Senior Director, AI Center of Excellence

Palo Alto Networks•Arlington, VA

2d•Remote

About The Position

Our Mission At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place. Who We Are In order to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, we must trailblaze the path and shape the future of our industry. This is something our employees work at each day and is defined by our values: Disruption, Collaboration, Execution, Integrity, and Inclusion. We weave AI into the fabric of everything we do and use it to augment the impact every individual can have. If you are passionate about solving real-world problems and ideating beside the best and the brightest, we invite you to join us! This role is remote, but distance is no barrier to impact. Our hybrid teams collaborate across geographies to solve big problems, stay close to our customers, and grow together. You will be part of a culture that values trust, accountability, and shared success where your work truly matters. Job Summary As the Senior Director, AI Center of Excellence, you will lead the organization responsible for standing up a dedicated AI Center of Excellence. You will partner closely with Regional Leaders, Support, Product, Engineering, and Sales to create a unified AI integration experience and drive alignment across teams in our "speedboat" model for Cortex and Cloud. Your insights will shape delivery innovation, influence product direction, and lead the transformation of how we integrate automation and AI into our global services model. This is a role for a leader who brings clarity to complexity, elevates teams, and navigates change with confidence. You will set the tone for AI-driven delivery excellence while contributing directly to our overarching global efficiency strategy.

Requirements

10+ years in technical services, AI operations, professional services, or similar roles in a high-growth SaaS/cloud environment.
5+ years leading regional or multi-regional teams with functional and matrixed reporting structures
Strong track record of delivering against KPIs including deployment speed, workflow efficiency, margin, and utilization.
Deep familiarity with AI platforms, prompt engineering, agentic architecture, and enterprise software environments.
Experience presenting to and influencing executive stakeholders across Product, Services, Engineering, Sales, and Customer Success organizations.
Experience leading specialized teams through technological transformations.
Strong communicator who can influence technical and non-technical teams.
Proven ability to build trust, develop leaders, and guide teams through ambiguity in rapidly evolving technology environments.
Sound judgment in managing escalations and complex AI deployment decisions.
Highly collaborative, with a track record of driving alignment and continuous improvement.
Ability to travel 20–30% within the North America region, with occasional international travel requirements.
Bachelor's degree or equivalent military experience required.

Nice To Haves

Industry-recognized credentials in AI/Machine Learning, Cloud Architecture, or Data Science.
Master’s degree or MBA preferred

Responsibilities

Standardize delivery practices, proactively identify risks, and drive data-backed decisions across areas to improve service health.
Align with Global Customer Support, Sales, Product, Engineering, and Partner teams to drive customer and business outcomes.
Represent the AI COE in global forums, advocating for AI transformation insights and regional needs.
Lead teams through complex workflow transitions, rapid change, and new AI-driven delivery models.
Drive the deployment of the Agentic initiatives to build, vet, and index specialized agentic workflows.
Build, develop, and mentor a high-performing technical organization focused on AI innovation.
Upskill team resources in advanced prompt engineering and agentic multi-agent architecture designs.
Create a culture grounded in accountability, continuous learning, and operational excellence.