Principal Consultant - Applied AI

Department/Division: Solutions/Innovation    
Duration: Permanent                    
Type of Role: Hybrid   

Req nr: 8223 

The Role

The Principal Consultant, Applied AI is a senior client-facing role focused on identifying, shaping, and enabling the strategic implementation of AI solutions in complex and regulated environments. This role blends deep technical understanding of AI/ML - especially large language models (LLMs) - with consulting expertise, business acumen, and executive-level communication skills.
 
Acting as a trusted advisor, the consultant partners with clients to uncover high-value AI opportunities, define solution strategies, and guide implementation in collaboration with technical teams. The emphasis is on delivering measurable business value, fostering innovation, and ensuring responsible, sustainable AI deployment across regulated industries.

Required experience, skills, and attributes

Core responsibilities

• Client relationship management & strategic engagement

        Build and sustain long-term client partnerships, serving as a strategic advisor and aligning AI initiatives with evolving business goals and regulatory contexts.

• Stakeholder discovery & needs analysis

           Lead structured conversations with users and business leaders to elicit goals, pain points, and workflow context. Translate this input into well-scoped, high-impact AI opportunities.

• Technical translation & solution framing

        Bridge business and technical domains by converting user needs into actionable solution strategies, with a focus on AI capabilities and deployment considerations.

• Proposal development & RFP development

         Lead or support the creation of client proposals and RFP responses, articulating compelling AI value propositions and translating business challenges into technical possibilities.

• Cross-functional collaboration

         Work closely with data scientists, product managers, engineers, and governance teams to ensure AI solutions are technically feasible, user-aligned, and compliant.

• Regulatory & risk consideration

           Integrate ethical, legal, data and AI governance principles into solution design and advisory work

• Change management & knowledge transfer

           Support user adoption and capability building throughout the AI lifecycle, enabling clients to embed and scale solutions effectively.

Required expertise

• Strong grounding in AI/ML, including practical or conceptual experience with a range of models.
• Understanding of the AI development lifecycle and project requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex technical topics into clear, business-relevant strategies and roadmaps.
• Experience advising clients in regulated industries (e.g. legal, healthcare, pharmaceutical).
• Familiarity with enterprise cloud platforms (particularly Azure and AWS) and deployment patterns for AI solutions.
• Expertise in stakeholder engagement, requirements gathering, executive-level presentation and high-impact communication.
• Understanding of responsible AI principles, change management, and business transformation.

Preferred qualifications

• 8+ years in consulting, strategy, engagement, or client partnership roles.
• Experience with proposal development and managing client-facing solution cycles (including RFPs).
• Exposure to structured problem-solving methodologies such as DMAIC, Voice of Customer and service design.
• Knowledge of data architecture or statistical analysis tools is a plus.
• Experience across the full lifecycle of AI solution delivery, from discovery through implementation and post-deployment review.

Success profile

• Executive credibility and ability to influence senior stakeholders.
• Strategic thinker with a pragmatic, outcome-oriented mindset.
• Technically fluent, yet able to simplify complex ideas for varied audiences.
• Relationship-driven, commercially aware, and collaborative by nature.
• Committed to responsible innovation, continuous learning, and process excellence.
• Experienced in navigating ambiguity and delivering clarity through structure, insight, and communication.
   

Firm Profile

Across more than 80 countries, Dentons helps you grow, protect, operate and finance your organisation by providing uniquely global and deeply local legal solutions. Polycentric, purpose-driven and committed to inclusion, diversity, equity and sustainability, we focus on what matters most to you. www.dentons.com

Inclusion and Diversity

We are committed to building an inclusive culture here at Dentons where our people can thrive, regardless of their background or circumstance. As well as being the right thing to do, it makes good business sense too. A richness of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives helps us best serve our clients and the communities in which we operate. You can find out more about inclusion and diversity at Dentons here: Inclusion and Diversity.

Equal Opportunities

Dentons is committed to providing equal opportunities for all. We welcome applications from everyone including of any age, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, nationality, neurodiversity, disability, or with parental or caring responsibilities. We also offer flexible working hours.

During the application process, all applicants have the opportunity to tell us about any adjustments or support they require so they are able to perform at their best. Any information you share with us during the application process is treated in confidence.

If you have any questions about this or the role criteria, please email recruitment.matters@dentons.com.  

While it is not a requirement that you inform your current manager of any internal applications, we would recommend that you do so.