Contract Head of Data & AI
Posted 1 day ago by Fruition Group
£750 Per day
Outside
Undetermined
England, United Kingdom
Summary: The Head of Data & AI is a senior leadership contract role focused on leading a major data and AI transformation within a well-established organization in Ipswich, UK. The role involves defining and executing a comprehensive Data & AI strategy, overseeing a team of 10-15 data professionals, and ensuring responsible deployment of AI across the organization. The successful candidate will drive data-led decision-making and foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
Key Responsibilities:
- Define and execute a comprehensive Data & AI strategy aligned to business objectives.
- Identify high-impact opportunities where data and AI can drive growth and efficiency.
- Plan, manage, and optimise the Data & AI function budget.
- Lead and develop a high-performing Data & AI team (10-15 professionals).
- Foster a culture of experimentation, continuous improvement, and responsible AI adoption.
- Lead AI innovation across the organisation.
- Oversee design, development, and deployment of AI/ML models and advanced analytics solutions.
- Drive operationalisation of AI from proof-of-concept through to production-scale systems and AI agents.
- Establish and chair AI governance forums, embedding ethics, compliance, and risk management.
- Drive data-led decision-making at executive and operational levels.
- Deliver scalable, accessible analytics capabilities.
- Enable insight-driven performance management frameworks.
- Lead transition to modern, scalable, and resilient data platforms.
- Oversee secure, reliable, and scalable data pipeline architecture.
- Ensure robust implementation and operation of secure data infrastructure.
- Implement strong governance frameworks covering stewardship, metadata, and privacy controls.
- Champion best practice in data quality, lineage, and lifecycle management.
- Build strong relationships with senior business leaders and key partners.
- Translate complex business challenges into actionable AI and analytics solutions.
- Promote self-service data and AI communities across business and technical teams.
- Bring external insights and innovation into the organisation.
Key Skills:
- Extensive experience in data and AI strategy development.
- Strong leadership skills with experience managing teams of data professionals.
- Proficiency in AI/ML model design and deployment.
- Expertise in data governance and analytics.
- Ability to drive data-led decision-making.
- Strong stakeholder engagement and relationship-building skills.
- Experience in budget management for data functions.
- Knowledge of data architecture and infrastructure.
- Commitment to responsible AI practices.
Salary (Rate): £750.00/daily
City: Ipswich
Country: United Kingdom
Working Arrangements: undetermined
IR35 Status: outside IR35
Seniority Level: Senior
Industry: IT
Head of Data & AI Contract Opportunity - 4 Months Ipswich, UK - once per week Up to £750 per day Outside IR35
We are partnering with a well-established organisation based in Ipswich, UK , undergoing a major data and AI transformation. They are seeking a highly skilled and visionary Head of Data & AI to lead the transition into a truly data-driven and AI-empowered enterprise. This is a senior leadership contract role responsible for defining and delivering a comprehensive Data & AI strategy, embedding advanced analytics capabilities, and ensuring AI is deployed responsibly, securely, and at scale across the organisation.
The Opportunity
The successful candidate will own the end-to-end Data & AI agenda, ensuring data becomes a strategic asset that drives insight, innovation, and competitive advantage. You will hold accountability for:
- AI and advanced analytics
- Reporting and business intelligence
- Data engineering
- Data governance
- Data platforms and infrastructure
This role requires both strategic vision and hands-on leadership capability to drive execution across a team of 10-15 data professionals.
Key Responsibilities
Strategy & Leadership
- Define and execute a comprehensive Data & AI strategy aligned to business objectives.
- Identify high-impact opportunities where data and AI can drive growth and efficiency.
- Plan, manage, and optimise the Data & AI function budget.
- Lead and develop a high-performing Data & AI team (10-15 professionals).
- Foster a culture of experimentation, continuous improvement, and responsible AI adoption.
Artificial Intelligence
- Lead AI innovation across the organisation.
- Oversee design, development, and deployment of AI/ML models and advanced analytics solutions.
- Drive operationalisation of AI from proof-of-concept through to production-scale systems and AI agents.
- Establish and chair AI governance forums, embedding ethics, compliance, and risk management.
Reporting & Analytics
- Drive data-led decision-making at executive and operational levels.
- Deliver scalable, accessible analytics capabilities.
- Enable insight-driven performance management frameworks.
Data Architecture, Platforms & Engineering
- Lead transition to modern, scalable, and resilient data platforms.
- Oversee secure, reliable, and scalable data pipeline architecture.
- Ensure robust implementation and operation of secure data infrastructure.
Data Governance
- Implement strong governance frameworks covering stewardship, metadata, and privacy controls.
- Champion best practice in data quality, lineage, and lifecycle management.
Stakeholder Engagement
- Build strong relationships with senior business leaders and key partners.
- Translate complex business challenges into actionable AI and analytics solutions.
- Promote self-service data and AI communities across business and technical teams.
- Bring external insights and innovation into the organisation.