Customer Program Director

Job description

Meet the Team Join Cisco Customer Experience (CX) UKI as an executive delivery leader partnering with our most prestigious enterprise customers. Our organisation is entrusted with architecting, delivering, and managing business-critical digital transformations that underpin national and global infrastructure. We combine industry-leading governance frameworks, deep technological mastery, and next-generation Artificial Intelligence (AI) to unlock substantial business value. In this high-visibility, executive leadership role, you will lead a world-class, multidisciplinary matrix organisation, steering a flagship multi-year engagement and setting the benchmark for enterprise services delivery. Your Impact As a Programme Director, you will hold ultimate executive accountability for the overarching strategy, delivery governance, and operational excellence of a ~$100M+ CX Services portfolio (encompassing Professional Services and Support Services) for one of Cisco UKI’s largest strategic accounts. You will act as the principal customer contact and definitive single point of executive escalation across diverse, critical programme streams—commanding the room with C-suite and C-1 stakeholders to translate high-level business vision into flawless technical execution. This role demands an innovative, forward-looking executive who actively integrates Artificial Intelligence (AI) and intelligent automation into modern delivery operating models. You will spearhead the adoption of AI-augmented programme intelligence to forecast risk, optimise multi-million-pound commercial performance, accelerate delivery velocity, and orchestrate complex multi-vendor ecosystems. Executive Advisory & Strategic Alignment: Serve as the primary, trusted executive advisor to customer C-suite and senior leadership; steer joint steering committees, shape multi-year technology roadmaps, and act as the definitive single point of escalation for complex delivery challenges. Portfolio & Delivery Governance: Exercise end-to-end executive governance over a ~$100M+ multi-year services portfolio, directing large-scale, matrixed delivery teams across diverse technical streams to ensure unmatched delivery velocity, quality, and contractual compliance. AI-Driven Programme Leadership: Champion and embed cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence (AI), predictive analytics, and intelligent automation across the delivery organisation to model risk, automate executive insight synthesis, optimise resource capacity, and drive continuous operational resilience. Complex Transformation Oversight: Direct strategic technology initiatives across Data Centre and Campus architectures—including regulatory-driven Last Date of Support (LDOS) remediations, Cisco Nexus/ACI environments, Software-Defined Access (SDA), and Catalyst Center rollouts. Commercial Strategy & P&L Accountability: Maintain full commercial oversight of multi-year Statements of Work (SOWs), margin realisation, third-party vendor performance, risk provisions, and revenue expansion across Professional and Support Services. Organisational Leadership & Talent Cultivation: Lead, mentor, and inspire a large, multi-geography team of programme managers, architects, and engineers, instilling a culture of accountability, empathetic leadership, and AI-enabled innovation. Ecosystem & Vendor Orchestration: Establish robust governance frameworks across multi-vendor consortia and strategic partners, ensuring seamless integration, accountability, and alignment with customer objectives. Minimum Qualifications Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Business Leadership, or a related discipline with 15+ years of experience leading large-scale IT and network transformation programmes; OR 18+ years of equivalent enterprise delivery leadership experience. Minimum of 10 years of demonstrable experience operating as the primary engagement leader and trusted advisor to C-suite and C-1 executives in multi-million-pound/dollar enterprise environments. Demonstrated hands-on track record of implementing and utilising Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms, machine learning models, or intelligent automation tools within programme governance to enhance predictive risk detection, financial reporting, or operational decision-making. Proven experience exercising end-to-end governance and commercial accountability over large-scale services portfolios (£50M+ / $75M+) spanning complex multi-vendor contracts, statements of work (SOWs), and multi-geography delivery teams. Demonstrated experience leading enterprise network and infrastructure transformation programmes across modern Campus and Data Centre architectures (e.g., Cisco Nexus, ACI, Catalyst, or Software-Defined Access). Preferred Qualifications Formal programme leadership certifications such as Program Management Professional (PgMP), Project Management Professional (PMP), MSP (Managing Successful Programmes), or executive Agile leadership credentials. Practical experience leading AI transformation initiatives within PMO operations, such as developing agentic workflows, prompt engineering frameworks, or predictive analytics dashboards for enterprise delivery. Executive background directing regulatory-driven infrastructure migrations and complex hardware/software lifecycle remediation programmes (e.g., LDOS). Working knowledge of modern network automation, software-defined architectures, and cloud integration concepts. Exceptional executive presence, high-stakes negotiation skills, and a proven ability to lead large, multidisciplinary matrix teams through complex organisational change. Why Cisco? At Cisco, we’re revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era – and beyond. We’ve been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint. Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you’ll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere. We are Cisco, and our power starts with you.