Head of AI and Analytics Strategy and Exploration

Role purpose 

To shape, inspire, and prepare Swift for the age of AI… defining what is possible, building the case for where to act, and ensuring the organization has the vision, appetite, and capability to lead. By leveraging existing AI and Analytics capabilities, you pioneer how they can deliver tangible business value and set Swift up for success in the coming years. 

As Head of AI and Analytics Strategy and Exploration, you operate at the leading edge of change. You scan the horizon, interpret emerging trends before they become consensus, and translate external signals into clear strategic direction. You do not wait for the industry to show the way.  You challenge assumptions, surface non-obvious opportunities, and turn the potential of AI and Analytics into differentiated advantage for Swift and its customers. 

This is a role that spans the full arc from insight to impact. You identify and develop high-value opportunities, drive experimentation through to validated outcomes, and build a balanced portfolio of bets that reflects both near-term commercial reality and longer-term ambition. In doing so, you create a continuous pipeline of well-defined, decision-ready opportunities that engineering and delivery teams can act on, connecting strategy to execution in a way that is disciplined, not theoretical. 

Reporting to the Head of AI, Analytics and Automation, you operate as a trusted partner to senior leadership across Swift by bringing structure and confidence to decisions, scaling the adoption of proven capabilities, and ensuring the wider organisation understands and is prepared for what AI makes possible today and in the future. You own key external relationships with customers, vendors, and partners, and you represent Swift as a credible and compelling voice on AI strategy in industry forums and client conversations alike. 

This is a role for someone who thinks boldly, communicates with clarity, and knows how to turn vision into momentum. 

Specific responsibilities include: 

• Strategic foresight- Monitor the evolution of AI and Analytics technologies, market dynamics, and ecosystem players, translating external signals into clear and actionable business strategic implications for the organisations. Build forward-looking perspectives on how AI will reshape the industry, our customers, and our operating models. Provide structured, fact-based guidance to senior leadership on what matters now and what will matter next. 

• Communicating the art of the possible - Champions AI's potential across the organisation, translating cutting-edge capability into compelling narratives that inspire curiosity and ambition. Builds shared understanding of what AI can deliver today and shapes a credible, forward-looking vision for where it is headed. 

• Opportunity exploration - Identify and pursue high-value opportunities at the intersection of enterprise priorities and AI and Analytics capability. Challenge existing assumptions about where value lives, surface non-obvious use cases, and build the case for bold bets. Drive momentum from insight to action, ensuring promising opportunities are translated into tangible initiatives rather than remaining theoretical. 

• Experimentation and delivery - Drive AI and Analytics opportunities end to end, from early hypothesis through experimentation, proof-of-concept, and into validated outcomes. Maintain momentum across the full arc, ensuring promising ideas don't stall at the exploratory stage. Communicate progress, learnings, and results in ways that build organisational confidence and appetite for further investment. 

• Portfolio construction & prioritization - Build and maintain a balanced AI and Analytics portfolio that combines near-term impact with longer-term strategic bets. Recommend investment priorities and sequencing, ensuring alignment with enterprise strategy and risk appetite. Enable informed, fact-based decision-making at executive level through clear framing of trade-offs, value, and dependencies. 

• Leadership & team development - Lead, coach, and develop a team, setting clear objectives and high standards for delivery. Ensure accountability for quality, performance, and outcomes, while fostering a culture of curiosity, rigor, and continuous learning. Strengthen team capability to operate at the intersection of strategy, innovation, and execution. 

• External relationships and partnerships - Own and cultivate relationships with key external stakeholders including customers, technology vendors, research institutions, and ecosystem partners. Identify and drive partnership opportunities that accelerate Swift's AI and Analytics agenda, bringing in capability, insight, and influence that would be difficult to build internally.  

• External representation and thought leadership - Represent Swift externally as a credible voice on AI and Analytics strategy, articulating a compelling and coherent narrative about where Swift is headed and why it matters. Contribute to industry forums, client conversations, and public discourse in ways that build Swift's reputation as a forward-thinking leader in the application of AI across financial market infrastructure. 

Qualifications & Experience Required 

The ideal candidate brings a strong track record in strategy and exploration, with 5–10 years of relevant experience and a solid commercial grounding in AI and Analytics within the financial services industry. They combine disciplined execution with strategic vision, and demonstrate curiosity, foresight, and a genuine passion for applying emerging technologies to complex, real-world challenges at global scale. 

Beyond experience, the role requires the ability to navigate ambiguity, shape direction, and translate innovation into meaningful outcomes for Swift and its community. 

We are seeking professionals with: 

Experience and Background 

• 10+ years in data, analytics, or AI roles, with at least 3 to 5 years at a senior or leadership level 

• Demonstrated experience setting AI or analytics strategy in a complex, enterprise environment, shaping direction and building the case for investment, not just delivering projects 

• Track record of translating technical capability into business outcomes including revenue growth, operational efficiency, and risk reduction 

• Comfortable operating in a matrixed organisation, influencing without direct authority across product, engineering, commercial, and senior leadership teams 

Technical Fluency 

• Sufficient depth to interrogate technical proposals, assess feasibility, and hold vendors and partners accountable  

• Working knowledge of modern AI and ML approaches including classical ML, large language models, and agentic systems, with sound judgement on when each is appropriate 

• Understanding of data infrastructure fundamentals — pipelines, governance, and data quality — as a prerequisite to realising AI value at scale 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Deep familiarity with regulated AI deployment including governance frameworks, explainability requirements, and vendor risk management 

• Commercial exposure: having owned or influenced a P&L, shaped a product, or worked directly with enterprise clients on AI adoption 

• Hands-on background in data science, ML, or software engineering earlier in career, lending credibility with technical teams and sharpening build-versus-buy instincts 

• Familiarity with agentic AI architectures, multi-model orchestration, and emerging AI infrastructure patterns 

• Background in or alongside consulting, advisory, or product strategy functions 

• Strong external network across AI research, fintech, or financial standards bodies 

Desirable

• Experience working in or closely with financial services, payments, or infrastructure-adjacent sectors, with a strong understanding of industry dynamics, regulatory environments, and client expectations 

• Exposure to the SWIFT ecosystem or equivalent — correspondent banking, ISO 20022, sanctions screening — would meaningfully accelerate onboarding 

What we offer

We give you the freedom to be yourself. We are creating an environment of unique individuals – like you – with different perspectives on the financial industry and the world. A diverse and inclusive environment in which everyone’s voice counts and where you can reach your full potential.

We are committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation related to accessibility during your application or interview, please contact [email protected] or indicate this in your application.

Please note that this mailbox is not monitored for general recruitment enquiries and should only be used for accessibility or accommodation-related requests (for example related to vision, hearing or neurodiversity).

All requests are confidential and will not affect your candidacy.

Don’t meet every single requirement? At Swift, we are dedicated to building a workplace where people can bring their full selves and ideas to the team, so if you are excited about this role, we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet every single qualification.