Director of AI Enablement
Job Description
Description: **Role: Director of AI Enablement**
**Location:** North America
**Department:** Exa Enterprise Support Group – EESG
**Reports to:** CEO, Exa Capital
**Role Type:** Player\-Coach
Requirements:
**About Exa Capital**
Exa Capital is a permanent capital holding company focused on acquiring and building vertical market software businesses. We take a long\-term, stewardship\-driven approach – buying and holding companies forever, and empowering leaders through a decentralized operating model.
**Position Overview**
The Director of AI Enablement is a high\-visibility, hands\-on leadership role responsible for turning AI from strategy into measurable operational that impacts products across Exa’s portfolio of enterprise software companies. This is not a research role, an innovation lab, or an IT delivery position. You will build and lead a small, high\-impact AI enablement department or team that identifies the highest\-value problems, rapidly prototypes solutions, deploys tools that are actually used, and quantifies the results.
Operating within Exa’s decentralized model, you will partner directly with PortCo CEOs, CTOs, and operating teams to assess AI readiness, design and deliver production\-grade pilots, embed AI into day\-to\-day workflows, and build repeatable playbooks that scale across the portfolio. You will own end\-to\-end delivery from problem definition through sustained adoption and serve as the decision gate between experimentation and enterprise implementation. You have authority to test, prioritize, iterate, and stop initiatives before committing to scale.
Success in this role means a portfolio of completed AI pilots with multiple solutions in sustained operational use within the first 6\-12 months, with clear ROI documented, adoption thresholds met, and playbooks ready for cross\-portfolio scaling. You will combine deep technical credibility with business acumen, influence without authority, and the patience of a long\-term builder.
**Key Responsibilities**
**1\. AI Enablement Strategy \& Portfolio Prioritization**
* Define and maintain a 12–24\-month AI and automation roadmap aligned to Exa’s enterprise priorities and each PortCo’s competitive context
* Conduct AI readiness assessments across portfolio companies, identifying the highest\-impact opportunities for operational optimization, product enhancement, and revenue enablement
* Lead a structured intake process for AI and automation opportunities across PortCo functions (engineering, operations, sales, CS, finance), applying clear qualification criteria: business value, technical feasibility, adoption readiness, and risk profile
* Own and manage the enterprise AI use\-case backlog and prioritization framework; translate leadership priorities into clear, executable use cases with defined ROI targets
* Monitor the AI technology landscape and make disciplined adopt/test/defer recommendations based on value, feasibility, and risk
* Provide Exa leadership with regular updates on priorities, progress, outcomes, and ROI
**2\. End\-to\-End Pilot Delivery \& Production Deployment**
* Own the full lifecycle of AI pilots: problem definition, solution design, rapid prototyping, iteration, deployment, and sustained adoption
* Design and execute time\-boxed AI pilots (typically 30–90 days) with defined success metrics, adoption thresholds, and clear exit criteria
* Drive rapid prototyping and experimentation so pilots produce usable, production\-grade solutions – not just demonstrations or proofs\-of\-concept
* Evaluate pilot results using a standardized evaluation framework and make formal recommendations to scale, iterate, defer, or stop
* Serve as the decision gate between experimentation and enterprise implementation, applying rigorous assessment across business value, technical performance, adoption readiness, and risk
* Ensure solutions are embedded into day\-to\-day workflows by redesigning processes, balancing efficiency, usability, and appropriate human oversight
* Target a portfolio of 3–5 completed pilots per PortCo annually, with measurable cost savings, productivity gains, or revenue impact
**3\. Portfolio Company Collaboration \& Field Adoption**
* Build trusted relationships with PortCo CEOs, CTOs, and product leaders, earning the right to influence through expertise and results rather than mandate
* Design and facilitate structured discovery sessions with PortCo operating teams to validate problem statements, pressure\-test workflows, and identify adoption barriers early
* Build and maintain an AI Champion Network across the portfolio to drive engagement, change readiness, and grassroots adoption
* Ensure field feedback directly informs pilot design, iteration, and scale decisions
* Facilitate cross\-portfolio AI knowledge sharing, creating communities of practice and enabling reusable patterns across companies
**4\. Product Competitiveness \& Revenue Enablement**
* Identify opportunities to integrate AI
**Location:** North America
**Department:** Exa Enterprise Support Group – EESG
**Reports to:** CEO, Exa Capital
**Role Type:** Player\-Coach
Requirements:
**About Exa Capital**
Exa Capital is a permanent capital holding company focused on acquiring and building vertical market software businesses. We take a long\-term, stewardship\-driven approach – buying and holding companies forever, and empowering leaders through a decentralized operating model.
