Director, Applied AI (P2148)

Cincinnati, Chicago

SUMMARY:

We’re looking for a strategic, collaborative, and delivery-minded Applied AI Director to help bring AI to life across Kroger and 84.51°. This role sits at the intersection of AI capability development and business impact, focused on driving applied AI solutions, adoption, and co-development with domain teams.

You’ll lead prototyping efforts, drive tangible use case delivery, and serve as a champion for scaling AI Factory tools and services. This is a high-visibility, high-impact role that requires someone who can connect technical potential with business value — and deliver quickly.

They will drive adoption of AI technologies across the Kroger business through change management, storytelling, prototype development and user upskilling. 

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The ideal candidate will be responsible for bridging the gap between cutting-edge, foundational AI technologies and Kroger + 84.51° business strategies.  This individual will play a crucial role in understanding business needs, customers problems and tying them back to the Kroger AI Factory technical roadmap.  This role will ensure AI initiatives and priorities are aligned with business vertical objectives to drive innovation and efficiency.   They will help navigate and facilitate a Buy, Build, Partner strategy in partnership with their engineering, data science and product counterparts.  They will help to drive adoption of AI capabilities across the business by being the conduit between the technical teams and the business.

Responsibilities include:

Own the strategy and roadmap for Applied AI squad efforts within the AI Enablement team Partner with domain business and product teams to identify, co-develop, and validate high-impact use cases Work across the organization to identify opportunities to embed AI in workflows and drive measurable business outcomes Lead Applied AI MVP and prototype delivery in close collaboration with data scientists, engineers, and UX Drive adoption of AI Factory services, GenAI tooling, and reusable components across business teams Align stakeholders and balance trade-offs between business value and technical feasibility Facilitate and scale discovery through AI workshopping sessions Establish and maintain feedback loops with the AI Factory team to ensure platform services align with real user needs and enable broader adoption Oversee the work of external vendors and strategic partners, ensuring timely, high-quality, and aligned delivery Champion responsible, explainable, and user-centered AI in all applied solutions

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Domain Product & Business Teams: Co-develop use cases, drive adoption, embed AI where it matters AI Factory Team: Shape scalable services, relay feedback, align tooling with real needs Data Science & Engineering: Translate opportunity into prototypes and working solutions Vendors/Partners: Guide third-party development and delivery with strategic alignment Change & Enablement: Support onboarding, activation, and success metrics tracking

QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, AND EXPERIENCE:

Successful candidates will thrive in a fast-paced environment that is a little unorthodox at times and will possess the following:

Minimum Bachelor’s degree 8-12 years in influencing & driving business strategy, applied AI/ML, innovation, & go-to-market plans Strong understanding of AI/ML and GenAI technologies, and how to apply them to business problems Excellent communication & organizational skills, bridging cross-functional teams to a common outcome Experience working with cross-functional teams (engineering, DS, UX) to deliver prototypes and MVPs Strong communication and facilitation skills, from stakeholder interviews to executive updates. Experienced in building and managing stakeholder relationships to influence and drive change Track record of managing external vendors or delivery partners in a product context Leader and mentor to others, including leading cross-functional development work and prioritization Proven experience in driving strategy development Bring a data-driven approach to decision making, both in day-to-day management and in making strategic tradeoffs. Intellectually curious and love learning new skills and capabilities, i.e., agile principles and AI technologies Understanding of best practices and working with cross-functional technical teams