Delivery Lead - AI And Data

EXL; Chennai District; On-site; INR 3,500,000 - 5,500,000; Full time

Job summary

EXL is seeking a Delivery Lead to own end-to-end delivery of complex AI and data programs in India. This role combines hands-on technical leadership with strong client-facing accountability, guiding multi-disciplinary teams to deliver value on time and within scope.

You will manage cross-functional delivery teams, drive governance, and ensure data solutions are built for scale, reliability, and impact, while identifying opportunities for expansion with clients.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in data engineering, AI/ML, or analytics.
• Delivery leadership in services/consulting.
• Hands-on technical oversight of data platforms and AI solutions.
• Strong client-facing communication.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end delivery for AI and data programs within scope, budget, and timeline.
• Establish program governance: sprint cadences, steering committees, risk registers.
• Lead cross-functional teams of 10–30 FTEs including engineers and architects.
• Mitigate risks and blockers before impact on client commitments.
• Drive opportunities for expansion through outcome-focused delivery.

Skills

Data engineering

AI/ML programs

Delivery leadership

Stakeholder management

Cloud data warehouses

Snowflake

Databricks

Airflow

dbt

LLM orchestration

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science / Engineering

Tools

Airflow

dbt

Snowflake

Databricks

Redshift

BigQuery

Job description

Job Description:

Delivery Lead – AI & Data

End-to-End Delivery Ownership | Agentic Data Programs | Enterprose Data Modernization | Insurance

India (Gurgaon/Delhi/NCR ) | External | Full-Time

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are seeking an experienced Delivery Lead to own the end-to-end execution of complex AI & Data programs - from project kick-off to sustained production operations. This is a hands-on technical leadership role with strong client-facing accountability: you will be the single point of ownership for delivery outcomes within signed scope while actively mining for expansion opportunities through exceptional execution.

You will lead cross-functional delivery teams, manage stakeholder relationships, and act as the technical conscience of the program ensuring that agentic data solutions are built right, on time, and at value.

WHAT YOULL DO

Delivery Ownership & Program Governance

• Own end-to-end delivery accountability for one or more concurrent AI & Data programs against signed scope, budget, and timeline
• Establish and drive program governance: sprint cadences, steering committees, risk registers, change control, and delivery dashboards
• Lead technical delivery teams of data engineers, AI/ML engineers, cloud architects, BAs - typically 10-30 FTEs
• Proactively identify and mitigate risks, dependencies, and blockers before they impact client commitments
• Manage scope, effort estimation, and resource allocation across the program lifecycle

Technical Leadership – Data & Agentic AI

• Provide hands-on technical oversight of data platform builds: ingestion pipelines, transformation layers, semantic models, and analytics APIs
• Guide the design and deployment of agentic AI solutions: agent orchestration, tool integrations, prompt engineering governance, and guardrails
• Conduct architecture reviews, technical spike planning, and code/quality gates across delivery workstreams
• Champion engineering best practices - CI/CD, data observability, lineage, testing frameworks - across the delivery team
• Drive data migration and modernization programs: schema mapping, ETL/ELT, cutover planning, reconciliation, and go-live

Client Engagement & Account Mining

• Serve as the primary day-to-day client interface for delivery: building trusted relationships with client program managers, architects, and domain owners
• Conduct regular client steering reviews, translating delivery metrics into business-impact narratives
• Identify and surface expansion opportunities (new workstreams, adjacent use cases, capacity growth) through quality delivery

WHAT YOU BRING

Required

• 10+ years in data engineering, AI/ML, or analytics - with at least 4 years in a delivery leadership or program management role
• Proven track record delivering complex, multi-workstream AI & Data programs in a services/consulting environment
• Hands-on technical expertise in modern data stacks: cloud data warehouses (Snowflake, Databricks, Redshift), data Lakehouse architectures(Databricks, Delta Lake), and orchestration tools (Airflow, dbt)
• Working knowledge of agentic AI architectures: LLM orchestration frameworks, RAG pipelines, multi-agent systems, and enterprise deployment patterns
• Strong client-facing communication - ability to present delivery progress, risks, and trade-offs to senior business and technology stakeholders
• Experience managing distributed delivery teams (India + offshore/onshore model)
• Bachelors or Masters degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Preferred / Nice to Have

