Head of Innovation - Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning

Position : Head of Innovation

Location : Chennai Tamil Nadu (Hybrid 4 days/week)

Duration : Full Time

Notice Period : Only Immediate Joiners/ Currently Serving Notice/ Notice is less than 60 days.

Head of Innovation (Director level but wants recent hands on person). Dynamic Head of Innovation to lead a high-impact innovation team. The role is responsible for designing, developing, and delivering next-generation solutions aligned with priorities recommended by GTM (Go-to-Market) teams, delivery teams, and support functions. This is a hybrid role combining strategic leadership with hands-on technical development, with a focus on building core frameworks and accelerators that can be leveraged across the organization.

The Innovation Head will be a thought leader and practitioner, staying ahead of evolving trends in Agentic AI, Generative AI, data-driven automation, and intelligent enterprise solutions, translating them into practical and scalable business applications.

Key Responsibilities :

- Establish lightweight governance for evaluating, prioritizing, and scaling innovation ideas.

- Ensure solutions align with enterprise architecture, security, and compliance standards.

- Define clear success metrics for innovation initiatives (ROI, adoption, time-to-value).

- Stay current with emerging technologies, AI/ML trends, and industry best practices.

- Partner with GTM teams to shape customer-facing innovation narratives and differentiators.

- Mentor and upskill team members and delivery functions on new technologies and frameworks.

- Architect, design, and prototype innovation solutions in areas such as Agentic AI, Generative AI, automation frameworks, and knowledge-driven systems.

- Build core reusable platforms (APIs, microservices, accelerators, AI frameworks) to speed up solution delivery across business functions.

- Drive proof-of-concepts (POCs) and pilots, iterating quickly with stakeholders.

- Lead the innovation team, fostering a culture of creativity, experimentation, and rapid prototyping.

- Collaborate with GTM, delivery, and support functions to identify high-impact innovation opportunities.

- Translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions and reusable frameworks.

Required Skills & Experience :

Leadership & Collaboration :

- Proven experience leading small, cross-functional teams in innovation, product development, or R&D.

- Strong stakeholder management and ability to align with GTM, delivery, and support teams.

Technical Expertise :

- Hands-on experience with Agentic AI, Generative AI (LLMs, prompt engineering, fine-tuning, multi-agent systems).

- Proficiency in building frameworks and reusable assets (Python, Java, APIs, cloud-native platforms).

- Familiarity with modern architectures: microservices, event-driven systems, vector databases, and AI orchestration platforms.

- Exposure to cloud ecosystems (GCP, AWS, Azure) and MLOps practices.

Innovation Mindset :

- Deep curiosity about emerging technologies, AI trends, and enterprise adoption patterns.

- Ability to translate cutting-edge technology into practical business value and differentiated offerings.

Preferred Qualifications :

- 14+ years of overall experience, with at least 3 years in innovation leadership or applied R&D roles.

- Demonstrated track record of building and scaling innovative solutions in enterprise environments.

- Experience in consulting, product engineering, or digital transformation initiatives.

- Strong communication and storytelling skills to influence senior leadership and clients.