AI Squad Lead
United States
Corporate – Production /
Full Time /
Remote
Welo Data works with technology companies to provide datasets that are high-quality, ethically sourced, relevant, diverse, and scalable to supercharge their AI models. As a Welocalize brand, WeloData leverages over 25 years of experience in partnering with the world’s most innovative companies and brings together a curated global community of over 500,000 AI training and domain experts to offer services that span:
ANNOTATION & LABELLING: Transcription, summarization, image and video classification and labeling.
ENHANCING LLMs: Prompt engineering, SFT, RLHF, red teaming and adversarial model training, model output ranking.
DATA COLLECTION & GENERATION: From institutional languages to remote field audio collection.
RELEVANCE & INTENT: Culturally nuanced and aware, ranking, relevance, and evaluation to train models for search, ads, and LLM output.
Want to join our Welo Data team? We bring practical, applied AI expertise to projects. We have both strong academic experience and a deep working knowledge of state-of-the-art AI tools, frameworks, and best practices. Help us elevate our clients' Data at Welo Data.
The Squad Lead is responsible for delivering services and solutions to Welocalize customers. The Squad Lead manages or directs a team (I.e., squad) comprised of different cross functional roles to work with clients and understand their requirements, engage the global team in the fulfilment of those requirements, and craft and deliver client solutions. These solutions are based on the Welocalize Four Pillars of Customer Service, Quality, Innovation and Global Teamwork. The Squad Lead acts as the spokesman and facilitator of the Squad and is accountable for achieving assigned Objectives and Key Results (OKRs).
Main Duties
- In concert with Operations leadership, define quarterly Squad OKRs in alignment with the company OKRs.
- Define cross functional squad roles and responsibilities based on achieving OKR results.
- Measure and report OKR result progress on a weekly basis; proactively identify actions and opportunities to achieve and exceed objectives.
- Responsible for performance management (supervision, coaching, career development, and people activities such as time off and expense approval) of direct reports.
- Design, implement, and deliver client solutions/programs.
- Monitor financial and operational metrics (KPIs). Implement and execute production process improvements resulting in increased customer satisfaction, operational leverage, project profitability, and resource productivity.
- Facilitate effective interaction and encourage synergies between the different roles within the same squad.
- Drive the adoption of existing and new production tools (e.g. Relay, PBI, WD) in compliance with defined processes and procedures.
- Oversee issue management: client escalations, CAPAs initiatives, vendor performance or internal escalations.
- Point of Escalation for Squad team members.
- With the squad team, manage and forecast team capacity. Determine when capacity must be increased or reduced based on financial and operational performance metrics.
- Responsible for training of new Squad team members .
- Conduct month end audits to confirm squad is compliant with accurate and timely client billing.
Key Competencies
- Ability to think strategically and articulate ideas and plans with the professional maturity to participate at senior management level.
- Knowledge and awareness of business trends.
- Experience of standing up a modern, effective delivery program.
- Can develop a program plan and sequence of events.
- Can lead customer meetings and capture requirements and set success factors.
- Takes ownership for driving progress (weekly) and can make informed decisions.
- Can drive change on an existing program, across processes, roles and expectations.
- Drives Squad collaboration – facilitates decision making and actions in the context of delivery to the customer.
- Actively drives their projects and teams and has an positive Impact.
- Shows good negotiation skills and situational awareness.
- Can establish & develop processes and procedures as part of a client program in alignment with Welocalize tools and systems.
- Provides mentoring & coaching to all squad team members across all roles.
- Requires customer centric approach and attitude to managing all aspects of the business.
Experience
- Proven project management experience in a fast-paced, client-centric environment, ideally in the translation or localization industry.
- Proven ability to lead large diverse teams, both local and remote.
- Knowledge of the language services industry and a keen interest in its technology, process, competitive landscape, and emerging trends.
- Demonstrated success at managing large accounts and/or projects.
- Curiosity and creativity to question existing processes and approaches and innovate new ones.
- Proven experience in development of processes and ideas.
- Experience in financial and operational management.
- Customer relationship management.
- Must be available to travel for work related commitments.
Supervisory Responsibilities
- Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization's policies and applicable laws.
- Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.
Other Relevant Skills
- Passion for serving customers required
- Strong working knowledge of localization/translation software is an advantage
- Strong competency in data analytics and developing data driven operating procedures
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence
- Excellent literacy skills both written and verbal
- Strong sense of ownership of the designated client accounts(s)
- Ability to adapt in a changing work environment
- Ability to consider multiple perspectives to devise the most suitable customer and account strategies
- Ability to think creatively
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, time-sensitive, and deadline-driven work environment
- Positive attitude towards automation and new technologies
Key Competencies
- Is a strong Listener. Encourages Empowerment of the team. Effectively Manages Escalation from their team in times when standard operating procedures are not able to address customer dissatisfaction.
- Actively Drives Performance of assigned squad and Delivers Results.
- Understands the importance of OKRs and is Results Orientated.
- Can establish & Develop Processes and procedures to improve Operational Efficiency.
- Regularly exhibits Empathetic Leadership Skills and has a passion for Mentoring & Coaching of team members.
- Develops excellent Followership across the company through Sphere of Influence.
