Senior Manager AI Centre of Enablement

We're thrilled to offer a fantastic opportunity to join our Data & AI team here at YBS. We’re looking for a Senior Manager to establish and lead an AI Centre of Enablement in the organisation. In the role, you will have the opportunity to drive innovation and lead operationalisation of AI across YBS. This role will be pivotal in building and managing the AI Foundry team, enabling the end-to-end lifecycle of AI use cases, from ideation and experimentation through to deployment, monitoring, and compliance.

This is a hybrid role, where you can blend working from home, with office presence dependent on business and other requirements at our Leeds & Bradford offices.

About this role

• Build and manage the AI Foundry team to deliver high-impact AI use cases from ideation through to deployment and monitoring.
• Co-locate resources within satellite teams across the business, to collaborate on AI use cases (no code, low code) building skills.
• Develop and embed AI lifecycle management practices including experimentation, validation, deployment, and post-implementation review.
• Accountable for driving quality technical deliverables, through defined and maintained best practice standards (such as ISO42001) and modernisation of development techniques, ensuring appropriate controls to mitigate YBS data management and IT security risks.
• Influence and contribute to skills and development pathways, driving capability uplifts and central knowledge management for continuous improvements.
• Monitoring and reporting to ensure adherence to quality and control frameworks for AI performance, risk, and compliance, reporting into central Data & AI Policy & Risk team for issues and escalations.

About you

• Proven experience in establishing and leading AI Centres of Enablement or similar strategic functions.
• Deep understanding of AI lifecycle management, including ideation, experimentation, deployment, monitoring, and retirement.
• Strong knowledge of ISO 42001 and other AI governance, risk, and compliance frameworks.
• Experience in building and leading high-performing AI teams, including recruitment, development, and performance management.
• Passionate about building capability and influencing mindsets, a voyager who takes people with them, and understands different learning styles and techniques.
• Familiarity with modern AI products and platforms, MLOps tools, and cloud-native architectures.
• Strong understanding of data privacy, security, and ethical considerations in AI.