**Position Overview**
The Director of AI Enablement is a high\-visibility, hands\-on leadership role responsible for turning AI from strategy into measurable operational that impacts products across Exa’s portfolio of enterprise software companies. This is not a research role, an innovation lab, or an IT delivery position. You will build and lead a small, high\-impact AI enablement department or team that identifies the highest\-value problems, rapidly prototypes solutions, deploys tools that are actually used, and quantifies the results.
Operating within Exa’s decentralized model, you will partner directly with PortCo CEOs, CTOs, and operating teams to assess AI readiness, design and deliver production\-grade pilots, embed AI into day\-to\-day workflows, and build repeatable playbooks that scale across the portfolio. You will own end\-to\-end delivery from problem definition through sustained adoption and serve as the decision gate between experimentation and enterprise implementation. You have authority to test, prioritize, iterate, and stop initiatives before committing to scale.
Success in this role means a portfolio of completed AI pilots with multiple solutions in sustained operational use within the first 6\-12 months, with clear ROI documented, adoption thresholds met, and playbooks ready for cross\-portfolio scaling. You will combine deep technical credibility with business acumen, influence without authority, and the patience of a long\-term builder.
**Key Responsibilities**
**1\. AI Enablement Strategy \& Portfolio Prioritization**
* Define and maintain a 12–24\-month AI and automation roadmap aligned to Exa’s enterprise priorities and each PortCo’s competitive context
* Conduct AI readiness assessments across portfolio companies, identifying the highest\-impact opportunities for operational optimization, product enhancement, and revenue enablement
* Lead a structured intake process for AI and automation opportunities across PortCo functions (engineering, operations, sales, CS, finance), applying clear qualification criteria: business value, technical feasibility, adoption readiness, and risk profile
* Own and manage the enterprise AI use\-case backlog and prioritization framework; translate leadership priorities into clear, executable use cases with defined ROI targets
* Monitor the AI technology landscape and make disciplined adopt/test/defer recommendations based on value, feasibility, and risk
* Provide Exa leadership with regular updates on priorities, progress, outcomes, and ROI
**2\. End\-to\-End Pilot Delivery \& Production Deployment**
* Own the full lifecycle of AI pilots: problem definition, solution design, rapid prototyping, iteration, deployment, and sustained adoption
* Design and execute time\-boxed AI pilots (typically 30–90 days) with defined success metrics, adoption thresholds, and clear exit criteria
* Drive rapid prototyping and experimentation so pilots produce usable, production\-grade solutions – not just demonstrations or proofs\-of\-concept
* Evaluate pilot results using a standardized evaluation framework and make formal recommendations to scale, iterate, defer, or stop
* Serve as the decision gate between experimentation and enterprise implementation, applying rigorous assessment across business value, technical performance, adoption readiness, and risk
* Ensure solutions are embedded into day\-to\-day workflows by redesigning processes, balancing efficiency, usability, and appropriate human oversight
* Target a portfolio of 3–5 completed pilots per PortCo annually, with measurable cost savings, productivity gains, or revenue impact
**3\. Portfolio Company Collaboration \& Field Adoption**
* Build trusted relationships with PortCo CEOs, CTOs, and product leaders, earning the right to influence through expertise and results rather than mandate
* Design and facilitate structured discovery sessions with PortCo operating teams to validate problem statements, pressure\-test workflows, and identify adoption barriers early
* Build and maintain an AI Champion Network across the portfolio to drive engagement, change readiness, and grassroots adoption
* Ensure field feedback directly informs pilot design, iteration, and scale decisions
* Facilitate cross\-portfolio AI knowledge sharing, creating communities of practice and enabling reusable patterns across companies
**4\. Product Competitiveness \& Revenue Enablement**
* Identify opportunities to integrate AI
Posted: 2026-03-26