Technical Program Manager, AI Delivery for Public Sector & Defence

About the role

This role focuses on leading the technical delivery of AI solutions for Canadian government and defense clients. You will manage programs from initial deployment through to production scaling, acting as the primary technical point of contact. This involves building relationships with government IT leaders and translating their complex requirements, including security, compliance, and data sovereignty, into actionable plans for engineering teams.

A key aspect of this position is strategic communication. You will need to effectively convey technical AI/ML concepts to government decision-makers who may not have a deep technical background. This includes presenting roadmaps and status updates to senior officials and representing Cohere's capabilities in sensitive government contexts. Success in this area means clear, timely, and objective communication across all stakeholders.

The role demands complex program management, including creating schedules that account for government timelines and approval cycles. You will identify and manage dependencies across various government departments and internal teams, while navigating risks specific to government deployments such as privacy compliance and security authorizations. Ensuring on-time delivery of AI solutions that meet government-grade standards for security, privacy, and accessibility is crucial.

The role offers a salary range between $120,000 and $163,000 USD.

Skills that matter here

• AI: This role involves leading the delivery of AI solutions, requiring an understanding of AI concepts to translate requirements and discuss technical aspects with stakeholders.
• ML: A strong understanding of ML concepts is needed to effectively communicate about model inference, data pipelines, and ML operations with technical teams and clients.
• program management: The core function of this role is to manage complex, multi-stakeholder technical programs, ensuring successful delivery and compliance.
• government compliance: This position requires navigating and ensuring adherence to Canadian government regulations, including security, privacy, and accessibility standards.
• technical delivery: You will be responsible for ensuring the on-time and successful delivery of AI solutions that meet stringent government technical standards.

Who this role suits

• A person with 6+ years of experience in customer-facing technical or engineering program management, specifically within AI/ML or enterprise software delivery.
• Someone who has worked with government, defense, or heavily regulated clients and understands their unique procurement processes and compliance requirements.
• An individual with strong executive communication skills, capable of building trusted relationships and translating complex technical concepts for non-technical audiences.
• A candidate eligible to obtain Canadian government security clearance, preferably Top Secret, demonstrating a commitment to working within secure environments.

From the employer

Customer Program Leadership:

• Own end-to-end technical program delivery for Canadian public sector and defence customers, from initial deployment through production scaling.
• Serve as the primary technical program point of contact for government customers, building trusted relationships with departmental CIOs, IT directors, and technical teams.
• Translate complex government requirements (security, compliance, accessibility, bilingualism, data sovereignty) into actionable engineering plans.
• Navigate government procurement processes, RFP responses, and contractual technical obligations.

Strategic Communication:

• Provide clear, timely, and objective communication across Cohere's engineering organization, customer stakeholders, and government leadership.
• Translate between AI/ML technical concepts and government-appropriate language for decision-makers who may not have deep technical backgrounds.
• Present technical roadmaps and status updates to senior government officials and departmental executives.
• Represent Cohere's technical capabilities in sensitive government and defence contexts.

Complex Program Management:

• Create and manage project schedules that account for government timelines, security review processes, and ministerial approval cycles.
• Identify and manage dependencies across government departments, security authorities, cloud service providers, and internal Cohere teams.
• Navigate risks unique to government deployments: privacy compliance, Algorithmic Impact Assessments, Treasury Board submissions, security authorizations.
• Drive alignment between product development priorities and specific government requirements.

Technical Delivery & Execution:

• Ensure on-time delivery of AI solutions that meet government-grade security, privacy, accessibility, and performance standards.
• Coordinate technical work across multiple teams: model customization, security hardening, integration with government systems, bilingual support.
• Establish governance checkpoints appropriate for high-stakes government deployments.
• Problem-solve complex technical challenges in air-gapped, on-premises, or highly regulated environments.

Required Experience:

• 6+ years of experience as a customer-facing Technical or Engineering Program Manager in AI/ML consulting, technology transformation, or enterprise software delivery.
• Excellent executive communication and stakeholder management.
• Experience working with government, defence, or heavily regulated customers (public sector, defence contractors).
• Proven track record managing complex, multi-stakeholder technical programs with stringent compliance requirements.
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field; advanced degree or technical certs a plus.

Technical Background:

• Strong understanding of enterprise software deployment architectures (cloud, on-premises, hybrid, air-gapped).
• Working knowledge of or experience with modern AI: LLMs, agentic systems, MCP, RAG, fine-tuning, evals, and responsible AI would be a strong differentiator.
• Comfortable discussing API integrations, model inference, data pipelines, and ML operations with technical stakeholders.

Government & Defence Acumen:

• Deep understanding of how government organizations procure, evaluate, and deploy technology.
• Familiarity with Canadian government requirements: data sovereignty, privacy laws (Privacy Act), accessibility standards, official languages obligations, security classifications.
• Understanding of defence and national security considerations in AI deployment.
• Experience with Algorithmic Impact Assessments or AI ethics frameworks is a strong asset.
• Eligible to obtain Canadian government security clearance (Top Secret preferred).

What Makes This Role Unique:

• A weekly lunch stipend of $75/£75 or equivalent in your local currency for lunch.
• Full health and dental benefits, including a separate budget for mental health.
• RRSP matching, 401K, Pension Scheme.
• 100% Parental Leave top-up for up to 6 months, for either parent.
• Annual enrichment benefits:
• Arts & culture, fitness/wellness, quality time, and a workspace improvement credit.
• Education & learning stipend for conferences, courses, and coaching.
• 6 weeks of paid vacation (30 working days!).
• Budget for traveling to other offices if you are remote, plus an annual company offsite.