Director, Emerging Technology - Global Business Development

Sony Music Entertainment; New York (NY); On-site; USD 165,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Life & disability insurance

401K + employer matching

Voluntary benefits program

Professional development

Job summary

Sony Music Entertainment seeks a Director for the Emerging Technology team to drive responsible AI solutions across the organization. You will manage end-to-end vendor lifecycles from scouting through pilots, rollout and scaled adoption, collaborating with SME labels and external partners.

Lead R&D programs across content production, business operations and consumer experiences, while building internal communities and providing executive-level briefings on progress and opportunities.

Qualifications

• Hands-on AI practitioner with experience in content production and business workflows.
• Experience assessing startups, running pilots, and scaling rollouts.
• Excellent communicator translating complex concepts for leaders.

Responsibilities

• Source and evaluate AI vendors, document findings, and support decision making.
• Guide vendor engagements through contracting, security reviews, and launch logistics.
• Lead structured rollouts of AI tools across the organization with training and case studies.
• Develop and maintain internal communities to share learnings and drive pilots.

Skills

AI tools expertise

Vendor evaluation

Rollout planning

R&D program management

Executive communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Project management

Change management

Tools

AI platforms

Job description

About Sony Music Entertainment

At Sony Music Entertainment, we fuel the creative journey. We’ve played a pioneering role in music history, from the first‑ever music label to the invention of the flat disc record. We’ve nurtured some of music’s most iconic artists and produced some of the most influential recordings of all time.

About Sony Music Entertainment

At Sony Music Entertainment, we fuel the creative journey. We’ve played a pioneering role in music history, from the first‑ever music label to the invention of the flat disc record. We’ve nurtured some of music’s most iconic artists and produced some of the most influential recordings of all time.

Today, we work in more than 70 countries, supporting a diverse roster of international superstars, developing and independent artists, and visionary creators. From our position at the intersection of music, entertainment, and technology, we bring imagination and expertise to the newest products and platforms, embrace new business models, employ breakthrough tools, and provide powerful insights that help our artists push creative boundaries and reach new audiences. In everything we do, we’re committed to artistic integrity, transparency, and entrepreneurship.

Sony Music Entertainment is a member of the Sony family of global companies.

Sony Music Entertainment (SME) is seeking a Director to join our Emerging Technology team. This role is central to SME’s work to drive innovation and bring responsible AI solutions into real‑world use across the organization.

The Director will operationalize SME’s emerging technology priorities by managing the end‑to‑end lifecycle for promising AI vendors and tools, from scouting and evaluation through pilots, rollout, and scaled adoption. Working alongside SME labels and external partners, this role will equip teams with new AI tools and skills while running creative and business R&D programs that explore emerging capabilities, surface insights, and reshape workflows.

What You’ll Do

Vendor pipeline and evaluation

• Source and maintain a pipeline of AI companies, tools, and models that address creative and business priorities.
• Evaluate vendors using defined criteria and document findings to support decision‑making.
• Build and maintain working relationships with existing and emerging AI vendors, staying close on product roadmaps, performance, and implementation needs.

Rollout and adoption

• Partner with internal teams to guide selected vendor engagements through contracting, security review, approvals, and launch logistics.
• Execute structured rollouts of approved AI tools across the organization, including stakeholder coordination, user communication, training workshops, onboarding materials, and case studies. Adjust plans based on adoption signals and measured impact.
• Serve as a go‑to advisor on AI tools and maintain feedback loops with users, vendors, and stakeholders to communicate updates and best practices, help users get the most value, understand evolving needs, surface issues, and inform prioritization.
• Cultivate internal communities of AI‑forward practitioners to develop case studies and support pilots that transform workflows.

R&D programs

• Lead day‑to‑day execution of R&D programs to accelerate innovation across content production, business operations, and consumer experiences.

Communication

• Develop executive briefings and reports to highlight progress, insights, and opportunities.

Who You Are

• Hands‑on AI practitioner. You’re a power user of generative AI tools for content production and business workflows, strong in prompt engineering, conceptually grounded in how models are trained and fine‑tuned, and ideally experienced with agentic workflows.
• Active in the AI landscape. You track new models, tools, and vendors as they emerge and quickly assess what’s real versus over‑hyped. You test tools constantly and have well‑formed views on which ones actually deliver.
• Proven execution operator. You’ve assessed startups or products, run pilots, managed scaled rollouts, and worked with partners to influence execution and product direction.
• Strong collaborator and capability‑builder. Equally comfortable with a quick tactical question or a sustained partnership to help a team unlock new ways of working with AI, with the relationship‑building and cross‑functional skills to drive lasting impact.
• Structured but nimble operator. You bring real project management discipline (clear plans, owners, and follow‑through) without becoming rigid as innovation work evolves. You deliver through trust and influence with cross‑functional partners.
• Responsible innovation operator. You bring enterprise innovation and change management experience, including enablement (training, onboarding materials, and internal communities). You take projects from concept through adoption while recognizing when they touch governance, policy, or rights considerations, and you raise those questions early.
• Excellent communicator. You translate technical concepts and user feedback into compelling, actionable recommendations for leaders at every level.
• Industry experience. Experience in music, media, or entertainment is preferred.

What We Give You

• You join an inclusive, collaborative and global community where you have the opportunity to channel your passion every day
• A modern office environment designed to foster productivity, creativity, and teamwork empowering you to bring your best
• An attractive and comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life & disability coverage, and 401K + employer matching
• Voluntary benefits like company‑paid identity theft protection and resources for pets, mental health and meditation resources, industry‑leading fertility coverage, fully paid leave for childbirth or bonding, fully paid leave for caregivers, programs for loved ones with developmental disabilities and neurodiversity, subsidized back‑up child and elder care, and reimbursement for adoption, surrogacy, tuition, and student loans
• Investment in your professional growth and development enabling you to thrive in our vibrant community.
• The space to accelerate progress, positively disrupt, and create what happens next
• Time off for a winter recess

Sony Music is committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all persons regardless of age, disability, national origin, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, veteran or military status, marital and civil partnership/union status, alienage or citizenship status, creed, genetic information or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

The anticipated annual base salary does not include any other compensation components or other benefits that an individual may be eligible for. The actual base salary offered depends on a variety of factors, which may include as applicable, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, specific and unique skills, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.

New York Pay Range

$165,000—$190,000 USD