Associate Director, AI Assurance Lead, Quality Engineering in Transform, Engineering AI and Data

Basic information

Location

London, Manchester

Business Line

Technology & Transformation

Job Type

Permanent / FTC

Date published

11-Nov-2026

Req #

25756

Job description

Connect to your Industry

Deloitte provide premium quality engineering services to a wide range of global clients, solving the most complex testing challenges on their most significant and highest profile IT change programmes. Our team has grown rapidly over recent years, and continues to do so, combining a wealth of deep industry knowledge with both business advisory experience and technical expertise.

Our proposition differs from our competitors as we are not purely delivery focused, we pride ourselves on providing a more consultative and strategic approach to quality engineering which results in our clients experiencing a premium service and gaining higher value outcomes.

Business Operations

Want to work with the latest technologies, as part of a team helping international organisations transform their core business capabilities? Whether you’re working with on-premise systems, Cloud technology, or custom-developed solutions (to name just a few), your expertise will help clients deliver continuous improvement and innovation, from initial design right through to implementation and optimisation.

Connect to your career at Deloitte

Deloitte drives progress. Using our vast range of expertise, we help our clients' become leaders wherever they choose to compete. To do this, we invest in outstanding people. We build teams of future thinkers, with diverse talents and backgrounds, and empower them all to reach for and achieve more.

What brings us all together at Deloitte? It’s how we approach the thousands of decisions we make every day. How we behave, our beliefs and our attitudes. In other words: our values. Whatever we do, wherever we are in the world, we lead the way , serve with integrity , take care of each other , foster inclusion , and collaborate for measurable impact . These five shared values lead every decision we make and action we take, guiding us to deliver impact how and where it matters most.

Connect to your opportunity

We are seeking a talented and experienced Associate Director to lead and deliver quality assurance (QA) initiatives for AI, machine learning (ML), and agentic solutions deployed by our clients. This role is ideal for a professional with a strong background in testing or data science, coupled with a deep understanding of AI/ML models, their implementation, and associated risks. You will work with leading organisations across industries, ensuring the robustness, reliability, and ethical integrity of their AI-driven solutions.

As an Associate Director, you will play a pivotal role in shaping and executing AI/ML quality assurance strategies, leading technical teams, and driving innovation in this rapidly evolving field. You will also contribute to practice development, including the creation of new service offerings, thought leadership, and the upskilling of our practitioners in AI/ML QA specialisms.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership and Delivery:-

• Act as a technical subject matter expert (SME) in AI/ML quality assurance, staying at the forefront of emerging tools, methodologies, and challenges in testing AI/ML systems.
• Lead cross-functional teams to design, implement, and execute robust quality assurance strategies for AI/ML applications, ensuring compliance with ethical standards, regulatory requirements, and industry best practices.
• Oversee the testing lifecycle for AI/ML solutions, including data validation, model performance testing, bias detection, explainability, robustness, and fairness assessments.
• Develop and maintain AI/ML-specific testing frameworks, tools, and methodologies to enhance the quality assurance process.
• Provide technical oversight on the largest and most complex AI/ML engagements or across multiple smaller projects, ensuring consistent delivery excellence.

Practice Development and Thought Leadership:-

• Lead the development of new client offerings, such as the Quality Engineering AI Centre of Excellence (QE AI CoE), to establish Deloitte as a market leader in AI/ML quality assurance.
• Drive thought leadership initiatives, including white papers, blogs, and presentations, to position Deloitte as a trusted advisor in AI/ML quality assurance.
• Foster a culture of continuous learning by developing structured training programmes, leading skills labs, and mentoring practitioners in AI/ML QA specialisms.
• Build and sponsor a Test Craft technical community within Deloitte, promoting collaboration, innovation, and knowledge sharing.
• Client Engagement and Business Development
• Partner with clients to understand their unique quality assurance needs for AI/ML solutions and design tailored testing strategies that align with their business objectives.
• Actively contribute to business development efforts, leveraging your technical expertise to bring credibility to sales pursuits and client engagements.
• Lead the creation of proposals, discussion decks, and client presentations, and participate in client orals during the bid process.
• Manage key client relationships, acting as a trusted advisor and ensuring the delivery of high-quality outcomes.

Team Leadership and Management:-

• Build and lead diverse, high-performing teams, fostering an inclusive and collaborative culture where individuals are recognised for their contributions.
• Take responsibility for budget management, client deliverables, and billing, ensuring projects are delivered on time and within scope.
• Act as a role model and mentor, supporting the professional development of junior team members and promoting best practices in AI/ML quality assurance.

Key Skills and Experience:-

• Proven experience in testing, quality assurance, or data science, with a strong focus on AI/ML systems.
• Deep understanding of AI/ML models, their implementation, and associated risks, including bias, fairness, explainability, and robustness.
• Hands-on experience with AI/ML testing tools and technologies, such as TensorFlow Extended (TFX), MLflow, Explainable AI (XAI) frameworks, and model validation platforms.
• Strong knowledge of AI/ML lifecycle management, including data preparation, model training, deployment, and monitoring.
• Experience in leading large-scale testing initiatives for AI/ML-powered systems, including both traditional and agile delivery models.
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain senior client relationships, with a track record of successful project delivery and business development.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to convey complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Proven leadership experience, including managing diverse teams and fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Advanced degree in Computer Science, Data Science, AI/ML, or a related field.
• Certifications in AI/ML technologies or quality assurance methodologies (e.g., ISTQB, AWS Certified Machine Learning, Google Professional Machine Learning Engineer).
• Experience in developing and implementing AI/ML governance frameworks and ensuring compliance with ethical and regulatory standards.

