Head - Delivery - Data & Analytics/Data Engineering Domain
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HEAD OF DELIVERY
Work Model - Hybrid Office Model
HEAD OF DELIVERY
Senior Leadership | Data & Analytics Delivery
Function Delivery
Reports To VP (Business Head)
Location Bengaluru
Employment Type Full-Time
About the Role
The Head of Delivery is a senior executive accountable for the end-to-end performance of the delivery function. This role owns the full lifecycle of client engagements, from project initiation and staffing through to execution, quality assurance, and commercial closure across analytics and data engineering mandates.
Operating at the intersection of client management, people leadership, and operational rigour, this role ensures that every engagement is delivered with measurable impact, on schedule, and within the agreed commercial envelope. The role carries direct P&L accountability and is a critical voice in shaping the firm's delivery strategy, capability roadmap, and culture of excellence.
Core Responsibilities
- Establish and enforce delivery governance frameworks - including project charters, milestone reviews, escalation protocols, and closure processes.
- Drive a portfolio-level view of health across all active engagements; maintain a live risk register and lead structured risk reviews with corrective action tracking.
- Define and track delivery KPIs - on-time delivery rate, utilisation, effort variance, defect density and publish regular dashboards to leadership.
2. Client Engagement & Relationship Management
- Serve as the executive sponsor for Tier-1 and strategic accounts, conducting regular business reviews to align on value delivered and future priorities.
- Build trusted, peer-level relationships with client stakeholders (CDO, CTO, VP Analytics) that position the firm as a strategic partner, not a vendor.
- Proactively identify risks to client satisfaction and act swiftly to resolve delivery issues, minimising escalations and protecting long-term relationships.
- Drive CSAT measurement frameworks; own action plans arising from client feedback and track resolution to closure.
- Collaborate with sales and account management teams to support contract renewals, scope expansions, and upsell opportunities anchored in delivery credibility.
3. P&L & Commercial Accountability
- Hold full P&L accountability for the delivery portfolio - tracking revenue recognition, margin performance, and cost efficiency across all engagements.
- Partner with Finance on revenue forecasting, invoicing milestones, and variance analysis; ensure SOW commercials are honoured and out-of-scope work is appropriately governed.
- Drive margin improvement through workforce optimisation, efficiency, and productivity initiatives.
- Review and approve project budgets, resource plans, and change requests with a clear lens on commercial impact and client value.
4. People Leadership & Talent Development
- Lead, mentor, and inspire a multi-disciplinary delivery organisation comprising Delivery Managers, Project Leads, Analysts, Data Engineers, and Data Scientists.
- Build a high-performance culture grounded in accountability, continuous learning, psychological safety, and client-centricity.
- Own workforce planning and capacity management proactively managing the bench, identifying hiring needs, and partnering with Talent Acquisition on strategic hiring.
- Define and drive a structured career framework with growth pathways, skill certifications (e.g., AWS, Azure, Databricks), and L&D programmes.
- Conduct periodic performance calibrations; identify and develop high-potential talent for leadership succession.
- Drive attrition management strategies including engagement initiatives, competitive compensation benchmarking, and stay conversations.
5. Pre-Sales & Business Development Support
- Lead or participate in client-facing proposal presentations, orals, and workshops as the delivery authority.
- Develop standard estimation models, staffing archetypes, and delivery blueprints that accelerate proposal turnaround and improve win rates.
- Represent the firm at industry forums, conferences, and analyst briefings to strengthen brand visibility.
6. Process Excellence & Governance
- Own the continuous improvement of delivery processes conducting retrospectives, root-cause analyses, and implementing corrective measures systematically.
- Define and govern quality assurance practices across the delivery lifecycle, including peer reviews, QA gates, and client acceptance criteria.
- Drive tooling standardisation across project management, collaboration, and reporting platforms
Qualifications & Experience
Educational Background
- MBA from a reputed institution is preferred
Professional Experience
- Demonstrated success leading large delivery organisations (50+ person teams) at analytics and technology services firms.
- Proven P&L ownership experience - managing multi-crore delivery portfolios with clear accountability for margin and revenue.
- Deep domain expertise in at least two of: Advanced Analytics, AI/ML, Data Engineering, Cloud Platforms (AWS/Azure/GCP), or Business Intelligence.
- Strong track record of managing global client relationships across industries such as BFSI, Retail & CPG, Healthcare, or Technology.
Technical Proficiency
- Working knowledge of the analytics and data technology stack - SQL, Python, Spark, cloud data platforms, BI tools, etc.
- Familiarity with MLOps, data Lakehouse architectures, and modern AI/GenAI frameworks.
- Understanding of data governance, data quality frameworks, and enterprise data architecture principles.
Leadership Competencies
Candidates will be evaluated on the following behavioural and leadership dimensions:
Strategic Vision:
- Ability to translate business objectives into delivery strategies; thinks 12-18 months ahead while managing day-to-day execution.
Client Centricity:
- Obsessive focus on client outcomes, not just delivery outputs; proactively anticipates client needs.
Commercial Acumen:
- Understands levers of revenue, cost, and margin; makes data-driven decisions in commercial situations.
People Development:
- Invests in building the next layer of leaders; coaches with empathy and holds teams accountable.
- Demonstrated through: talent pipeline depth, promotion rates, and team engagement scores.
Executive Presence:
- Inspires confidence with clients, peers, and leadership; communicates with clarity, conviction, and humility.
- Demonstrated through: client escalation handling, board-level reporting, and cross-functional alignment.
Operational Rigour:
- Brings structure and discipline to complex, ambiguous delivery environments without creating bureaucracy.
- Demonstrated through: governance frameworks, on-time delivery rates, and risk mitigation outcomes.
Reporting Structure & Key Interfaces
Reports directly to the Head of Business.
Works closely with:
- HR Business Partner - for workforce planning, talent acquisition, and engagement.
- Practice Leads/ CoE Head - for capability building, knowledge management, and quality standards.
What We Offer
- Opportunity to shape the delivery culture and organisation design from the ground up.
- Competitive compensation package including performance-linked incentives
- Exposure to Fortune 500 and marquee global clients across diverse industries.
- Investment in your professional growth through certifications, conferences, and executive development programmes.
- A collaborative, intellectually rigorous environment where ideas are debated and excellence is celebrated.
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