Director, Data & AI Technical Consulting & Architecture Lead

EPAM is looking for a Director Data & AI Technical Consulting & Architecture Lead to join our team in Amsterdam Netherlands in a hybrid working mode.

You will act as a senior technology leader who thrives at the intersection of executive advisory architecture leadership and production-ready AI. This role combines relationship building within a strategic client account with practice-level leadership across Western Europe shaping next-generation Data Analytics and (Gen)AI offerings and driving complex pre-sales from strategy through implementation.

You will be a trusted advisor to C-suite and senior technology stakeholders identify and qualify high-value opportunities and provide hands-on technical consulting leadership where it matters building lightweight PoVs/PoCs and challenging architecture decisions. This is not a full-time engineering role but you must be strong enough to prototype de-risk solutions and guide teams toward robust target-state architectures.

The role involves working in a hybrid working mode with weekly client site presence in Zaandam.

• Serve as a trusted C-suite level advisor defining enterprise data analytics and AI strategies roadmaps and investment cases tied to measurable business outcomes
• Build and maintain deep relationships with data architecture engineering and AI leaders within the account creating credibility through strong technical judgment
• Rapidly understand the clients technology landscape (platforms governance security operating model) and translate constraints into pragmatic transformation sequencing
• Identify shape and own a portfolio of Data & AI opportunities turning early ideas into qualified pursuits with clear value scope risks and next steps
• Architect end-to-end solutions across cloud-scale data platforms integration security governance MLOps/LLMOps and application ecosystems balancing time-to-value with sustainability
• Lead hands-on PoVs/PoCs demos and technical prototypes (e.g. lakehouse patterns RAG/agentic workflows evaluation/observability) to validate feasibility and accelerate decisions
• Drive complex pre-sales: lead discovery respond to RFPs/RFIs produce high-impact architecture narratives and deliver executive pitches for large-scale engagements
• Shape scope and price consulting engagements; define delivery models and team structures (onshore/nearshore/offshore) and ensure strong technical governance
• Mobilize specialist teams and ensure continuity from initial concept through PoC to implementation and adoption aligning expectations and delivery outcomes
• Champion Responsible AI and security-by-design advising on ethical deployment bias mitigation auditability and regulatory readiness (including EU AI Act considerations) while contributing to broader go-to-market offerings and thought leadership

• Proven experience in a Director/Principal/CTO-level role within consulting/technology services leading enterprise-scale Data & AI transformations and architecture decisions
• Exceptional stakeholder management and executive communication skills able to influence CIO/CTO/CDO and senior engineering leadership with clarity and credibility
• Strong track record in business development and pre-sales qualifying opportunities shaping deals and securing funding for complex high-value programs
• Hands-on expertise with Databricks and lakehouse patterns including Spark SQL Delta Lake and Unity Catalog (governance access control lineage concepts)
• Practical production-minded knowledge of AI/GenAI patterns including RAG and agentic workflows plus MLflow and core MLOps/LLMOps lifecycle practices
• Deep understanding of data architecture and engineering best practices: ingestion/integration batch/streaming data modeling data products and reliability/observability
• Strong grounding in cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/GCP) and enterprise security principles (IAM network controls encryption secrets auditability)
• Ability to independently build or lead a working prototype to de-risk architecture performance cost and security assumptions (not a full-time builder but hands-on when needed)
• Commercial and strategic mindset: able to translate technical options into business cases (ROI/TCO) delivery approaches and executive-ready decision material
• Nice to have: retail/consumer goods/supply chain/eCommerce/loyalty domain exposure; Azure/Microsoft data platform experience; Databricks certifications; fluency in Dutch (or another European language)