Field CTO - Data & AI

Blue Orange Digital•New York, NY

1d•$220,000 - $300,000

About The Position

Blue Orange Digital helps organizations unlock measurable business value with modern analytics and AI. We are in a focused growth phase serving Financial Services, Private Equity (PE) firms and their portfolio companies, delivering AI solutions that drive EBITDA uplift, revenue acceleration, and operational efficiency. The Field CTO - Data & AI is the external face of Blue Orange's technical expertise. You build market credibility through thought leadership and industry presence, serve as the strategic technical advisor on our most important pursuits, and help PE operating partners and portfolio executives see how AI creates measurable business value. This role blends market presence with strategic sales involvement. You're not embedded in every deal—you're deployed selectively on complex, high-value pursuits where executive credibility and strategic vision accelerate the win. Between pursuits, you're building Blue Orange's brand through conferences, content, and relationship development. You're equally comfortable on stage at a PE forum and in a boardroom shaping an AI investment thesis. You have strong opinions on where AI creates real value (and where it doesn't), and you communicate those opinions in ways that build trust and open doors. This is an individual contributor role with significant external visibility. You won't manage a team—you'll be the strategic technical voice that elevates Blue Orange's market position and closes our most important deals.

Requirements

10+ years in Data, Analytics, or AI/ML, with significant experience in client-facing advisory, consulting, or technical leadership roles
Executive presence: Comfortable presenting to C-suite, boards, PE operating partners, and investment committees
Demonstrated thought leadership: Published content, conference speaking, recognized expertise in the Data/AI space
Deep AI fluency: Strong grasp of modern AI landscape—LLMs, RAG, agents, MLOps, evaluation strategies, governance and safety considerations
Data platform expertise: Hands-on experience with Databricks, Snowflake, or equivalent; understanding of Lakehouse, cloud data architecture, and data engineering patterns
Business value orientation: Ability to connect technical capabilities to EBITDA impact, revenue growth, and operational efficiency
Sales contribution track record: Experience shaping pursuits, developing win themes, and presenting in competitive sales situations
Strong communication: Exceptional written and verbal skills; ability to make complex concepts accessible to non-technical audiences
Network and relationships: Existing connections in the Data/AI ecosystem and/or PE community
Candidates must be authorized to work in the US

Nice To Haves

PE, consulting, or portfolio company experience—understanding of value creation, 100-day plans, hold period dynamics
Prior CTO, VP of Engineering, Chief Data Officer, or Practice Lead role
Advanced degree: MS, PhD, or MBA
Certifications in cloud AI/ML, Databricks, or Snowflake
Experience building or leading a technical practice or solutions team
Track record of sourcing revenue through personal brand and network

Responsibilities

Run technical discovery, scoping, and solution architecture across the sales pipeline
Build and deliver demos, POCs, and technical presentations that advance deals
Own technical sections of proposals and RFPs—solution approach, architecture, methodology
Lead executive conversations with PE operating partners, C-suite, and board-level stakeholders
Present to investment committees, boards, and executive teams on AI value creation
Advise PE firms and portfolio CEOs on AI roadmaps, build vs. buy decisions, and technology strategy
Shape win themes, differentiation, and solution narratives for opportunities
Represent Blue Orange at conferences, PE forums, industry events, and webinars
Develop and deliver keynotes, panels, and presentations that establish Blue Orange as a leader in AI for PE value creation
Publish thought leadership content: whitepapers, LinkedIn articles, blog posts, podcast appearances
Build relationships with PE operating partners, industry analysts, and technology partners
Generate inbound interest and qualified leads through visibility and reputation
Partner with marketing on content strategy, messaging, and brand positioning
Define Blue Orange's point of view on Data & AI trends, emerging technologies, and market direction
Develop reference architectures and solution frameworks for key use cases
Translate market trends into service offering opportunities
Evaluate build vs. buy decisions and guide technology/vendor ecosystem strategy
Provide technical vision input to proposals without owning detailed scoping
Stay current on LLM/GenAI developments, data platform evolution, and AI governance trends
Mentor sales engineers, architects, and consultants on executive engagement and strategic selling
Provide input on hiring priorities, team development, and capability building
Shape go-to-market messaging, competitive positioning, and sales enablement materials
Contribute to partnership strategy with cloud providers, data platforms, and AI vendors