Bold Stroke Program Manager

Syensqo is all about chemistry. We’re not just referring to chemical reactions here, but also to the magic that occurs when the brightest minds get to work together. This is where our true strength lies. In you. In your future colleagues and in all your differences. And of course, in your ideas to improve lives while preserving our planet’s beauty for the generations to come.

We are looking for:

Syensqo is undertaking a fundamental transformation where digital and AI are at the heart of how we innovate, operate, and grow. Syensqo.ai—our startup-style AI team—has been created to unlock this potential, with a simple mandate: deliver tangible business value fast, with full rigor on compliance, ethics, and guardrails.

Within this context, Syensqo has defined a set of AI “Bold Strokes”: decisive, top-down strategic moves that reset priorities and trigger an immediate shift across the organization, followed by a long, disciplined execution journey. These Bold Strokes sit at the core of our business operations and innovation agenda and are sponsored at the highest leadership level.

As AI Bold Stroke Program Lead, you will be ultimately accountable for making these Bold Strokes real—on time, on value, and on scope. Reporting directly to the Head of Syensqo.ai, you will sit at the interface between:

• The AI team (Innovation Manager, Data Science, Architecture, AI Factory, Portfolio & Transformation Lead),
• IT teams (Product Management, Data, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure),
• and Business leaders and experts who will own and scale the impact.

You will orchestrate the overall Bold Stroke program, ensure alignment between strategy and execution, and remove roadblocks so that each initiative delivers the outcomes it promises for Syensqo and its customers.

We count on you for: 

• End-to-end Bold Stroke program leadership – own the overall Bold Stroke program plan and execution across multiple workstreams and initiatives, ensuring clarity of objectives, scope, timelines, interdependencies, and success criteria.
• Delivery excellence (on time, on value, on scope) – define and enforce delivery standards, milestones, and quality gates. Anticipate and resolve issues early, ensuring the program delivers the expected value and business impact—not just activity.
• Cross-functional orchestration – align and coordinate AI, IT, and Business teams around a single plan. Facilitate decision-making across stakeholders, ensuring the right people are engaged at the right time and duplication is avoided.
• Value tracking & performance management – define and track KPIs/KVIs and key outcomes for each Bold Stroke (e.g., operational, financial, customer, innovation metrics). Provide clear, data-driven reporting to Syensqo.ai leadership and executive sponsors.
• Governance & executive engagement – operate and continuously improve the governance model for the Bold Strokes: steering committees, decision forums, risk reviews, and escalation paths. Prepare concise, impactful communication materials and recommendations for senior leadership.
• Workstream structure & alignment – support workstream leads to structure their scope into clear objectives, activities, and deliverables, consistent with the Bold Stroke top-down structure, while maintaining tight alignment with the overarching strategic intent.
• Change management & adoption – partner with communication, HR, and Business leaders to ensure that Bold Stroke initiatives translate into real behavior change, new ways of working, and sustained adoption at scale.
• Risk, dependency, and issue management – proactively identify risks, dependencies, and bottlenecks across workstreams. Drive mitigation plans, trade-off decisions, and re-prioritization when needed, always with the global Bold Stroke outcomes in mind.
• Key Stakeholder Interactions:
  • Works closely with the Head of Syensqo.ai and the Portfolio & Transformation Lead on strategy, prioritization, and executive communication.
  • Interfaces daily with AI teams (Innovation Manager, Data Science, Architecture, AI Factory, Portfolio & Transformation Lead) to align capabilities, pipelines, and technical deliverables.
  • Collaborates with IT leadership and teams (Product Managers, Data teams, cybersecurity, infrastructure, workplace, delivery) to ensure robust, secure, and scalable implementation.
  • Engages Business sponsors and functional leaders to secure ownership, resources, and accountability for business outcomes.
  • Coordinates with Change, Communications, HR, and Finance to support adoption, training, investment decisions, and benefits tracking.

You can count on us for: 

• Be at the center of Syensqo’s AI transformation, turning top-down strategic bets into real, measurable impact.
• Work within Syensqo.ai, a startup-style team inside the Group, with high visibility and direct access to senior leadership.
• Opportunity to lead a portfolio of initiatives that shape how Syensqo innovates, serves customers, runs operations, and empowers employees.

You will bring:

Education & Experience:

• Master’s or Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Business, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in program or portfolio management, preferably in digital, AI, or large-scale transformation contexts.
• Demonstrated track record of leading complex, cross-functional programs with multiple stakeholders and high visibility.
• Strong understanding of AI / data / analytics concepts and digital architectures; able to challenge and connect with technical teams.
• Experience working with both business and IT teams, ideally in an industrial, manufacturing, or B2B environment.
• Fluent in English.

Behavioral competencies:

• Program-builder with a “make it happen” mindset and strong sense of ownership.
  Able to simplify complexity, structure ambiguous problems, and create clear roadmaps.
• Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, comfortable engaging from operational teams to executive leadership.
• Strong analytical skills; uses data and metrics to drive decisions and measure progress.
• Familiarity with Agile / hybrid delivery models and how to scale them in a structured program environment.
• High energy, resilience, and ability to operate in a fast-moving, startup-like environment within a large group.
• Strong communication skills—concise, action-oriented, and inspiring.

You will get:

• Competitive salary and benefits package
• 16, or more, weeks of maternity/paternity and co-parenting leave, according to local regulations
• Training platform for all employees
• Free language courses (24 languages available)
• Free well-being sessions (physical and psychological)

Additional information:

• Smart working flexibility. 
• Travel availability: occasional travel to HQ and other Syensqo sites may be required.

About us

• Syensqo is a science company developing groundbreaking solutions that enhance the way we live, work, travel and play. Inspired by the scientific councils which Ernest Solvay initiated in 1911, we bring great minds together to push the limits of science and innovation for the benefit of our customers, with a diverse, global team of more than 13,000 associates. Our solutions contribute to safer, cleaner, and more sustainable products found in homes, food and consumer goods, planes, cars, batteries, smart devices and health care applications. Our innovation power enables us to deliver on the ambition of a circular economy and explore breakthrough technologies that advance humanity.
• At Syensqo, we seek to promote unity and not uniformity. We value the diversity that individuals bring and we invite you to consider a future with us, regardless of background, age, gender, national origin, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, ability or identity. We encourage individuals who may require any assistance or accommodations to let us know to ensure a seamless application experience. We are here to support you throughout the application journey and want to ensure all candidates are treated equally. If you are unsure whether you meet all the criteria or qualifications listed in the job description, we still encourage you to apply.