Principal – Enterprise AI Strategy & Transformation

Cognizant; Chennai District; On-site; INR 4,500,000 - 7,500,000; Full time

Job summary

Cognizant invites a Principal - Enterprise AI Strategy & Transformation to shape the AI roadmap for the enterprise. You will partner with C-suite clients to design AI transformations, govern frontier-model deployment, and define responsible-AI practices, while advancing a Frontier practice and sharing best practices across the organization.

This leadership role emphasizes living Cognizant's values and the Cognizant Way to Lead, driving business outcomes through AI-powered delivery and

Qualifications

• 20+ years of enterprise AI leadership.
• Expertise in AI transformation strategy and frontier-model evaluation.
• Proven ability to engage C-suite and translate AI themes into business outcomes.
• Experience leading or shaping an AI-era operating model practice.
• Strong capability in cross-functional influence and commercial structuring.

Responsibilities

• Set strategic direction for AI-augmented delivery and the AI-era operating model.
• Co-design AI transformation strategies with C-suite stakeholders and produce enterprise transformation blueprints.
• Define evaluation frameworks for frontier-model deployment, including safety standards.
• Govern adversarial-AI risk and AI safety policy, and lead incident-response strategy at the enterprise perimeter.
• Own the direction of a Frontier practice and help structure outcome-based commercial models.
• Maintain the Frontier learning community, methodologies, and gold standards while embodying the Cognizant Way to Lead.

Skills

AI leadership

Enterprise AI strategy

C-suite engagement

Frontier-model evaluation

AI safety policy

Job description

Leading at Cognizant

This is a Leadership role at Cognizant. We believe how you lead is as important as what you deliver. Cognizant leaders at every level: Drive our business strategy and inspire teams around our future. Live the leadership behaviors, leading themselves, others and the business. Uphold our Values, role modeling themin every action and decision. Nurture our people and culture, creating a workplace where all can thrive.

At Cognizant, leadership transcends titles and is embodied in actions and behaviors. We empower our leaders at every level to drive business strategy, inspire teams, uphold our values, and foster an inclusive culture.

About the role

As a Principal - Enterprise AI Strategy & Transformation you will make an impact by setting the strategic direction for AI-augmented delivery or the AI-era operating model across the enterprise. You will serve as Cognizant’s senior Frontier authority, partnering directly with C-suite clients to co-design AI transformation strategies, govern frontier-model evaluation, adversarial-AI risk and responsible-AI practices, and shape the direction of a Frontier practice. You will also maintain the learning community, methodologies, and gold standards of the capability while serving as an external domain authority and intellectual anchor for the program.

In this role, you will:

• Set the strategic direction for AI-augmented delivery or the AI-era operating model across the enterprise.
• Co-design AI transformation strategies directly with C-suite client stakeholders and produce enterprise transformation blueprints.
• Define evaluation frameworks for frontier-model deployment, including red-team protocols, safety benchmarks, and responsible-AI standards.
• Govern adversarial-AI risk and AI safety policy, and lead incident-response strategy at the enterprise perimeter.
• Own the direction of a Frontier practice and help structure outcome-based commercial models.
• Maintain the Frontier learning community, methodologies, and gold standards while consistently demonstrating the Cognizant Way to Lead: Personal Leadership, Organizational Leadership, and Business Leadership.

What you need to have to be considered

• 20+ years of experience with demonstrated enterprise AI leadership and recognized authority in AI delivery or AI-era operations.
• Deep expertise in AI transformation strategy, frontier-model evaluation, red-team governance, adversarial machine learning, and AI safety policy.
• Proven ability to engage C-suite and board-level stakeholders and translate complex AI themes into enterprise transformation strategies and clear business outcomes.
• Experience leading or shaping an advanced AI, frontier technology, delivery transformation, or AI-era operating model practice.
• Strong capability in multi-agent coordination strategy, cross-business influence, standards-setting, and outcome-based commercial structuring.
• Demonstrated track record of building Frontier talent, learning communities, methodologies, and reusable gold standards for enterprise-scale adoption.
• External recognition as a thought leader or domain authority in AI delivery, responsible AI, AI safety, or AI-era operations.
• Ability to earn and sustain the Frontier Principal designation through sustained Frontier leadership, external authority, and Principal panel readiness.
• Embodiment of the Cognizant Way to Lead: Leading Self, Leading Others, and Leading the Business.
• Embodiment of Cognizant’s Values: Work as One, Dare to Innovate, Raise the Bar, Do the Right Thing, and Own It.

These will help you succeed

• Experience building, shipping, and permanently owning AI-native systems end to end within a small Frontier pod.
• Ability to guide teams toward customer outcomes rather than technical throughput alone.
• Strong understanding of enterprise governance, safety, and operating model implications of frontier AI deployment.
• A strategic, externally credible leader who can influence across service lines, clients, practices, and senior leadership communities.

Work model

We believe hybrid work is the way forward as we strive to provide flexibility wherever possible. Based on this role’s business requirements, this is a hybrid position requiring 4 days a week in a client or Cognizant office in India. Regardless of your working arrangement, we are here to support a healthy work-life balance though our various wellbeing programs.

The working arrangements for this role are accurate as of the date of posting. This may change based on the project you’re engaged in, as well as business and client requirements. Rest assured; we will always be clear about role expectations

We're excited to meet people who share our mission and can make an impact in a variety of ways. Think about your transferable experiences and unique skills that make you stand out as someone who can bring new and exciting things to this role.