• Insurance domain experience: P&C, Life & Annuities, Claims, Policy, or Underwriting data programs
• Data migration and data modernization project experience: legacy system decommissions, cloud lift-and-shift, or greenfield platform builds
• Familiarity with insurance data frameworks, regulatory reporting, and ACORD standards
• Certifications: AWS /Azure Data, Databricks, Snowflake, PMP/SAFe, or equivalent

CORE COMPETENCY PROFILE

Technical Anchor Skills:

• Agentic AI / LLM Orchestration
• Data Platform Engineering (Snowflake / Databricks / BigQuery)
• dbt / Airflow / Spark
• Data Migration & Modernization
• CI/CD & Data Observability

Leadership & Delivery Skills:

• Program Governance & Risk Management
• Client Stakeholder Management
• Distributed Team Leadership
• Account Mining Through Delivery
• Insurance Domain (Plus)

WHY THIS ROLE

• Lead programs that ship real AI agents into production - not POCs that get shelved
• High-visibility role with direct influence on client outcomes and account growth
• Collaborate with US-based engagement leads and global architects on industry-leading solutions
• Strong career path into architecture, practice leadership, or account management

Responsibilities

Delivery Ownership & Program Governance

• Own end-to-end delivery accountability for one or more concurrent AI & Data programs against signed scope, budget, and timeline
• Establish and drive program governance: sprint cadences, steering committees, risk registers, change control, and delivery dashboards
• Lead technical delivery teams of data engineers, AI/ML engineers, cloud architects, BAs - typically 10-30 FTEs
• Proactively identify and mitigate risks, dependencies, and blockers before they impact client commitments
• Manage scope, effort estimation, and resource allocation across the program lifecycle

Technical Leadership – Data & Agentic AI

• Provide hands-on technical oversight of data platform builds: ingestion pipelines, transformation layers, semantic models, and analytics APIs
• Guide the design and deployment of agentic AI solutions: agent orchestration, tool integrations, prompt engineering governance, and guardrails
• Conduct architecture reviews, technical spike planning, and code/quality gates across delivery workstreams
• Champion engineering best practices - CI/CD, data observability, lineage, testing frameworks - across the delivery team
• Drive data migration and modernization programs: schema mapping, ETL/ELT, cutover planning, reconciliation, and go-live

Client Engagement & Account Mining

• Serve as the primary day-to-day client interface for delivery: building trusted relationships with client program managers, architects, and domain owners
• Conduct regular client steering reviews, translating delivery metrics into business-impact narratives
• Identify and surface expansion opportunities (new workstreams, adjacent use cases, capacity growth) through quality delivery

Qualifications

Required

• 10+ years in data engineering, AI/ML, or analytics - with at least 4 years in a delivery leadership or program management role
• Proven track record delivering complex, multi-workstream AI & Data programs in a services/consulting environment
• Hands-on technical expertise in modern data stacks: cloud data warehouses (Snowflake, Databricks, Redshift), data Lakehouse architectures(Databricks, Delta Lake), and orchestration tools (Airflow, dbt)
• Working knowledge of agentic AI architectures: LLM orchestration frameworks, RAG pipelines, multi-agent systems, and enterprise deployment patterns
• Strong client-facing communication - ability to present delivery progress, risks, and trade-offs to senior business and technology stakeholders
• Experience managing distributed delivery teams (India + offshore/onshore model)
• Bachelors or Masters degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Preferred / Nice to Have

• Insurance domain experience: P&C, Life & Annuities, Claims, Policy, or Underwriting data programs
• Data migration and data modernization project experience: legacy system decommissions, cloud lift-and-shift, or greenfield platform builds
• Familiarity with insurance data frameworks, regulatory reporting, and ACORD standards
• Certifications: AWS /Azure Data, Databricks, Snowflake, PMP/SAFe, or equivalent