VP of Data & AI

Lorien; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Lorien is seeking a builder-operator to lead its Data & AI function at a global level. You will scale an enterprise data platform and push AI into production on top of it, treating the lakehouse as an internal product with clear ownership and metrics.

You’ll oversee 40–60 people across regions and report to the CTO. The role requires hands-on leadership, governance setup, and close collaboration with product, engineering, and regional leaders to drive value and responsible AI.

Qualifications

• 12+ years in Data, AI, Analytics or platform leadership roles.
• A record of building and scaling an enterprise data platform across multiple businesses or countries.
• Experience taking AI into production in products and operational workflows.
• Experience leading multi-country data teams, ideally in the 25–80 range, and comfortable being hands-on.
• Knowledge of modern data architecture, ML/AI lifecycles, governance and security frameworks.
• Databricks or lakehouse experience (valued, not essential).
• Credibility advising senior executives and influencing strategic decisions.

Responsibilities

• Lead a global Data & AI function across Europe, the UK & Ireland, the US and APAC.
• Scale Databricks lakehouse as the backbone of the company’s data strategy and governance.
• Drive AI from experimentation to production across products and operations.
• Shape model lifecycle and guide build-versus-buy decisions.
• Set responsible AI and governance standards while balancing hands-on leadership.

Skills

Data & AI leadership

Enterprise data platform scaling

AI in production

Multi-country data teams

Stakeholder management

Databricks / lakehouse experience

Job description

A global workforce solutions business is looking for a builder-operator to lead its Data & AI function. They want someone who has scaled a data platform and put AI into production on top of it, not someone who stops at the roadmap.

This isn’t a blank page. A global Data & AI team is already building a Databricks lakehouse as the backbone of the company’s technology-led strategy, and you’d take it to the next phase. The platform comes first: running it as an internal product with clear ownership, service levels and adoption metrics, and setting the governance and quality standards that make data trusted across regions. AI sits on that foundation. You’ll move it from experimentation into production across products and operations, shape the model lifecycle, guide build-versus-buy decisions, and set responsible AI and governance standards. Day to day, expect to balance board-level conversations with getting close to the work and developing your people.

You’ll lead 40–60 people across Europe, the UK & Ireland, the US and APAC, with offshore capacity in India, and report to the Chief Product & Technology Officer, who sits on the Global Board. You’ll work closely with product, engineering, architecture and regional leaders, keeping data standards consistent while giving local teams room to operate. Early use cases include talent matching, recruiter workflows, forecasting, pricing and decision support.

What they’re looking for:

• 12+ years in Data, AI, Analytics or platform leadership roles
• A record of building and scaling an enterprise data platform across multiple businesses or countries
• Experience taking AI into production in products and operational workflows
• Experience leading multi-country data teams, ideally in the 25–80 range, and comfortable being hands‑on
• Knowledge of modern data architecture, ML/AI lifecycles, governance and security frameworks
• Databricks or lakehouse experience (valued, not essential)
• Credibility advising senior executives and influencing strategic decisions
• Strong stakeholder management across business and technology leadership
• Curiosity and drive, and the ability to turn technical depth into commercial value
• HR, staffing or workforce solutions experience is a strong advantage