Head of AI Strategy & Portfolio Management

Acosta, Inc.; Oak Brook (IL); On-site; USD 125,000 - 175,000; Full time

Job summary

Acosta Group seeks a Director of AI Strategy & Portfolio Management to establish the enterprise AI control tower, align investments, and track value realization across Transformation programs and BU initiatives. The leader will ensure opportunities are captured, sequenced, funded, and linked to measurable business outcomes while guarding against duplication.

Responsibilities include building executive dashboards, defining AI value cases, and coordinating governance across architecture, data,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Strategy, Management, Economics, Technology Management, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• Certifications such as PMP, PgMP, PMI-PBA, SAFe, Lean Portfolio Management, Prosci, Strategy Execution, Product Management, or equivalent.

Responsibilities

• Establish and operate the enterprise AI intake, triage, prioritization, and portfolio management process.
• Create clear prioritization criteria for AI demand, including business value, strategic alignment, feasibility, risk, data readiness, reuse potential, funding needs, and transformation dependency.
• Maintain enterprise visibility into AI initiatives across Transformation programs, corporate functions, and Business Units.
• Partner with Finance, Strategy, Transformation, Technology, and BU leaders to define AI value cases, benefit assumptions, investment asks, and funding alignment.
• Develop and manage AI portfolio reporting, status views, executive dashboards, decision forums, and leadership-ready updates.
• Prevent duplication by identifying opportunities to reuse existing AI solutions, agents, models, accelerators, data products, and technical patterns.
• Establish value tracking practices for AI initiatives, including target value, realized value, adoption indicators, productivity impact, and benefits validation with business owners.
• Coordinate AI portfolio governance with architecture, data, cyber, legal, responsible AI, and risk review processes.
• Support AI CoE engagement with major transformation programs by clarifying what gets built centrally, what is program-funded, and what remains BU-owned.
• Prepare executive recommendations on AI portfolio trade-offs, sequencing, investment priorities, and capability gaps.

Skills

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Executive communication

Strategic thinking

Portfolio governance

Business acumen

Influence

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business or related field

MBA or advanced degree

Job description

Acosta Group seeks a Director of AI Strategy & Portfolio Management to establish the enterprise AI control tower, align investments, and track value realization across Transformation programs and BU initiatives. The leader will ensure opportunities are captured, sequenced, funded, and linked to measurable business outcomes while guarding against duplication.

Responsibilities include building executive dashboards, defining AI value cases, and coordinating governance across architecture, data,