AI Operations Director

Lumen is the trusted network for the AI‑powered world, connecting people, data, and applications through our expansive fiber network and connected ecosystem. We enable secure, high‑performance connectivity across cloud, edge, and AI workloads for enterprises, governments, and communities. At Lumen, you’ll work on infrastructure customers rely on today and build for what’s next, where performance, security, and resilience matter. This is a high accountability environment where bold ideas drive real innovation for our customers, partners, and industry. The work is challenging, expectations are clear, and trust is built into how we operate. If you’re ready to take ownership, deliver meaningful impact, and help shape the future of AI‑ready connectivity, join us today. The Role We are seeking an AI Operations Director, to serve as a strategic operator for the AI Office, helping translate Lumen’s AI ambition into clear priorities, operating mechanisms, executive alignment, and measurable enterprise impact. Reporting to the Chief AI Officer, this role will run the AI Office operating system – connecting strategy, portfolio discipline, governance forums, executive communications, stakeholder alignment, and follow-through across the enterprise AI ecosystem. This person will help ensure the organization is focused on the right priorities, decisions are made with clarity and speed, and leaders have the visibility needed to accelerate value realization. Working closely with AI strategy, technology, and business stakeholders, this person will bring structure to complexity, improve transparency across the portfolio, and accelerate value realization across the portfolio. They will also ensure the execution model is clear and effective so the organization can move with speed, focus, and alignment. This is a high-impact role connecting strategy to results through structure, governance, and operating cadence. We need a strategic thinker and versatile operator who can move fluidly between executive narrative, decision framing, portfolio orchestration and insight, operating cadence, stakeholder alignment, and execution discipline. The Main Responsibilities Partner closely with the Chief AI Officer to translate strategy into clear priorities, operating mechanisms, action plans, and executive narratives Serve as a strategic thought partner on where to invest, scale, pause, or stop across the AI portfolio Identify emerging gaps, risks, and opportunities across the AI ecosystem, and proactively drive the work needed to maintain clarity, momentum, and impact Support the AI Office as an enterprise leadership function, ensuring strategy, portfolio, governance, communications and execution stay connected Maintain a clear enterprise view of AI initiatives, including ownership, maturity, dependencies, sequencing considerations, execution risk, and value potential Ensure consistency in how initiatives are defined, tracked, and reported to enable clear, comparable visibility across the portfolio Identify and surface early indicators of fragmentation, duplication, or misalignment across initiatives Support prioritization decisions by synthesizing business, product, technical, and organizational signals into clear executive recommendations Design and manage the AI Office operating cadence, including portfolio reviews, executive updates, status reporting, and decision forums Stand up and manage portfolio governance, success metrics, and executive reporting to track performance, inform stage-gate decisions, and measure business impact and AI value realization Enable faster, higher-quality decisions by framing tradeoffs, clarifying implications, and driving alignment across stakeholders Act as a central connector across AI, Product, Engineering, HR, Legal, and business teams to ensure alignment and accountability Clarify ownership, sequencing, and interdependencies to improve execution Remove structural barriers that slow progress by identifying cross-portfolio dependencies, decision bottlenecks, and areas of role confusion Build strong stakeholder relationships to drive accountability, adoption, and follow-through Help define and track success metrics tied to business outcomes, adoption, portfolio health, and AI value realization Deliver clear, executive-ready insights on progress, risks, themes, and impact Continuously improve and strengthen the AI Office operating model, including governance, planning, communication, and portfolio visibility Introduce scalable ways of working that improve focus, decision quality, and execution effectiveness What We Look For in a Candidate 8+ years of experience in strategy & operations, chief of staff, business ops, transformation, product/program management, or large-scale transformation execution Strong strategic thinking and business judgment, with the ability to connect enterprise AI priorities to operating mechanisms, executive decisions, and measurable outcomes. Ability to move fluidly between strategic framing and hands-on execution — from shaping executive narratives to driving follow-through on complex cross-functional work. Strong program management discipline, with experience creating structure, cadence, visibility, and accountability across complex initiatives. Proven experience managing complex, cross-functional initiatives with multiple stakeholders Strong ability to translate strategy into executable plans and drive delivery at scale Experience working in or alongside data, AI, or technology organizations Exceptional stakeholder management, communication, and influence skills Demonstrated ability to operate in ambiguous, fast-paced environments and drive outcomes Compensation This information reflects the anticipated base salary range for this position based on current national data. Minimums and maximums may vary based on location. Individual pay is based on skills, experience and other relevant factors. Location Based Pay Ranges $152,066 - $253,444 in these states: AL AR AZ FL GA IA ID IN KS KY LA ME MO MS MT ND NE NM OH OK PA SC SD TN UT VT WI WV WY $159,670 - $266,166 in these states: CO HI MI MN NC NH NV OR RI $167,273 - $278,789 in these states: AK CA CT DC DE IL MA MD NJ NY TX VA WA Lumen offers a comprehensive package featuring a broad range of Health, Life, Voluntary Lifestyle benefits and other perks that enhance your physical, mental, emotional and financial wellbeing. We're able to answer any additional questions you may have about our bonus structure (short-term incentives, long-term incentives and/or sales compensation) as you move through the selection process. Learn more about Lumen's: Benefits Bonus Structure #LI-REMOTE #LI-SB1 Requisition #: 342408 Life at Lumen Life at Lumen is human and connected, even in a fast moving, AI‑focused organization. We set clear expectations and trust people to meet them. With real support and shared accountability, teams collaborate better, move faster, and deliver meaningful outcomes. Our Lumen 8 behaviors guide how we interact, make decisions, and work together, shaping a culture built to perform and win. To learn more about Life at Lumen and how we live the Lumen 8, please visit: https://jobs.lumen.com/global/en/life-at-lumen Background Screening If you are selected for a position, there will be a background screen, which may include checks for criminal records and/or motor vehicle reports and/or drug screening, depending on the position requirements. For more information on these checks, please refer to the Post Offer section of our FAQ page . Job-related concerns identified during the background screening may disqualify you from the new position or your current role. Background results will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records. Equal Employment Opportunities We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all persons regardless of race, color, ancestry, citizenship, national origin, religion, veteran status, disability, genetic characteristic or information, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, family status, pregnancy, or other legally protected status (collectively, “protected statuses”). We do not tolerate unlawful discrimination in any employment decisions, including recruiting, hiring, compensation, promotion, benefits, discipline, termination, job assignments or training. Privacy Notice Lumen is committed to protecting the privacy and security of personal information collected during the recruitment and hiring process. Our Privacy Notice explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect applicant information, as well as how individuals may request access to or deletion of their personal data. To review Lumen’s Privacy Notice, please visit: https://jobs.lumen.com/global/en/privacy-notice Disclaimer The job responsibilities described above indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not intended to include a comprehensive inventory of all duties and responsibilities for this job. Job duties and responsibilities are subject to change based on evolving business needs and conditions. In any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information. Please be advised that Lumen does not require any form of payment from job applicants during the recruitment process. All legitimate job openings will be posted on our official website or communicated through official company email addresses. If you encounter any job offers that request payment in exchange for employment at Lumen, they are not for employment with us, but may relate to another company with a similar name. Job Segment: Operations Manager, Program Manager, Engineer, Manager, Operations, Management, Engineering