Senior Vice President Data Science

Job Summary

The Senior Vice President (SVP), Data Science, is a strategic leadership role responsible for shaping, leading, and executing QNB's bank-wide Data & AI strategy. This position drives innovation and transformation across the bank using advanced data analytics, machine learning, deep learning, and Generative AI (GenAI). The SVP works closely with executive stakeholders to align data science initiatives with business priorities, ensure strong governance, and build scalable AI capabilities that drive financial performance, operational efficiency, and superior customer experiences. The role also includes oversight of Advanced Analytics, AI model lifecycle management, talent development, and the promotion of ethical Data & AI use across QNB.

Main Responsibilities

A. Shareholder & Financial:

• Define and drive execution of QNB's enterprise Data Science & AI strategy aligned to business outcomes.
• Deliver high-impact, AI-powered solutions that generate measurable financial benefits (e.g., revenue growth, cost efficiency, risk mitigation).
• Oversee budgeting and resource allocation across strategic data initiatives.
• Monitor the ROI of Data Science & AI investments using business-focused KPIs and OKRs.
• Establish a data-driven culture across the bank, ensuring AI is embedded in all relevant decision-making processes.
• Implements KPI’s and best practices for Senior Vice President, Data Science
• Promote cost consciousness and efficiency and enhance productivity, to minimise cost, avoid waste, and optimise benefits for the bank.
• Act within the limits of the powers delegated to the incumbent and delegate authority to the respective staff and monitor exercise of the same.
• Demonstrate clear understanding of the important factors behind the bank's financial & non-financial performance.

B. Customer (Internal & External):

• Partner with Group business Heads and IT to develop AI solutions that enhance customer engagement, improve

product personalization, and streamline operations.

• Provide thought leadership on the application of GenAI, advanced analytics, and predictive models for business growth.
• Translate complex data science approaches into business-ready narratives for CXOs and Board-level communication.
• Lead AI capability-building programs for business units, enabling self-serve analytics and citizen data science.
• Champion customer-centric design in all AI and data-driven solutions.
• To assist customers in all their queries on Bank’s product and seek solution to their requests.
• Maintain activities in accordance with Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with internal departments/units to achieve improvements in turn-around time.
• Build and maintain strong/effective relationships with related departments/units to achieve the Group’s objectives.
• Provide timely/accurate data to external/internal Auditors, Compliance, Financial Control and Risk when required.

C. Internal (Processes, Products, Regulatory):

• Establish scalable AI & ML development pipelines including robust model governance, MLOps, and monitoring frameworks.
• Oversee the development of AI models across use cases such as credit risk, client profitability, fraud detection, customer acquisition, and treasury optimization.
• Ensure compliance with internal and external data protection, governance, and regulatory standards.
• Build and institutionalize reusable data products and GenAI agents across business functions.
• Drive innovation in data science practices by integrating cloud-native platforms, LLMs, and enterprise AI tools.
• Continuous Improvement:

• Set examples by leading improvement initiatives through cross-functional teams ensuring successes.

• Identify and encourage people to adopt practices better than the industry standard.

• Continuously encourage and recognise the importance of thinking out-of-the-box within the team.

• Encourage, solicit and reward innovative ideas even in day-to-day issues.

D. Learning & Knowledge:

• Lead a high-performing Data Science & AI team, fostering a culture of experimentation, continuous learning, and ethical AI usage.
• Institutionalize knowledge-sharing platforms and AI Centers of Excellence (CoEs).
• Stay abreast of global AI trends, regulatory developments, and advancements in GenAI, LLMs, and deep learning.
• Collaborate with academia, research bodies, and vendors to infuse cutting-edge knowledge into QNB.
• Proactively identify areas for professional development of self and undertake development activities.
• Seek out opportunities to stay current with advancements in AI and data analytics fields.
• Initiate regular meetings within the Application Development department focused on discussing progress, resolving issues, and addressing concerns related to AI and data analytics projects.
• Hold meetings with staff and assess their performance and your teams overall performance on a regular basis.
• Take decisive action to ensure speedy resolution of unresolved grievances or conflicts within the team members.
• Identify development opportunities and activities for staff and facilitate/coach them to improve their effectives and prepare them to assume greater responsibilities.

E. Legal, Regulatory, and Risk Framework Responsibilities:

• Ensure adherence to all AI-related legal, ethical, and compliance frameworks including AI governance, data privacy, and explainability standards.
• Represent Data Science & AI in Operational Risk, Compliance, and Board-level risk reviews.
• Lead remediation planning for model risk, bias detection, and audit compliance.
• Maintain AI documentation in line with regulatory expectations, particularly for credit, fraud, AML, and client fairness.
• Complete all mandatory training provided by the organization to achieve and maintain the required levels of competence in data science, analytics, and AI fields.
• Attend all required (internal and external) seminars and workshops, as instructed, to stay abreast of the latest advancements and best practices in data analytics and AI.

F. Other:

• Ensure high standards of data protection and confidentiality to safeguard all data and systems.
• Maintaining utmost confidentiality concerning customer data and internal information obtained during the course of business and provide such information on a need-to-know basis only to Senior Management, Audit and Compliance functions, and relevant Regulators.
• Maintain high professional standards to uphold the organization's reputation and to strengthen its leadership position in data analytics and AI.
• All other ad hoc duties/activities related to data analytics and AI that management might request from time to time

Education and Experience Requirements

• Master’s or PhD in Data Science, Computer Science, AI, Engineering, Statistics, or related quantitative field.
• Minimum 15 years of total experience, with at least 10 years in data analytics, data science, or AI leadership roles.
• Proven experience leading AI transformation programs in banking or financial services.
• Deep expertise in AI/ML techniques including LLMs, deep learning, predictive analytics, GenAI, and NLP.
• Strong track record of building and scaling AI teams and delivering enterprise-grade AI solutions.
• Solid knowledge of financial products, customer analytics, credit scoring, risk modeling, and regulatory AI applications.
• Hands-on experience with cloud ecosystems (Azure, AWS, GCP), modern data stacks, and production-grade ML/AI platforms.
• Strong stakeholder management and strategic execution and advisory skills.
• Ability to design AI governance frameworks aligned with regulatory and ethical standards.
• Advanced skills in Python, Spark, SQL, cloud-based ML pipelines, MLOps, and LLM deployment.
• Familiarity with tools like Databricks, Azure AI, Dataiku, and enterprise GenAI platforms.
• Clear communication of complex data science topics to non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated innovation mindset with bias for action and delivery.

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