Connect to your skills and professional experience

To qualify for the role, Associate Directors must have:

• Exceptional communication, presentation, business writing and professional skills, including being able to bridge both technical and business stakeholders
• Experience of building and strengthening key client relationships
• Proven experience and expertise in delivering quality assurance for AI/ML systems, including defining detailed testing strategies and approaches for AI applications.
• Proven ability to deliver complex test processes in challenging client environments.
• Proficiency in a range of relevant AI QA tools and technologies, such as LLM-as-a-Judge frameworks, data analysis and ML evaluation libraries.
• Ability to identify and clearly articulate problems and risks to stakeholders, particularly relating to complex AI/ML systems and their implementations.
• Deep understanding of Ethical AI challenges and principles and ability to apply them to AI quality assurance.
• Familiarity with AI governance frameworks and their impact on AI quality assurance processes.
• Proven experience of work in highly technical cross-functional teams with AI and data centric professions.
• Demonstrable ability to lead and motivate high-performing quality engineering teams.
• Experience coaching and mentoring team members in AI quality assurance. Strong leadership presence and ability to inspire others.
• Experience being a vocable and valuable member/chair of a solution review board or technical design authority.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, capable of conveying complex technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Passionate about the technology business and its future direction within the T&T strategy, specifically in AI quality assurance.
• Passionate about building and fostering AI QA communities.
• Role Model for Deloitte Values: collaborative, actively listening, providing inspirational leadership, and resilient to challenges.

Connect to your business - Technology and Transformation

Distinctive thinking, deep expertise, innovation and collaborative working. That’s what connects us. That’s what makes us Deloitte. If you want to help solve some of the biggest tech and transformational challenges around, join us. Together, we’ll make an impact that matters.

Engineering, AI and Data

We lead transformation at the heart of our clients; re-engineering the core of our clients’ organisations, helping to unleash growth, and creating better futures for their customers, citizens and employees.

Personal independence

Regulation and controls are standard practice in our industry and Deloitte is no exception. These controls provide important legal protection for both you and the firm. We are subject to a number of audit regulations, one of which requires that certain colleagues abide by specific personal independence constraints (e.g., in relation to any financial interests and employment relationships). This can mean that you and your "Immediate Family Members" are not permitted to hold certain financial interests (shares, funds, bonds etc.) with audit clients of the firm, and also prohibitions on certain employment relationships (e.g., you are not permitted to hold a secondary employment role with SEC audit clients of the firm whilst being employed by the firm). The recruitment team will provide further detail as you progress through the recruitment process or you can contact the Independence team upon request.

Connect with your colleagues

“What attracted me to Deloitte were the endless opportunities and the collective experience of other like-minded individuals. Deloitte’s clients include many of the world’s largest organisations; I wanted to be part of a team that made a difference that I could be proud of.” - Dan, Technology and Transformation

"I get to work on projects that help clients in a sector I feel truly passionate about.” - Rhiannon, Technology and Transformation

“Everyone always says “it’s the people,” and that’s true. Working for a brand you feel proud of feels pretty good too. And you don’t have any stress about fitting into a particular stereotype, because there are so many different types of people in Deloitte Digital.” - Gillian, Technology and Transformation

Our hybrid working policy

You’ll be based in London or Manchester with hybrid working.

At Deloitte we understand the importance of balancing your career alongside your home life. That’s why we’ll support you to work flexibly through our hybrid working policy. Depending on the requirements of your role, you’ll have the opportunity to work in your local office, virtual collaboration spaces, client sites and remotely. You’ll get the chance to meet face to face when needed, while you collaborate and learn from colleagues, share your experiences, and build the relationships that will fuel your career and prioritise your wellbeing. Please check with your recruiter for the specific working requirements that may apply for your role.

Our commitment to you

Making an impact is more than just what we do: it’s why we’re here. So we work hard to create an environment where you can experience a purpose you believe in, the freedom to be you, and the capacity to go further than ever before.

We want you. The true you. Your own strengths, perspective and personality. So we’re nurturing a culture where everyone belongs, feels supported and heard, and is empowered to make a valuable, personal contribution. You can be sure we’ll take your wellbeing seriously, too. Because it’s only when you’re comfortable and at your best that you can make the kind of impact you, and we, live for.

Your expertise is our capability, so we’ll make sure it never stops growing. Whether it’s from the complex work you do, or the people you collaborate with, you’ll learn every day. Through world-class development, you’ll gain invaluable technical and personal skills. Whatever your level, you’ll learn how to lead.

Connect to your next step

A career at Deloitte is an opportunity to develop in any direction you choose. Join us and you’ll experience a purpose you can believe in and an impact you can see. You’ll be free to bring your true self to work every day. And you’ll never stop growing, whatever your level.

Discover more reasons to connect with us, our people and purpose-driven culture at deloitte.co.uk/careers

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