Sr. Director AI Enablement

Remote - US | Reports to: CHRO | Partners directly with ELT

Backblaze is executing an ambitious, company-wide AI transformation program that is fundamentally reshaping how our organization operates at scale. This is not a theoretical research project — it is a live, high-impact initiative with production deployments already generating measurable value. We are driven by a commitment to operational excellence and tangible results, and this role owns that mission end-to-end. You will set the strategy, build the team and process to execute it, and be the executive voice accountable for AI's return on investment across the business.

Reporting to the CHRO and operating as a direct partner to the ELT, you will own the AI use case portfolio at the enterprise level — setting investment priorities, architecting the governance model, and building the operating rhythm that turns AI ambition into production outcomes across every function.

The program has a simple test: by Q3, we should be able to answer "what has AI actually delivered this year?" in a single slide with numbers, in front of the board. You own that slide, and the strategy behind it.

Own the AI portfolio strategy. Set enterprise-wide prioritization criteria for AI investment. Build and maintain the use case pipeline from intake through production, and make the call on what gets resourced, what gets shelved, and why. Report portfolio health and ROI directly to the CHRO and ELT.

Build and lead the function. Stand up the team, process, and tooling needed to run AI enablement at scale — hiring and directing program managers/analysts as the portfolio grows. Coordinate functional owners, IT, Engineering, Legal, and Finance across every use case in flight.

Own the workflow discovery engine. Direct structured current-state assessments across departments. Build the muscle for finding where volume, repetition, or research intensity make AI a strong fit — including use cases a top-down scan would miss. Set the standard for how baselines are documented and how impact is measured post-launch.

Set solution architecture strategy. Own the framework for deciding whether a workflow calls for an off-the-shelf tool, a prompt layer, a vendor product, or a custom build. Direct Engineering and IT engagement on integration or custom development. Make the build-vs-buy call at the portfolio level, not just per use case.

Govern the enterprise AI tool stack. Own AI vendor strategy end-to-end: fit assessment, security and privacy review, pilots, and build-vs-buy recommendations. Maintain the AI Tool Registry with zero ungoverned deployments. Own spend accountability across teams with cost-per-outcome visibility reported to the executive team monthly.

Be the executive source of truth. Maintain the live view of every active use case, its status, owner, and impact — and translate it into the narrative leadership needs. Produce outcomes reports for the CHRO, ELT, and board as needed. Get ahead of role and change implications before they become organizational problems.

Required

• 10+ years in program management, business operations, or automation delivery, including experience leading a team or function, with direct experience taking AI or workflow automation initiatives from discovery to production at scale
• Demonstrated ability to set strategy and prioritization frameworks, not just execute against someone else's roadmap
• Hands-on fluency across the modern AI stack: prompt engineering, RAG pipelines, LLM orchestration, tool evaluation, and governance
• Experience conducting workflow assessments with business stakeholders — not just technically, but operationally: mapping current states, identifying leverage points, designing future states
• A track record of producing outcomes framed in time saved, cost reduced, or revenue impacted — not features shipped or tools deployed — and communicating that impact to executive and board-level audiences
• Clear written communication: business cases, executive updates, board-ready materials, solution design documents

Preferred

• Experience running an AI program across multiple functions simultaneously, with budget and headcount ownership
• Familiarity with AI governance in data-sensitive or PII-adjacent environments
• Background in cloud infrastructure, storage, or technical B2B businesses
• Exposure to org transitions — restructures, outsourcing programs, distributed team ramp-ups — and the workflow documentation challenges they create

You are a builder and an operator who can also set direction. You are comfortable going deep on a workflow with an ops team in the morning and presenting portfolio strategy to the board in the afternoon. You move fast, document everything, and care more about what shipped and what it returned than what was planned.

You do not need perfect inputs to make progress. You are comfortable building from reasonable assumptions, setting the frameworks others will operate inside, and refining through stakeholder conversation. You know the difference between a use case that belongs in production and one that belongs in a backlog — and you're the one who decides.

If you have spent your career explaining why things are hard, this is not the right role. If you have spent it building the systems that make them happen anyway — at scale, with a team under you — we want to talk.

The base pay range for this position is $190,000-$265,000.

At Backblaze, we value being fair and good to our customers, partners, and employees. That’s why diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the core of our values. We are committed to fostering a workforce where all employees feel a sense of belonging regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, socio-economic status, ability, veteran status, and education. We believe that our dedication to cultivating a diverse workspace not only allows us to better serve our customers in over 175 countries, but further reinforces our commitment to doing the right thing. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To understand more about the data we collect and process as part of your application, please view our Backblaze Employee Privacy Notice.