement enterprise standards for semantic modelling, reporting, visualisation, development and governance.
• You’ll ensure BI solutions are scalable, reusable, performant and aligned with business priorities and data strategy.
• You’ll champion self-service analytics through the design of reusable semantic models, data marts and certified analytical assets.
• You’ll drive consistency in KPI definitions, business logic and reporting practices across the organisation.
• You’ll maximise value from investments in Power BI, ThoughtSpot, Databricks and related analytics technologies.
• You’ll maintain strategic oversight of the BI and analytics landscape, identifying opportunities for standardisation, simplification and reuse.
• You’ll lead the evolution of enterprise reporting frameworks, cert