SVP, Chief AI Officer

Role Overview

• Own and drive engineering productivity lift targets, measured through cycle time, code velocity, and defect reduction
• Lead AI-driven cost reduction initiatives across IT and support functions
• Conduct a full audit and rationalization of Rackspace's AI licensing footprint, eliminating duplicative programs and spend
• Report quarterly on quantified productivity gains with results tied directly to compensation milestones
• Define and launch 3–5 standardized AI sales plays segmented by vertical and workload within the first 6 months
• Translate Rackspace's private cloud and AI runtime capabilities into packaged go-to-market motions
• Embed AI positioning into key partner relationships including VMware, Palantir, Uniphore, and Rubrik
• Equip the Sales organization with clear AI messaging, competitive framing, and active deal support
• Establish tracking infrastructure for AI-influenced pipeline and revenue attribution
• Monitor model releases, inference economics, developer ecosystem shifts, and AI governance developments on a continuous basis
• Translate market shifts into concrete strategy adjustments within 30–60 days of identification
• Advise the CEO, marketing leadership, and Board on AI competitive positioning and narrative
• Drive AI messaging alignment across earnings communications, analyst relations, and partner narratives
• Deliver a formal competitive brief to the CEO and Board on a quarterly cadence
• Lead a lean AI Labs function with a bias toward speed and commercial relevance
• Incubate 1–2 focused, defensible IP assets per year aligned to GTM priorities
• Apply rigorous ROI discipline — kill low-return experiments quickly and reallocate resources
• Ensure Labs output directly supports customer-facing revenue strategy, not standalone research

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or related technical field required
• Advanced degree (Master's or PhD) in AI, Machine Learning, Computer Science, or related field strongly preferred
• 15+ years of progressive technology leadership, with at least 7 years in senior roles operating at the intersection of AI, cloud infrastructure, and commercial strategy
• Demonstrated track record of translating AI initiatives into quantifiable business outcomes — revenue generated, costs reduced, efficiency delivered
• Experience operating in or alongside managed services, cloud, or enterprise infrastructure businesses strongly preferred
• Prior P&L ownership or accountability for a business unit, product line, or cost center
• Deep fluency in the current AI landscape: foundation models, inference infrastructure, agent frameworks, AI governance, and enterprise deployment patterns
• Ability to operate simultaneously as strategist, operator, and commercial leader — without losing effectiveness in any mode
• Strong executive communication skills; able to advise a Board, align a sales force, and challenge an engineering team in the same week
• Financial discipline: comfortable building business cases, owning targets, and reporting results with rigor
• Partner ecosystem fluency, particularly with hyperscalers, infrastructure ISVs, and AI platform vendors
• Comfortable making decisions with incomplete information in a fast-moving market
• Earns cross-functional trust quickly; can lead without direct control
• Holds themselves and their team to high standards; ties effort to outcomes relentlessly

Tech Stack

• Cloud
• VMware

Benefits

• Equal employment opportunity
• Accommodation for disabilities or special needs