Head of AI and Innovation

Fixed-term contract | Brisbane (hybrid, 2-3 days onsite) | $157,000-$192,000 plus 17% superannuation

Seek selling points

- A rare dual mandate: shape the AI roadmap, then personally build the systems that ship
- Direct visibility to the CIO, COO and Executive Group on AI you personally build
- 12-month fixed-term contract inside a genuine multi-year AI transformation program

About the client

Our client is a large higher education organisation undergoing a significant technology-led transformation, with artificial intelligence central to how it plans to serve students, staff and the broader community. Its Digital Solutions function is values-driven, modernising technology, culture and ways of working to build a genuinely digital future. Operating in a sector under close public scrutiny, the organisation has set its sights on becoming a genuine leader in applied AI rather than a follower. It is a complex, federated environment where change happens at scale and outcomes matter to a broad community of stakeholders.

About the role

Most organisations have an AI strategist who cannot build, or a builder with no seat at the table; this role is deliberately both. You will have direct input into the University's AI roadmap and Digital Master Plan rather than only executing someone else's, while remaining genuinely hands-on in designing and building agentic AI, generative AI and RAG-based systems from concept through to production. Based in Brisbane on a hybrid basis, with two to three days onsite, you will report to the CIO and be visible to the COO and Executive Group, engaged on a 12-month fixed-term contract that sits inside a genuine multi-year transformation program.



You will thrive here if you want both the seat at the table and your hands on the keyboard, and struggle if you only want one.

Duties

- Own end-to-end delivery of agentic AI, generative AI, LLM and RAG-based systems, from concept through to production.
- Provide direct input into the University's AI roadmap and Digital Master Plan, shaping direction as well as delivering against it.
- Establish the AI capability function from scratch, including tooling, delivery patterns, multi-agent orchestration practices and an initial operating model.
- Make enterprise architecture and cloud platform decisions across Azure, AWS and GCP to ensure solutions are secure, scalable and sustainable.
- Embed governance, risk and responsible AI as a core pillar, covering transparency, bias mitigation and post-deployment monitoring, while mentoring and uplifting existing staff.

Requirements

- Postgraduate qualification, or equivalent industry experience, in Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, Data Science, Engineering or a related discipline.
- Proven track record shipping AI or ML into production in a real enterprise environment, not just a lab or a pilot.
- Experience building or leading an AI capability function from the ground up.
- Hands-on experience with agentic AI and multi-agent orchestration, not just conceptual familiarity.
- Practical experience with RAG, prompt engineering and MLOps/LLMOps, evidenced by work actually delivered.
- Genuine commitment to governance and responsible AI in a regulated or complex workplace.
- Comfortable operating under executive and board-level scrutiny, not just line management oversight.
- Australian citizenship or permanent residency is required for this role.

#J-18808-Ljbffr

📌 Head of AI Delivery and Innovation (Brisbane City)
🏢 Cox Purtell
📍 Brisbane City