Director - AI - Robotics

Robots already work at Mayo Clinic, cleaning our floors, moving millions of laboratory specimens, and assisting in our operating rooms. Yet this is less than one percent of what is possible. Over the next decade, robotics will advance from sensor-driven, single-purpose machines to AI-driven autonomous systems, including generalist and humanoid robots, and Mayo Clinic intends to lead across that entire continuum, from the operating room to the loading dock. The Mayo Clinic Robotics Program exists to pioneer human-centered robotics that expands access and creates an empowered, safe, more personalized, and convenient experience for patients and staff, cementing Mayo Clinic as the global leader in healthcare while freeing our people for the human work of healing. Within this program, the Director - AI - Robotics makes enterprise robotics take hold across Mayo Clinic. Working shoulder-to-shoulder with technical leadership, this leader turns standards into practice: embedding interoperability and data requirements into how Mayo evaluates and buys robots, defining with the owners of Mayo's networks, facilities, security, and healthcare technology management what robot-ready environments require, and building the education that prepares Mayo's workforce for robotics, from frontline teams working alongside robots to leaders making robotics decisions. The Director is a people leader, managing and developing the program's operations managers and owning, through them, the execution processes that keep the program's initiatives moving: intake, governance, portfolio reporting, and partner logistics. Robotics succeeds or fails on adoption, and this role is accountable for its conditions: teams across the enterprise finding it faster and easier to do robotics the enterprise way than to go it alone.

The Director partners closely with executive leaders, clinical and business stakeholders, and technical teams to ensure AI initiatives are aligned with enterprise strategy, governance expectations, and operational readiness. The role leads multidisciplinary teams across product, operations, and technology and serves as a key connector between strategy and execution.

Key Responsibilities

• AI Strategy & Program Leadership: Lead development and execution of enterprise AI strategy and multi-year roadmaps aligned with organizational goals.
• Portfolio Oversight: Oversee intake, prioritization, and sequencing of AI initiatives; balance value, feasibility, risk, and capacity across portfolios.
• Cross-Functional Leadership: Partner with clinical, operational, technical, legal, compliance, and data leaders to advance AI initiatives from concept through deployment.
• Governance & Responsible AI: Ensure AI initiatives adhere to governance frameworks, ethical standards, regulatory requirements, and risk management practices.
• Operational Enablement: Establish operating rhythms, performance metrics, and reporting mechanisms to track progress, outcomes, and value realization.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders; communicate AI strategy, progress, and impact through executive-level updates and presentations.
• People & Team Leadership: Lead, develop, and support managers and senior professionals; foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Financial & Resource Stewardship: Support budget planning, resource allocation, and business case development for AI initiatives.

Core Competencies

• Enterprise AI & Digital Strategy
• Executive Presence & Influence
• Change Leadership & Resilience
• Ethical & Responsible AI Stewardship
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
• Program & Portfolio Management