Head of Technology & AI, APAC, Europe and ESS

Locations: France, Ireland, Spain, Switzerland

AXA XL’s Head of Technology & AI, APAC Europe and ESS is a key senior executive, leadership team role in the Technology & AI function, accountable for acting as the strategic technology and AI partner to deliver for Chief Executive Officer, APAC Europe and ESS leadership teams, in cooperation with the Tech & AI organization.

The role ensures business strategy is translated into a coherent technology and AI roadmaps, aligning investment, engineering capacity, operating model change, and measurable outcomes. This leader shapes demand, challenges priorities, drives decision-making, and ensures delivery accountability within the Technology & AI function for APAC Europe and ESS.

Operating as a trusted executive peer, balancing innovation with value, risk, regulatory requirements, and operational resilience, this role reports to AXA XL’s Chief Technology & AI Officer with a dotted line to Chief Executive Officer, APAC & Europe.

• Act as the primary technology and AI partner to APAC Europe and ESS shaping business direction through technology-led opportunities.
• Provide insights on AI disruption, competitor landscape, and modern digital and AI business models relevant to insurance.
• Translate complex technology concepts into commercial and operational implications for executive decision-making.
• Convert business strategy into a prioritized and funded technology and AI roadmap.
• Define the sequencing of initiatives based on value, feasibility, regulatory constraints, and delivery capacity.
• Ensure roadmaps integrate digital, data, AI, automation, and core platform modernization.
• Drive robust partnerships within the Tech & AI leadership team to ensure common principles, frameworks and guidelines are deployed and executed with effective coordination across all disciplines in the function.
• Represent APAC Europe and ESS’ needs into enterprise technology investment forums.
• Own business unit-level investment cases, ensuring clarity of ROI, outcomes, and measurable benefits.
• Challenge the business on value definition and ensure initiatives meet enterprise architecture, security, and AI governance requirements.
• Own the technology and AI portfolio for the region and ESS, ensuring delivery performance, dependencies, and risks are actively managed.
• Hold delivery teams accountable for execution outcomes while ensuring the business fulfils its accountabilities (SMEs, process change, adoption).
• Provide clear reporting to Global Leadership Team partner(s) on delivery confidence, risks, financial position, and benefits tracking.
• Challenging and influencing senior stakeholders with poise and composure, facilitating decision-making forums, resolving prioritization conflicts and driving outcomes.
• Build alignment across business functions including underwriting, claims, pricing, finance, customer operations, and distribution.
• Drive enterprise AI adoption within the business unit, ensuring:
• high-value use cases are identified
• adoption and operating model impacts are planned
• workforce readiness is supported
• human-in-the-loop and control frameworks are implemented
• Ensure AI is embedded into workflows rather than delivered as standalone tools.
• Partner with Risk, Compliance, Legal, and Security to ensure delivery aligns to regulatory and control requirements.
• Ensure AI initiatives comply with Responsible AI, privacy, and model risk expectations.
• Ensure technology resilience and service continuity risks are visible and actively managed.
• Partner with Procurement and Technology leadership to shape vendor strategy aligned to business unit priorities.
• Support contract negotiations, supplier performance management, and strategic partnerships.
• Ensure commercial outcomes align to delivery outcomes and service performance.
• Keen understanding of business strategy, financial drivers, and operational performance levers.
• Able to challenge executives constructively and influence investment decisions.
• Keen understanding of enterprise technology including:
• product engineering and agile delivery
• cloud platforms and modern architecture
• data platforms and AI enablement
• automation and workflow transformation
• Outstanding ability to evaluate AI opportunities pragmatically (value, feasibility, risk).
• Excellent portfolio and programme oversight capability.
• Ability to balance competing priorities, resource constraints, and dependencies.
• Robust governance, reporting, and delivery confidence management.
• Deep understanding of regulated environments and technology control frameworks.
• Awareness of Responsible AI, data privacy, and model risk management principles.
• Ability to build deep trust across business and technology.

Outstanding conflict resolution skills and ability to drive alignment across competing agendas.

AXA XL is committed to equal employment opportunity and will consider applicants regardless of gender, sexual orientation, age, ethnicity and origins, marital status, religion, disability, or any other protected characteristic.   At AXA XL, we know that an inclusive culture enables business growth and is critical to our success. That’s why we have made a strategic commitment to attract, develop, advance and retain the most inclusive workforce possible, and create a culture where everyone can bring their full selves to work and reach their highest potential. It’s about helping one another — and our business — to move forward and succeed.

• Five Business Resource Groups focused on gender, LGBTQ+, ethnicity and origins, disability and inclusion with 20 Chapters around the globe.
• Robust support for Flexible Working Arrangements
• Enhanced family-friendly leave benefits
• Named to the Diversity Best Practices Index
• Signatory to the UK Women in Finance Charter

AXA XL’s Reward program is designed to take care of what matters most to you, covering the full picture of your health, wellbeing, lifestyle and financial security. It provides competitive compensation and personalized, inclusive benefits that evolve as you do.

We’re committed to rewarding your contribution for the long term, so you can be your best self today and look forward to the future with confidence.

At AXA XL, Sustainability is integral to our business strategy. In an ever-changing world, AXA XL protects what matters most for our clients and communities. We know that sustainability is at the root of a more resilient future. Our 2023-26 Sustainability strategy, called “Roots of resilience”, focuses on protecting natural ecosystems, addressing climate change, and embedding sustainable practices across our operations.

Our Pillars:

• Valuing nature: How we impact nature affects how nature impacts us. Resilient ecosystems - the foundation of a sustainable planet and society – are essential to our future. We’re committed to protecting and restoring nature – from mangrove forests to the bees in our backyard – by increasing biodiversity awareness and inspiring clients and colleagues to put nature at the heart of their plans.
• Addressing climate change: The effects of a changing climate are far-reaching and significant. Unpredictable weather, increasing temperatures, and rising sea levels cause both social inequalities and environmental disruption. We're building a net zero strategy, developing insurance products and services, and mobilizing to advance thought leadership and investment in societal-led solutions.
• Integrating ESG: All companies have a role to play in building a more resilient future. Incorporating ESG considerations into our internal processes and practices builds resilience from the roots of our business. We are training our colleagues, engaging our external partners, and evolving our sustainability governance and reporting.
• AXA Hearts in Action:  We have established volunteering and charitable giving programs to help colleagues support causes that matter most to them, known as AXA XL’s “Hearts in Action” programs. These include our Matching Gifts program, Volunteering Leave, and our annual volunteering day – the Global Day of Giving.

For more information, please see axaxl.com/sustainability.

AXA XL, the P&C and specialty risk division of AXA, is known for solving complex risks. For mid-sized companies, multinationals and even some inspirational individuals we don’t just provide re/insurance, we reinvent it.

How? By combining a comprehensive and efficient capital platform, data-driven insights, leading technology, and the best talent in an agile and inclusive workspace, empowered to deliver top client service across all our lines of business − property, casualty, professional, financial lines and specialty.

With an innovative and flexible approach to risk solutions, we partner with those who move the world forward.

Learn more at axaxl.com