Director Strategic Technical Advisory

Cognite operates at the forefront of industrial digitalization, building AI and data solutions that solve some of the world’s hardest, highest-impact problems. With unmatched industrial heritage and a comprehensive suite of AI capabilities, including low-code AI agents, Cognite accelerates the digital transformation to drive operational improvements.

Our moonshot is bold: unlock $100B in customer value by 2035 and redefine how global industry works.

What Cognite is Relentless to achieve

We thrive in challenges. We challenge assumptions. We execute with speed and ownership. If you view obstacles as signals to step forward - not step back - you’ll feel at home here. Join us in this venture where AI and data meet ingenuity, and together, we forge the path to a smarter, more connected industrial future.

How you’ll demonstrate Ownership

• Build & Scale the Strategic Customer Hub
• Establish and scale the dedicated technical hub supporting a strategic customer.
• Grow the team from ~6 to ~20 technical specialists (Data Engineers, Data Scientists, Solution Architects).
• Define operational frameworks, delivery standards, and best practices.
• Build a strong team culture aligned with the customer and strategic program goals.
• Lead Technical Delivery & Architecture Oversight
• Provide architectural guidance and challenge technical assumptions to ensure scalable solutions.
• Ensure high-quality delivery of data, AI, and platform solutions using Cognite Data Fusion.
• Define standards for solution design, code quality, data modeling, and engineering practices.
• Lead technical troubleshooting and ensure delivery meets SLAs and performance expectations.
• Mentor Technical Teams
• Mentor and guide Data Engineers, Data Scientists, and Solution Architects.
• Help teams communicate technical insights effectively to business stakeholders.
• Coach team members on professional customer engagement and presentation.
• Conduct technical retrospectives to improve architecture, performance, and processes.
• Enable Ecosystem & Partners
• Develop and execute the partner enablement strategy.
• Mentor and audit third-party partner teams to meet engineering and delivery standards.
• Ensure partners can independently support and extend the platform.
• Track partner readiness and certification progress.
• Collaborate Across Strategic Programs
• Align hub delivery with the broader strategic program and customer priorities.
• Coordinate with program managers, support teams, academy teams, and community teams.
• Manage cross-project dependencies, risks, and mitigation plans.
• Drive Customer Success & Delivery Excellence
• Establish technical delivery standards tailored to the customer’s environment.
• Handle critical issue escalations and ensure timely resolution.
• Analyze customer feedback and system performance to improve processes and tools.
• Manage Operational & Financial Performance
• Work with program managers on effort estimation and planning.
• Identify scope creep and resource constraints early.
• Ensure delivery efficiency and effective resource utilization.
• Hire, Develop & Retain Talent
• Lead technical interviews and hiring for the hub team.
• Design onboarding programs and training plans for new hires.
• Drive employee engagement, retention, and skill development.
• Facilitate knowledge sharing and technical learning within the team
  
  

• 15+ years of experience in technical domains such as:
• Data Engineering
• Cloud Architecture
• Data Science / MLOps
• Experience reviewing architectures and guiding senior engineers.
• Experience in SaaS or data platform environments preferred.
  

• Proven experience leading delivery for large enterprise or strategic customers.
• Ability to navigate complex enterprise IT landscapes.
• Experience aligning internal technical roadmaps with client architecture.
  
  

• Strong experience mentoring senior technical teams.
• Experience building and scaling teams in delivery centers (especially in India).
• Ability to guide technical professionals in high-stakes customer engagements.
  
  

• Experience enabling third-party partners or system integrators.
• Experience designing or leveraging structured training programs and certifications.
  
  

• Ability to work within a matrixed program structure.
• Experience managing technical governance, risk, and cross-team dependencies.
• Ability to coordinate across support, delivery, and training teams.
  
  

• Excellent executive-level communication and presentation skills.
• Ability to translate complex technical concepts into business value.
• Strong customer-facing presence and leadership.