Director of AI Initiatives & Development Operations

Description

As Director of Artificial Intelligence Initiatives & Development Operations, you will lead high-impact projects and operational initiatives that drive efficiency, digital transformation, and lasting value across ISG. Your focus includes overseeing diverse strategic efforts, championing technology implementations, advancing proprietary software development, and enabling robust data integration and reporting on a modern Azure cloud foundation. You will also identify and deliver practical applications of artificial intelligence that improve decision-making and operational performance. Your leadership will deliver measurable improvements that optimize processes, enhance analytics adoption, and support enterprise performance goals.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Initiative Leadership & Project Oversight

• Spearhead high-profile special initiative projects that create lasting impact and sustainable efficiencies within the organization.
• Provide leadership and oversight for major IT and digital transformation projects, including enterprise-wide software implementations, cloud migrations, and complex integrations.
• Direct cross-functional teams and ensure alignment with ISG business strategies and project objectives.

2. Technology & Software Development

• Design, manage, and maintain proprietary software applications using technologies such as .NET Core and Blazor, deployed on Azure services (e.g., Azure App Service, Azure Functions).
• Develop and maintain best-in-class integrations between ERP, payroll, and CRM systems to ensure data integrity and workflow automation, leveraging tools such as Azure Data Factory, Logic Apps, and API Management.
• Apply secure development practices and CI/CD pipelines (e.g., Azure DevOps or GitHub Actions) to deliver reliable, maintainable releases.

3. Data Warehouse Architecture & Management

• Own the architecture, operation, and roadmap of ISG’s Azure SQL data warehouse, enabling detailed reporting and enterprise data analysis.
• Design and maintain dimensional data models (star/snowflake schemas), fact and dimension tables, and a governed semantic layer for consistent enterprise metrics.
• Build and optimize ETL/ELT pipelines that ingest data from ERP, payroll, CRM, and operational sources, with data quality checks, lineage, and monitoring.
• Evaluate and, where appropriate, adopt modern analytics platforms such as Microsoft Fabric, Azure Synapse Analytics, or Databricks to scale the warehouse and support advanced analytics.
• Establish data governance standards including master data management, data cataloging, access controls, and retention in partnership with IT security and compliance.

4. Azure Cloud Platform Management

• Oversee ISG’s Azure environment supporting development, integration, and analytics workloads, including resource organization, landing zone standards, and environment strategy (dev/test/prod).
• Manage cloud cost optimization (FinOps) practices including budgeting, tagging, rightsizing, and reserved capacity planning.
• Ensure cloud workloads meet security, identity, and compliance requirements using Microsoft Entra ID, role-based access control, Azure Key Vault, network controls, and Microsoft Defender for Cloud.
• Implement monitoring, backup, and disaster recovery practices using Azure Monitor, Log Analytics, and related services to meet availability and recovery objectives.
• Apply infrastructure-as-code practices (e.g., Bicep, ARM templates, or Terraform) to standardize and automate deployments.

5. Artificial Intelligence & Automation

• Identify, prioritize, and deliver AI and machine learning use cases that improve gross margin, labor utilization, forecasting, and operational efficiency.
• Lead implementation of AI solutions using platforms such as Azure OpenAI Service, Azure AI Foundry, Azure Machine Learning, and Microsoft Copilot, integrated with ISG’s data warehouse and business systems.
• Develop AI-enabled capabilities such as intelligent document processing, predictive analytics, natural-language reporting, and workflow automation.
• Establish responsible AI practices including data privacy, model governance, human oversight, usage policies, and performance monitoring, in alignment with ISG’s risk and compliance frameworks.
• Promote AI literacy and adoption across business units through training, enablement, and change management.

6. Application Implementation & Optimization

• Lead NetSuite implementations and manage ongoing system optimization, including SuiteScripts, custom workflows, and advanced PDF/HTML template design.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to align new technology solutions with operational and strategic business needs.

7. Performance Management & Analytics Enablement

• Drive adoption and effective utilization of analytics tools and dashboards (e.g., Power BI) to inform decision-making and performance improvement.
• Ensure KPI scorecard compliance by embedding key metrics in operational processes and reporting frameworks.
• Monitor and analyze progress of improvement projects, ensuring milestones and deliverables are achieved.

Requirements

• Proven experience leading special projects, IT programs, and software development initiatives in a complex business environment.
• Strong background in project and program management, especially with technology, process improvement, and data integration.
• Hands-on expertise in .NET Core, Blazor, Azure SQL, and ERP/CRM/payroll systems integration.
• Demonstrated experience designing and operating an enterprise data warehouse, including dimensional modeling, ETL/ELT development, advanced T-SQL, and performance tuning.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Azure cloud services, including compute, storage, networking, identity, security, monitoring, and cost management.
• Practical understanding of artificial intelligence and machine learning concepts, with experience evaluating or delivering AI-enabled business solutions.
• Demonstrated track record of driving measurable improvements in business operations and performance analytics.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills, with ability to align cross-functional teams around strategic priorities.
• Bachelor’s degree required, ideally in business, computer science, engineering, data science, or a related field.

Preferred: 

• Advanced degree (e.g., MBA or M.S. in Computer Science, Data Science, or Information Systems).
• Experience with Microsoft Fabric, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Factory, Databricks, or Power BI semantic modeling.
• Experience with Azure OpenAI Service, Azure AI services, prompt engineering, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), or Python for data and AI workloads.
• Microsoft certifications such as Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305), Azure Data Engineer (DP-203) / Fabric Data Engineer (DP-700), Azure AI Engineer (AI-102), or Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900).
• Familiarity with AI governance frameworks (e.g., NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001) and data privacy requirements.
• Experience in industrial services, MRO, or private equity–backed environments.