AI Manager​/Senior Project Lead; m​/f​/x

The appliedAI Initiative elevates Europe’s industry to become shapers in the age of AI, creating a future that we desire to live in. Through our ecosystem of strong partners, comprehensive programs, services and solutions we advance companies holistically on their AI journey. With our uniquely diverse, interdisciplinary, and driven team, we build on deep technical expertise while specializing on applicability of the solutions.

We share a mindset of collaboration and openness with our ecosystem of leading companies and tech players. Our common goal is to strengthen the European landscape, jointly creating unique knowledge for applying trustworthy AI. We believe that AI Agents will be the dominant topic for AI in the near future and that appliedAI with its partner ecosystem will impact how this technology is being used in industry and beyond in Europe.

We are looking for an AI Manager (m/f/x) who operates reliably across multiple concurrent engagements - or at the scale of a single large, complex program - with our partner companies, from DAX corporations to leading “Mittelstand” companies. You are a trusted strategic advisor at C-suite level who maintains client leadership relationships beyond any single project, drives follow-on work, and is recognized as a named advisor for a topic or agenda.

Internally, you shape our offerings, develop a signature area within appliedAI, and build the systems, methodologies, and governance that enable our delivery to scale. You work closely with our (Technical) AI Strategists, AI Engineers, and adjacent teams such as Enablement & Change and Trustworthy AI, while co‑owning the further development of unique assets in the Strategy & Transformation space.

• Steer a portfolio of engagements. Manage multiple concurrent projects or large-scale complex programmes for our partner companies; build the structures, processes, and governance that enable scalable, high‑quality delivery across parallel work streams
• Be a trusted strategic advisor to client leadership. Maintain enduring C‑suite relationships that transcend individual initiatives; orchestrate complex multi‑stakeholder engagements; bring executive presence and structured narratives to influence direction across the client’s leadership ecosystem
• Drive follow‑on business and grow accounts. Formalize pipeline coming out of delivery, shape the next‑phase narrative, align stakeholders, and co‑lead proposals and negotiations (scope choices, commercials, staffing strategy) - while actively improving account economics through scope control, change requests, and utilization discipline
• Shape appliedAI’s offerings and signature area. Design and improve methodologies for systematic problem‑solving across multiple domains; develop a recognised signature area within appliedAI; link insights to create thought leadership and new client opportunities (e.g., talk, article, case, reusable playbook)
• Lead cross‑team and internal initiatives. Represent appliedAI in cross‑team initiatives, influence delivery standards and ways of working, and lead internal initiatives that build organisational capacity for cross‑functional excellence
• Develop people and grow the next generation of leaders. Invest time to teach and coach others; model an apprenticeship culture; manage teams through complex situations; create deliberate learning opportunities for junior colleagues and develop AI Project Leads / Senior AI Consultants into their next level
• Deliver measurable business impact. Drive significant, quantifiable business improvements across multiple teams or departments at our clients; own outcomes that shift performance metrics at department level, including leveraging advancements like AI agents to unlock new value
• Stay at the frontier of AI. Stay up to date with strategic AI questions, state‑of‑the‑art research, and emerging AI capabilities - translating them into concrete value for our clients and our internal offerings

• An outstanding academic record in a business‑or tech‑related subject
• Substantial experience (>10 years) as a Strategy or Management Consultant, Project Lead, or comparable with a track record of…