Practice Director, Data & AI

About Toptal

Toptal is a global network of top talent in business, design, and technology that enables companies to scale their teams, on-demand. With $200+ million in annual revenue and team members based around the globe, Toptal is the world’s largest fully remote workforce.

We take the best elements of virtual teams and combine them with a support structure that encourages innovation, social interaction, and fun. We see no borders, move at a fast pace, and are never afraid to break the mold.

Job Summary:

Toptal is an innovative organization that is disrupting the global professional services and talent market. In response to our clients’ overwhelming demand for exceptional talent in new areas, we are expanding the breadth and depth of our Technology Services offerings to further fuel that growth. As a Practice Director for Toptal’s Data & AI practice, you will be in a high-impact position to set the vision, own the P&L, develop the Go-to-Market strategy, and drive the growth of your practice. Your leadership and expertise will play a pivotal role in achieving growth objectives, establishing a formidable market presence, and ensuring your practice’s profitability and long-term success.

This leader will be a proven expert in Data, Analytics, AI, and Gen AI, with a deep understanding of cross-industry target buyers, their priorities, and the trends impacting them. The ideal candidate for this position will have served in a leadership role in the data & analytics services industry. Their extensive knowledge will inform critical business decisions, such as which services and offerings we build out, determining pricing and packaging strategies, and developing a compelling value position that ensures Toptal’s competitiveness in the evolving market. Their insights will be essential to meeting the market’s changing needs both now and in the future.

This is a remote position. Applicants must be authorized to work in the US at the time of hire. Resumes and communication must be submitted in English.

Responsibilities:

The following information is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or required skills.

You will be responsible for building and scaling Toptal’s Data & AI practice. This includes:

• Strategy: Which clients and buyers do we target, and what problems do we help them solve.
• Offering Development: Develop attractive, scalable offerings that resonate with specific customer segments.
• Go-to-Market: Take services and offerings to market; first, by leading from the front to establish product-market fit with our clients, and then by working with our Practices Operations team to scale adoption and the commercial impact of offerings.
• Marketing: Develop thought leadership and campaigns that highlight our competitive differentiation, elevate our reputation in the market, attract great talent to our network, and generate leads for sales.
• Sales: Understand current and future demand and enable, educate, and directly support the salesforce to position this practice best. Lead client conversations, presenting Toptal’s point-of-view and asking exploratory questions to understand client needs better.
• Managing the Business: Lead the business from a sales, revenue, and profitability perspective by understanding the key P&L levers.
• Delivery: Drive the success of consulting projects by owning both sales and delivery end-to-end. Lead and inspire high-performing teams, craft innovative frameworks, and take an active role in delivering impactful results. You’ll seamlessly blend sales and execution to create exceptional client outcomes.
• Talent: Ensure our talent network is prepared to meet the demands of the market (e.g., the right skills in the right capacities) as well as foster an ongoing sense of community amongst the network of professionals in this practice area.

This role is highly collaborative and will work extremely closely with Toptal’s Marketing, Sales, and Talent Operations teams to fulfill the above responsibilities.

In the first week, expect to:

• Onboard and integrate into Toptal; meet your colleagues.
• Learn about Toptal’s history, culture, and vision, with a focus on the state of our industry, the Future of Work, and the core messages important to Toptal.
• Shadow critical teams throughout the organization to learn Toptal’s core operations and capabilities.

In the first month, expect to:

• Begin developing relationships with key leaders and stakeholders across the organization.
• Dive deeper into the operations of key teams (e.g., Sales, Talent Operations) across the company.
• Conduct a comprehensive review of the current demand in your practice area, the talent that exists already in the network, and any work we may already be doing or have done.
• Articulate a hypothesis about where you want to take the practice (strategy) and design experiments and build execution approaches to get there.

In the first three months, expect to:

• Be a well-integrated member of the organization with positive relationships in Sales (Enterprise and SMB), Marketing, and Talent Operations.
• Be in front of clients on a regular basis to hear from them firsthand, while exercising discretion and independent judgment.
• Build your practice and begin positively impacting revenue growth.

In the first six months, expect to:

• Be the go-to expert for your practice within Toptal.
• Have established initial market traction.
• See a commercial impact from your involvement in early initiatives.

In the first year, expect to:

• Feel like you made the best decision of your career.
• Increase the growth rate of Toptal materially.

Qualifications and Job Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree is required, MBA preferred.
• 15+ years of experience in your practice, with preferably 5+ years in a leadership role within data and AI-focused services.
• 3+ years managing a business, preferably with P&L responsibility, and proven track record for overseeing financial performance, identifying areas for improvement, and driving profitability and growth.
• Strong knowledge of data management, AI governance, machine learning, and AI-driven analytics techniques and technologies, and Generative AI (e.g., large language models, fine-tuning, retrieval-augmented generation).
• In-depth knowledge of statistical methodologies, deep learning algorithms, and AI applications in real-world business contexts.
• Proficiency in using AI and data science tools (e.g. Python, TensorFlow, PyTorch, SQL, Tableau, etc.).
• Experience in marketing, finance, healthcare, or e-commerce industries.
• Experience packaging, pricing, and delivering compelling solutions.
• Passion for AI innovation and ability to drive thought leadership in the field.
• Proven ability to lead collaboratively and operate in a high-growth environment.
• Skilled in articulating a strategy with a strong, agile execution plan.
• Comfortable with rolling up your sleeves to do the work, demonstrate traction, and build a team over time.
• Demonstrated success in making data-driven decisions and defining key metrics to measure progress.
• Ability to walk in the shoes of your audience in order to understand their challenges, develop/execute an approach to solve them, and articulate the solution in a clear and compelling way.
• Refined relationship development & leadership skills with a track record of success in building credibility across all levels of an organization. You can develop positive relationships across the business to partner on key initiatives and gain consensus on processes and strategies.
• Confidence in your analytical abilities, with proven success in delivering results in ambiguous and sophisticated project efforts.
• Skilled in the art of communicating (written and verbal) with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, rapidly growing company and handle a wide variety of challenges, deadlines, and a diverse array of contacts.
• You must be a world-class individual contributor to thrive at Toptal. You will not be here just to tell other people what to do.

Essential Job Functions

• Regularly and reliably attend scheduled virtual team meetings on camera.
• Work independently with minimal supervision.
• Use all required digital collaboration tools.
• Prioritize and self-manage workflows and deadlines.

US FLSA Classification: Full-Time/Exempt

This position receives a base salary and is also eligible to receive a discretionary bonus. The US-based salary range for this full-time position is $200,000 - $270,000 per year. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis. Please note that the US-based salary range does not include the value of Toptal’s benefit offerings. In the US, Toptal’s benefit offerings include participation in a 401(k) retirement plan; medical, dental, and vision health insurance plans; basic life insurance coverage and short-term and long-term disability coverage; access to flexible spending, dependent care, and health savings accounts; access to telehealth virtual doctors; an employee assistance program; and flexible paid time off.

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