Senior Director - Innovations

The Director – Innovation will lead Intelehealth’s Nashik Innovation & Learning Site, a flagship hub for designing and piloting cutting-edge telemedicine, and AI-enabled solutions for last-mile healthcare delivery.

This role is responsible for translating innovation into real-world, system-integrated impact—bridging public health needs, clinical workflows, technology platforms, and emerging AI solutions. The position requires a strong, entrepreneurial leadership who can drive innovation on the ground, manage diverse multidisciplinary teams, and build Nashik as a national and global reference site for applied AI innovation in public systems for Intelehealth.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Leadership & Innovation Direction

• Provide overall strategic leadership to the Nashik Innovation & Learning Site, positioning it as a center of excellence for last-mile telemedicine and AI innovation.
  
• Identify, incubate, and scale innovative concepts, pilots, and proofs of concept across telemedicine, AI-CDSS, digital public goods, and health system strengthening.
  
• Translate emerging technologies (AI/ML, data analytics, clinical decision support, digital platforms) into deployable, scalable, and policy-aligned solutions.
  
• Align innovation priorities with Intelehealth’s organizational strategy, government priorities (e.g., ABDM, eSanjeevani), and donor expectations.
  

 2. Program Leadership & Execution

• Lead a portfolio of complex programs involving academic institutions, and technology collaborators.
  
• Ensure high-quality program design, implementation, monitoring, learning, and adaptation.
  
• Drive disciplined execution while maintaining agility for experimentation and innovation.
  
• Oversee program budgets, timelines, deliverables, and reporting with strong accountability.
  

3. Multidisciplinary Team Leadership

• Lead and mentor a diverse, high-performing team comprising:
  a) Public health and program professionals
  b) Technology and product teams
  c) AI/ML engineers and data scientists
  d) Researchers and M&E specialists
  e) Clinical experts and field teams
  
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, learning, and ownership.
  
• Build internal capacity to manage advanced technologies and complex health system engagements.
  
  

4. Technology, AI & Product Integration

• Work closely with technology and AI teams to ensure solutions are: Clinically safe and ethical, Operationally feasible at the last mile. Aligned with government workflows and regulations. 
  
• Provide leadership on AI governance, explainable, validation, and responsible deployment in real-world health settings.
  
• Ensure continuous feedback loops between field implementation and product development.
  
  

5. Partner & Ecosystem Engagement

• Identify and engage local philanthropists, Hi-Net worth individuals to leverage funds/resources for supporting the innovative site.  
  
• Work with partnership and fundraising teams to identify the opportunities for raising funds for the innovation site. 
  
• Serve as a senior representative of Intelehealth with key stakeholders, especially health departments and implementing agencies at the District/State level 
  
• Build and manage partnerships with, Government institutions, Academic and research organizations, Technology partners and startups, Donors and multilateral
  
• Position Nashik as a living lab for partners and donors to observe, test, and learn from innovation in action.
  

6. Learning, Evidence & Scale

• Ensure robust documentation of learnings, evidence generation, and best practices from pilots and programs.
  
• Work with the policy advocacy department to support dissemination through policy briefs, publications, learning events, and global forums.
  

• Postgraduate qualification in Public Health, Medicine, Health Systems, Technology, Management, or related fields.
  
• 12–15+ years of progressive leadership experience, including:
  a)  Leading large-scale programs or innovation initiatives
  b)  Managing multidisciplinary teams
  c)  Working in or with public health systems
  
• At least 3-4 yrs of Experience leading innovation labs, pilot sites, or learning hubs.
  
• Demonstrated experience in deploying digital health, telemedicine, health technology, or AI-enabled solutions at scale. 
  
• Strong understanding of public health systems, government processes, and implementation realities in LMIC contexts.
  

 ​Desirable

• Hands-on exposure to AI/ML, digital platforms, or health data systems (not necessarily technical coding, but strong applied understanding).
  
• Prior engagement with national digital health initiatives (e.g., ABDM, telemedicine platforms, public digital infrastructure).
  
• Experience working with donors, multilaterals, or global health organizations.
  

Key Skills & Competencies

• Strategic & Systems Thinking – Ability to see the big picture while driving execution.
  
• Entrepreneurial Mindset – Comfortable with ambiguity, experimentation, and rapid iteration.
  
• Leadership & People Management – Inspires, mentors, and builds high-performing teams.
  
• Technology & