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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Director, AI Innovation & Emerging Capabilities - **Company:** CSL Behring - **Location:** Maidenhead, UK - **Experience:** Expert - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Artificial Intelligence, Digital Technology, Machine Learning, Multi-Agent Systems, Generative AI, Information Technology - **Published:** June 17, 2026 - **Apply:** https://uk.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=27281fa25c2da270 ## About the Role Do you have experience in AI?, * 8+ years of experience in technology strategy, innovation, AI/ML, or digital transformation roles, ideally within or serving R&D-intensive industries * Demonstrated track record of translating emerging technology trends into adopted value-generating capabilities within a large organization * Deep knowledge of the current and near-future AI and digital technology landscape, including generative AI, machine learning, agentic systems, and adjacent disruptive technologies * Experience designing and running pilot programs with defined success criteria, stage-gate governance, and clear pathways to scale * Ability to communicate complex technical concepts to senior, non-technical audiences with clarity and conviction * Comfortable operating with ambiguity; skilled at structuring undefined problem spaces and creating frameworks where none exist * Strong external network across technology vendors, research institutions, and innovation ecosystems ## Description * The Director, AI Innovation & Emerging Capabilities leads the scouting, introduction, and scaling of AI and disruptive digital technologies across R&D. * This role serves as the function's primary horizon scanner and innovation translator, converting external signals into concrete R&D opportunities and building structured pathways from early-stage pilots to scaled capabilities. * The Director operates with a future-back mindset, ensuring the organization is not caught off-guard by technological disruption but instead positioned to capitalize on it. The Role: External Intelligence & Horizon Scanning: * Continuously monitor the external AI and disruptive technology landscape to identify signals, trends, and emerging capabilities with potential R&D relevance * Maintain a living map of the external innovation environment including academia, startups, vendors, and adjacent industries * Apply a future-back approach: define where R&D must be in 3-5 years, then work backward to identify the capability gaps and disruptive forces that must be addressed today * Establish and manage a network of external relationships (research institutes, technology partners, innovation ecosystems) to maintain leading-edge awareness * Triage and assess emerging threats and opportunities using structured evaluation frameworks before they surface in mainstream discourse Opportunity Translation & Framing: * Translate complex external technology signals into concise, R&D-relevant opportunity briefs that leadership can act on * Identify and articulate capability gaps between the current R&D operating model and what disruptive trends demand * Introduce capabilities and approaches that would not organically surface through internal channels, deliberately expanding the organization's aperture of what is possible * Develop compelling narratives and business cases for disruptive capabilities, tailored to senior R&D and cross-functional audiences Pilot Design & Capability Scaling: * Design and govern a structured pipeline from exploratory pilot to production-scale capability, with defined stage-gates, success criteria, and go/no-go decision logic * Lead proof-of-concept and pilot initiatives for high-potential disruptive technologies, ensuring rapid learning cycles and clear value demonstration * Partner with delivery and product teams to transition successful pilots into scalable, embedded capabilities that measurably improve R&D execution * Define and track performance metrics demonstrating that disruptive capabilities are delivering tangible, quantifiable impact on R&D outcomes Leadership Visibility & Strategic Influence: * Provide R&D leadership with a clear, regularly updated view of the innovation landscape; presenting insights in formats that drive decision-making, not just awareness * Serve as a credible internal voice on AI and digital disruption, challenging conventional thinking and advocating for proactive capability investment * Contribute to strategic planning cycles by ensuring innovation foresight is embedded as a structural input, not an afterthought * Champion a future-back culture within the team, modeling and reinforcing the discipline of working from desired future states toward present-day actions Cross Functional Contributions: * Support team operating model design and contribute to intake and prioritization processes * Shape high-value AI opportunity identification by surfacing externally validated use cases to the portfolio * Partner with adoption leads to ensure new capabilities are introduced with sufficient user context and change support ## Related Videos - [Your imaginations is (no longer) the limit: how Generative AI empowers people to be creative](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/741-your-imaginations-is-no-longer-the-limit-how-generative-ai-empowers-people-to-be-creative) - [Introduction to Azure Machine Learning](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/368-introduction-to-azure-machine-learning) - [Opening Keynote: Civic Coding, A Framework for Democratic Tech](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/963-opening-keynote-civic-coding-a-framework-for-democratic-tech) - [AI in Leadership: How Technology is Reshaping Executive Roles](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1705-ai-in-leadership-how-technology-is-reshaping-executive-roles) - [Every CEO needs a digital twin to understand the scope of generative AI](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1006-every-ceo-needs-a-digital-twin-to-understand-the-scope-of-generative-ai) - [The shadows that follow the AI generative models](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/624-the-shadows-that-follow-the-ai-generative-models) ## Related Articles - [What Industries Outside of AI Are Hiring The Most AI Experts?](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/98-what-industries-outside-of-ai-are-hiring-the-most-ai-experts) - [How to Become an AI Engineer](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/331-how-to-become-an-ai-engineer) - [Stephan Gillich - Bringing AI Everywhere](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/489-stephan-gillich-bringing-ai-everywhere) - [Navigating the AI Shift](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/629-navigating-the-ai-shift) - [Coffee with Developers - Maria Apazoglou - Making AI understandable for all in production](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/475-coffee-with-developers-maria-apazoglou-making-ai-understandable-for-all-in-production) - [Got AI ideas but no money? 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