Head of IT Strategy & AI Enablement

Lincoln Financial • Radnor, PA

6d • Hybrid

About The Position

The SVP, Head of IT Strategy & AI Enablement is a direct report to the Chief Information Officer and plays a critical role in shaping an AI-enabled IT organization. This executive is responsible for defining and driving the AI strategy for IT, modernizing how technology capabilities are designed and delivered, and ensuring IT operates as a scalable, intelligent, and data-driven platform for the enterprise.
The role oversees Enterprise Architecture, Application Development Center of Excellence, AI for IT, and Data Strategy & Governance, with a strong focus on embedding AI, automation, and modern engineering practices into IT’s operating model. This leader partners closely with IT business unit leads to accelerate innovation, improve productivity, and enable faster delivery of business outcomes through AI-driven capabilities.

Requirements

• 12+ years in IT leadership roles, with proven experience in transformation initiatives.
• Strong background in IT governance, financial management, and organizational design.
• Experience driving modernization and efficiency programs in large, complex environments.
• Strategic thinker with strong execution skills.
• Expertise in governance frameworks, financial transparency, portfolio management, enterprise architecture and AI proficiency.
• High executive presence and ability to influence across business and technology domains.
• Exceptional communication and change management skills.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Technology, or related field; MBA or Master’s preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute the AI strategy for IT, including a clear roadmap for adopting AI, automation, and intelligent platforms across IT functions.
• Partner with the CIO to translate enterprise AI ambitions into practical, scalable IT capabilities that improve speed, quality, and efficiency of technology delivery.
• Position IT as a leader in applying AI to software engineering, infrastructure, operations, security, and service management.
• Establish and lead the AI for IT function, identifying high-impact use cases such as intelligent development, automated testing, AIOps, and AI-assisted service delivery.
• Drive experimentation, adoption, and scaling of AI tools and platforms within IT, balancing innovation with risk management and responsible AI practices,
• Measure and communicate the value of AI adoption in IT through productivity gains, cycle-time reduction, quality improvements, and cost optimization.
• Build training programs to drive AI education and change management within the IT organization.
• Ensure policies and standards are well defined and enforced. Manage the Policy & Standards Review Board.
• Ensure standard technology is in place with reviews and gates to ensure delivery of technology solutions in line with standards and technology patterns.
• Own and evolve the enterprise architecture strategy to support AI, cloud-native platforms, composable architectures, and data-centric design.
• Define and govern technology standards, patterns, and guardrails that enable rapid innovation while ensuring scalability, security, and interoperability.
• Lead architecture review and decision forums to ensure technology investments align with enterprise strategy and AI-enabled future-state architecture.
• Lead the Application Development CoE to modernize engineering practices, tools, and platforms.
• Embed AI-enabled development capabilities (e.g., code generation, testing automation, developer copilots) into standard delivery workflows.
• Establish best practices for product-centric delivery, DevSecOps, platform engineering, and reusable services.
• Define and oversee IT’s enterprise data strategy and governance, ensuring data is trusted, accessible, and ready for AI and advanced analytics.
• Partner with business and data leaders to strengthen data foundations, metadata management, data quality, and responsible data usage.
• Ensure governance models enable innovation while meeting regulatory, security, and ethical standards.
• Communicate transformation objectives and progress to executive IT leadership.
• Translate complex IT strategies into clear, compelling narratives for stakeholders.
• Foster a culture of continuous learning, experimentation, and responsible innovation across the IT organization.

Benefits

• Clearly defined career tracks and job levels, along with associated behaviors for each of Lincoln's core values and leadership attributes
• Leadership development and virtual training opportunities
• PTO/parental leave
• Competitive 401K and employee benefits
• Free financial counseling, health coaching and employee assistance program
• Tuition assistance program
• Work arrangements that work for you
• Effective productivity/technology tools and training

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive