Enterprise Applications Leader
Ankura, Nashville, TN, United States
Role Overview
The Executive Director of Enterprise Applications is a critical technology leadership role responsible for ensuring Ankura’s core business platforms enable growth, efficiency, and exceptional client service. This leader serves as a strategic partner to the business, owning the effectiveness, governance, and evolution of enterprise applications while driving clarity, momentum, and trust across the firm.
This role goes beyond application operations. The Executive Director is accountable for business outcomes, simplification of complexity, and building a high‑performing team that delivers reliable platforms with transparency and urgency.
This role is central to Ankura’s ability to scale, operate efficiently, and deliver exceptional service to clients. The Executive Director of Enterprise Applications will play a defining role in shaping how technology is experienced across the firm—through reliability, transparency, and consistent delivery of business value. This is a hybrid role ideally based out of Ankura’s New York, Chicago, or Nashville office though other locations may be considered. This position reports to the Chief Information Officer.
Responsibilities Business Partnership & Outcomes
Partner closely with senior business leaders across practices, finance, HR, legal, and operations to understand priorities and translate them into clear application roadmaps.
Own the business impact of enterprise applications, ensuring platforms measurably improve how Ankura sells, delivers, bills, and supports its clients.
Serve as a trusted advisor, balancing business needs, technical constraints, risk, and long‑term sustainability.
Enterprise Application Leadership
Provide overall leadership and accountability for Ankura’s enterprise applications ecosystem, including Salesforce, Workday, Intapp, and related platforms.
Ensure platforms are reliable, secure, well‑governed, and continuously improved to meet evolving business needs.
Establish clear ownership, decision rights, and operating models for enterprise applications.
Execution & Delivery
Drive execution with urgency and pragmatism, breaking complex initiatives into deliverable increments and maintaining forward momentum.
Make priorities and tradeoffs explicit, ensuring stakeholders understand what is being worked on, what is not, and why.
Plan and deliver enterprise application initiatives on time and within budget, adjusting as conditions change.
Governance, Simplification & Portfolio Management
Own the enterprise application portfolio, including rationalization, lifecycle management, and investment decisions.
Reduce unnecessary complexity by consolidating platforms, standardizing integrations, and retiring redundant or low‑value solutions.
Establish and mature governance processes that balance speed, risk management, and architectural coherence.
Data, Integration & Platform Enablement
Ensure enterprise data platforms enable trusted, timely, and actionable insights for business decision‑making.
Provide leadership over integrations and data flows, ensuring they are scalable, resilient, and well‑documented.
Partner with architecture, security, and infrastructure teams to ensure platforms are designed with security and compliance by default.
People Leadership & Culture
Build, lead, and develop a high‑performing Enterprise Applications team, including managers and senior individual contributors.
Set clear expectations, coach for growth, and foster accountability without reliance on heroics.
Model candid, respectful, and collaborative leadership behaviors that build trust and psychological safety.
Vendor & Financial Management
Manage strategic vendor relationships and contracts, ensuring Ankura receives strong value, transparency, and performance.
Partner with Finance and Procurement on budgeting, forecasting, and cost optimization related to enterprise applications.
Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
12+ years of progressive experience leading enterprise applications in a complex, professional services or similar environment.
Demonstrated experience partnering with senior business leaders and translating strategy into execution.
Strong leadership experience managing managers and building high‑performing teams.
Deep familiarity with platforms such as Salesforce, Workday, Intapp, and modern integration and data platforms.
Business‑oriented mindset with a clear focus on outcomes over activity.
Comfort operating in ambiguity while creating clarity for others.
High standards for execution, paired with empathy and respect for people.
Calm, credible presence under pressure.
Equal Employment Opportunity and Accommodations Ankura is an affirmative action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against based on disability. Equal Employment Opportunity Posters, if you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation to search for a job opening, submit an online application, or participate in an interview/assessment, please email accommodations@ankura.com or call toll‑free +1.312‑583‑2122. This email and phone number are created exclusively to assist disabled job seekers whose disability prevents them from being able to apply online. Only messages left for this purpose will be returned. Messages left for other purposes, such as following up on an application or technical issues unrelated to a disability, will not receive a response.
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This role goes beyond application operations. The Executive Director is accountable for business outcomes, simplification of complexity, and building a high‑performing team that delivers reliable platforms with transparency and urgency.
This role is central to Ankura’s ability to scale, operate efficiently, and deliver exceptional service to clients. The Executive Director of Enterprise Applications will play a defining role in shaping how technology is experienced across the firm—through reliability, transparency, and consistent delivery of business value. This is a hybrid role ideally based out of Ankura’s New York, Chicago, or Nashville office though other locations may be considered. This position reports to the Chief Information Officer.
Responsibilities Business Partnership & Outcomes
Partner closely with senior business leaders across practices, finance, HR, legal, and operations to understand priorities and translate them into clear application roadmaps.
Own the business impact of enterprise applications, ensuring platforms measurably improve how Ankura sells, delivers, bills, and supports its clients.
Serve as a trusted advisor, balancing business needs, technical constraints, risk, and long‑term sustainability.
Enterprise Application Leadership
Provide overall leadership and accountability for Ankura’s enterprise applications ecosystem, including Salesforce, Workday, Intapp, and related platforms.
Ensure platforms are reliable, secure, well‑governed, and continuously improved to meet evolving business needs.
Establish clear ownership, decision rights, and operating models for enterprise applications.
Execution & Delivery
Drive execution with urgency and pragmatism, breaking complex initiatives into deliverable increments and maintaining forward momentum.
Make priorities and tradeoffs explicit, ensuring stakeholders understand what is being worked on, what is not, and why.
Plan and deliver enterprise application initiatives on time and within budget, adjusting as conditions change.
Governance, Simplification & Portfolio Management
Own the enterprise application portfolio, including rationalization, lifecycle management, and investment decisions.
Reduce unnecessary complexity by consolidating platforms, standardizing integrations, and retiring redundant or low‑value solutions.
Establish and mature governance processes that balance speed, risk management, and architectural coherence.
Data, Integration & Platform Enablement
Ensure enterprise data platforms enable trusted, timely, and actionable insights for business decision‑making.
Provide leadership over integrations and data flows, ensuring they are scalable, resilient, and well‑documented.
Partner with architecture, security, and infrastructure teams to ensure platforms are designed with security and compliance by default.
People Leadership & Culture
Build, lead, and develop a high‑performing Enterprise Applications team, including managers and senior individual contributors.
Set clear expectations, coach for growth, and foster accountability without reliance on heroics.
Model candid, respectful, and collaborative leadership behaviors that build trust and psychological safety.
Vendor & Financial Management
Manage strategic vendor relationships and contracts, ensuring Ankura receives strong value, transparency, and performance.
Partner with Finance and Procurement on budgeting, forecasting, and cost optimization related to enterprise applications.
Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
12+ years of progressive experience leading enterprise applications in a complex, professional services or similar environment.
Demonstrated experience partnering with senior business leaders and translating strategy into execution.
Strong leadership experience managing managers and building high‑performing teams.
Deep familiarity with platforms such as Salesforce, Workday, Intapp, and modern integration and data platforms.
Business‑oriented mindset with a clear focus on outcomes over activity.
Comfort operating in ambiguity while creating clarity for others.
High standards for execution, paired with empathy and respect for people.
Calm, credible presence under pressure.
Equal Employment Opportunity and Accommodations Ankura is an affirmative action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against based on disability. Equal Employment Opportunity Posters, if you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation to search for a job opening, submit an online application, or participate in an interview/assessment, please email accommodations@ankura.com or call toll‑free +1.312‑583‑2122. This email and phone number are created exclusively to assist disabled job seekers whose disability prevents them from being able to apply online. Only messages left for this purpose will be returned. Messages left for other purposes, such as following up on an application or technical issues unrelated to a disability, will not receive a response.
#J-18808-Ljbffr