Director - Forward Deployed AI Engineering

Enterprise IT & Quality 
Ballerup, Denmark 

Shape the future of AI-driven healthcare by leading a team that reimagines how Novo Nordisk delivers life-changing treatments to millions of patients worldwide. 

Your new role 

As Director of Forward Deployed AI Engineering, you'll lead a dynamic team of AI experts who translate cutting-edge artificial intelligence into generalizable technology across Novo Nordisk. This is a leadership role where your success is measured by your team's achievements as they scale solutions from concept to products and support the reimagination of core business processes with AI. 

Your responsibilities will include: 

• Leading and developing a department of highly specialized AI Engineers and ensuring a culture of innovation, impact, and engineering excellence 

• Joining the AI Framework & Engineering leadership team to shape and execute AI/ML strategy at the highest levels of the organization 

• Engaging in senior-level meetings to define the strategic direction of AI across Novo Nordisk's entire value chain 

• Ensuring proper utilisation of our AI platforms into AI use cases and identify generalisable components through the cases for our platforms 

• Applying innovation methods like AI accelerators to ideate and reimagine business processes, balancing business value with technical scalability 

• Managing budget accountability and resource allocation for your department 

• Driving integration of novel AI technologies and Agentic AI solutions into relevant business domains and AI platforms 

• Attracting, retaining, and developing top-tier AI talent from across the industry. 

Your new department 

In Enterprise IT & Quality, you will be part of a business area that drives impact across the full Novo Nordisk value chain. We strive to stay close to our stakeholders in the business to ensure we deliver on their needs, helping reach millions of people living with serious chronic diseases. Our focus is on being at the forefront within our three areas; ensuring the highest quality for patients, being a trusted tech leader and an environmentally responsible business. 

Within Enterprise IT sits AI Framework & Engineering—a dynamic organization of AI Engineers, AI Scientists, and Platform experts dedicated to delivering impactful AI tooling and solutions across Novo Nordisk. Our mission is to #BringDataToLife by converting data into tangible impact through state-of-the-art AI platforms and governance. We comprise four key teams: Forward Deployed AI Engineering (reimagining Novo Nordisk with AI by supporting specific business cases and translating innovation to generalisable platform components), AI Core (providing custom AI platforms processing billions of tokens monthly), Citizen AI and BI Platforms (fueling AI and analytics company-wide), and AI Governance (ensuring Responsible AI practices). We're cloud-native, working primarily with Databricks, AWS, and Azure, and we embrace agility, diverse thinking, and continuous learning in a culture built on feedback, honesty, and fun. 

Your skills & qualifications 

We're looking for an experienced AI leader who thrives on translating technology into business impact and developing exceptional engineering teams. You'll bring: 

• An MSc, PhD, or similar graduate degree in business administration, engineering, computer science, data science, or related fields 

• 5+ years of relevant leadership experience, preferably within tech, data, and AI environments 

• A proven track record of developing and growing engineering talent while establishing strong working cultures 

• Experience developing AI business cases with a focus on ROI, ideally from consultancy work or cross-organizational functions 

• Hands-on learnings from deploying AI/Agentic AI solutions through the complete journey—from identification and feasibility to change management and production 

• Solid understanding of the pharmaceutical value chain and proven ability to collaborate across functions to drive change and accelerate AI impact 

• Exceptional ability to listen, sense tech trends, set strategic direction, and enable people to achieve outstanding results 

• Strong capability to navigate complex senior stakeholder networks through effective communication and expectation management as well as excellent written and spoken English communication skills. 

Working at Novo Nordisk 

Every day we seek the solutions that defeat serious chronic diseases. To do this, we approach our work with determination, constant curiosity and a commitment to finding better ways forward. For over 100 years, this dedication has driven us to build a company focused on lasting change for long-term health. One where diverse thinking, shared purpose and mutual respect come together to create extraordinary results. In AI Framework & Engineering, you'll work at the forefront of digital healthcare transformation, where your leadership will directly enable innovative AI solutions that reach patients across 170+ countries. When you join us, you're not just starting a job—you're becoming part of a story that spans generations. 

What we offer 

At Novo Nordisk, you’ll join a global healthcare company with a unique culture and strong results. We offer continuous learning, career development, and benefits tailored to your life and career stage. 

Salary:  For this role, the Annual Base Salary ranges from 940,800.00 to 1,448,700.00 DKK, corresponding to the level of the position. 

The placement within the salary range will be assessed during the recruitment process based on the candidate’s skills, competencies, knowledge, and relevant experience.