Director, Data & AI Technical Consulting & Architecture Lead

EPAM Systems; Amsterdam; Hybrid; EUR 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

26 paid holidays

Pension plan

Disability insurance

Long-term disability insurance

Employee stock purchase plan

Commuting reimbursement

Laptop & mobile device

Bike lease

Employee Assistance

Referral program

Training & certs

Job summary

EPAM Systems is seeking a Director, Data & AI Technical Consulting & Architecture Lead in Amsterdam, NL, in a hybrid mode. You will shape Data, Analytics, and GenAI offerings, lead complex pre-sales from strategy to implementation, and advise C-suite stakeholders on enterprise AI strategy.

You will prototype and guide teams toward target architectures while balancing value delivery, security and governance across cloud platforms.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in a Director/Principal/CTO-level role within consulting/technology services.
• Exceptional stakeholder management and executive communication skills.
• Strong track record in business development and pre-sales leading complex programs.
• Hands-on expertise with Databricks and lakehouse patterns (Spark, SQL, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog).
• Practical knowledge of AI/GenAI patterns including RAG and agentic workflows; ML lifecycle basics.

Responsibilities

• Define enterprise data, analytics and AI strategies, roadmaps and investment cases aligned to business outcomes.
• Build relationships with data, architecture, engineering and AI leaders within the account.
• Understand client technology landscape and translate constraints into pragmatic transformation sequencing.
• Identify and own a portfolio of Data & AI opportunities with clear value, scope and risks.
• Architect end-to-end data/AI solutions across cloud-scale platforms with governance and MLOps.

Skills

Databricks

Lakehouse patterns

MLOps/LLMOps

Cloud platforms

Executive stakeholder management

Pre-sales leadership

Tools

Spark

Delta Lake

Unity Catalog

MLflow

RAG workflows

Job description

EPAM is looking for a Director, Data & AI Technical Consulting & Architecture Lead to join our team in Amsterdam, Netherlands in a hybrid working mode.

You will act as a senior technology leader who thrives at the intersection of executive advisory, architecture leadership, and production-ready AI. This role combines relationship building within a strategic client account with practice-level leadership across Western Europe — shaping next-generation Data, Analytics, and (Gen)AI offerings and driving complex pre-sales from strategy through implementation.

You will be a trusted advisor to C-suite and senior technology stakeholders, identify and qualify high-value opportunities, and provide hands-on technical consulting leadership where it matters — building lightweight PoVs/PoCs and challenging architecture decisions. This is not a full-time engineering role, but you must be strong enough to prototype, de-risk solutions, and guide teams toward robust target-state architectures.

The role involves working in a hybrid working mode with weekly client site presence in Zaandam.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a trusted C-suite level advisor, defining enterprise data, analytics, and AI strategies, roadmaps, and investment cases tied to measurable business outcomes
• Build and maintain deep relationships with data, architecture, engineering, and AI leaders within the account, creating credibility through strong technical judgment
• Rapidly understand the client’s technology landscape (platforms, governance, security, operating model) and translate constraints into pragmatic transformation sequencing
• Identify, shape, and own a portfolio of Data & AI opportunities — turning early ideas into qualified pursuits with clear value, scope, risks, and next steps
• Architect end-to-end solutions across cloud-scale data platforms, integration, security, governance, MLOps/LLMOps, and application ecosystems, balancing time-to-value with sustainability
• Lead hands‑on PoVs/PoCs, demos, and technical prototypes (e.g., lakehouse patterns, RAG/agentic workflows, evaluation/observability) to validate feasibility and accelerate decisions
• Drive complex pre-sales: lead discovery, respond to RFPs/RFIs, produce high-impact architecture narratives, and deliver executive pitches for large-scale engagements
• Shape, scope, and price consulting engagements; define delivery models and team structures (onshore/nearshore/offshore) and ensure strong technical governance
• Mobilize specialist teams and ensure continuity from initial concept through PoC to implementation and adoption, aligning expectations and delivery outcomes
• Champion Responsible AI and security-by-design, advising on ethical deployment, bias mitigation, auditability, and regulatory readiness (including EU AI Act considerations), while contributing to broader go-to-market offerings and thought leadership

Requirements

• Proven experience in a Director/Principal/CTO-level role within consulting/technology services, leading enterprise-scale Data & AI transformations and architecture decisions
• Exceptional stakeholder management and executive communication skills, able to influence CIO/CTO/CDO and senior engineering leadership with clarity and credibility
• Strong track record in business development and pre‑sales — qualifying opportunities, shaping deals, and securing funding for complex, high‑value programs
• Hands‑on expertise with Databricks and lakehouse patterns, including Spark, SQL, Delta Lake, and Unity Catalog (governance, access control, lineage concepts)
• Practical, production-minded knowledge of AI/GenAI patterns, including RAG and agentic workflows, plus MLflow and core MLOps/LLMOps lifecycle practices
• Deep understanding of data architecture and engineering best practices: ingestion/integration, batch/streaming, data modeling, data products, and reliability/observability
• Strong grounding in cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/GCP) and enterprise security principles (IAM, network controls, encryption, secrets, auditability)
• Ability to independently build or lead a working prototype to de-risk architecture, performance, cost, and security assumptions (not a full‑time builder, but hands‑on when needed)
• Commercial and strategic mindset: able to translate technical options into business cases (ROI/TCO), delivery approaches, and executive‑ready decision material
• Nice to have: retail/consumer goods/supply chain/eCommerce/loyalty domain exposure; Azure/Microsoft data platform experience; Databricks certifications; fluency in Dutch (or another European language)

We offer

• 26 paid holiday days
• Pension plan scheme
• Disability insurance (WGA Shortfall insurance)
• Long‑term disability insurance (WIA Top up insurance)
• EPAM Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
• Commuting to work - costs reimbursement
• Laptop + corporate simcard + corporate mobile device (subject to certain eligibility requirements)
• Bike lease
• Employee Assistance Program
• Corporate Programs including Employee Referral Program with rewards
• Learning and development opportunities including in-house training and coaching, professional certifications, and courses