SDLC Practice Lead NA

Role summary

The Practice Director, SDLC leads the development and evolution of Valiantys’ North American Software Development Life Cycle practice. The role helps clients modernize and orchestrate the full flow of delivering and operating software-from discovery and planning through design, implementation, testing, deployment and ongoing maintenance. It combines practice leadership, delivery excellence, commercial leadership and solution ownership. A consultative mindset is essential: uncovering business and industry context, shaping options into practical roadmaps, and connecting technical choices to measurable outcomes. The role is focused on North American execution and operates in a global matrix, aligning regional priorities with the direction set by the Global Head of Practice.

Responsibilities

Practice leadership

• Act as the Global Head of Practice’s regional delegate, representing Valiantys in strategic client, partner and Atlassian interactions and embedding the global SDLC strategy in North America.
• Build the regional practice around end-to-end software delivery transformation, spanning engineering workflows, DevOps practices, governance, quality, delivery speed and measurable business outcomes.
• Serve as the regional SDLC solution authority, combining strong Atlassian platform knowledge with a broad view of complementary engineering and DevOps technologies, and mobilizing deep specialist expertise where needed.
• Maintain a current view of established and emerging engineering and DevOps technologies and leading practices, including Atlassian products (Jira, Confluence, Bitbucket, Jira Service Management and Rovo), complementary tools such as Xray and SonarQube, and DX and similar capabilities for engineering metrics and insights. Assess how these capabilities align and integrate with Atlassian and client environments, including evolving AI capabilities.
• Keep the practice skills matrix, capability plans and enablement priorities current across SDLC transformation, platforms, delivery and AI-enabled ways of working.
• Foster a collaborative, high-performance practice culture that shares field insight, leading practices and lessons learned to improve client value and Valiantys revenue.
• Ensure approved practice and company methods, governance and tools are applied consistently across North America.
• Own the regional SDLC Practice shadow P&L, including investment in solution-component development and practice enablement. Partner with the Global Head of Practice and Head of Delivery to clarify regional versus global ownership of training, certification, enablement and solution-development investments, and surface gaps where ownership is not defined.

Delivery

• Define and oversee delivery approaches for complex or high-impact SDLC transformation engagements, ensuring alignment with client outcomes, technical feasibility, operating-model needs, Valiantys standards and leading practices.
• Lead consultative discovery with client executives and delivery teams, translating ambiguous business needs into target operating models, SDLC roadmaps, solution architectures and phased plans with measurable outcomes.
• Bring expertise in one or more client domains, particularly complex or regulated environments, and adapt SDLC transformation to industry-specific business models and constraints, including security, compliance and adoption needs.
• Act as a senior advisor to strategic clients, helping leaders connect investment in engineering and DevOps improvement to measurable business outcomes.
• Provide design assurance across the full software delivery lifecycle, including discovery, planning, feasibility, system design, implementation, testing, deployment and maintenance, with attention to security, compliance, resilience, observability, scalability, operational readiness and cost effectiveness.
• Oversee key deliverables and delivery risks where appropriate, including adoption, governance, quality and operating-model considerations that extend beyond a tooling implementation. Assess the delivery, support and maintenance implications of AI-enabled solutions, including clear ownership and appropriate lifecycle plans.
• Guide client onboarding, enablement and iterative improvement so transformed SDLC capabilities are adopted across technical teams and deliver their intended business value.
• Support the Delivery Management team in forecasting the skills and capacity required for the regional practice.
• Partner with practice and delivery leadership on plans for training, certifications, internal enablement and solution development, in line with the agreed practice investment model.

Sales support

• Support sales on complex or large-scale SDLC opportunities, providing credible executive and technical leadership while ensuring feasibility and alignment with practice strategy.
• Run regular pipeline reviews and deal clinics to identify where repeatable offerings should be used and where a tailored solution is justified.
• Guide sales teams on the value, scope and appropriate use of the SDLC solution catalogue, including AI-enabled capabilities where they provide an evidenced client benefit.
• Contribute to the validation of statements of work, estimates and delivery models to support accurate scoping, commercial discipline and delivery feasibility.
• Work with Marketing, Alliances and the Transformation practice (Tx) on SDLC go-to-market strategy, thought leadership, case studies and market messages.

Product and solution ownership

• Collaborate with the Head of Solutions and Global Head of Practice to manage the lifecycle of SDLC solutions, accelerators and training offers from idea through retirement.
• Lead regional development of repeatable solution components for the full delivery-project lifecycle, including discovery materials, repeatable roadmaps and delivery-ready project assets and deliverables.
• Develop repeatable SDLC transformation components, including AI-enabled patterns that strengthen planning, knowledge flow, engineering productivity, quality, service operations or governance; account for their design, delivery, support and maintenance implications.
• Act as design authority for repeatable solution components, ensuring they support product marketing, delivery quality, sales efficiency and measurable client outcomes.
• Enable Practice consultants, sales and delivery teams to use approved components effectively and consistently.
• Own the regional IP development lifecycle, ensuring investments align with the strategic direction of the practice and can be scaled or reused.
• Ensure delivery lessons and client evidence inform continuous improvement of offerings, methods and enablement.
• Coordinate with other practices to remove duplication and close gaps across Valiantys’ solution portfolio.

Your team and partners

• Head of Delivery, North America - line manager
• Global Head of Practice - dotted-line manager
• Principal Consultants and other Practice team members, where applicable
• Product Owners and Head of Solutions
• Delivery Management team
• Sales, Marketing and Alliances teams, including the Transformation practice (Tx)
• People and Culture team
• Global Partner Manager and strategic partners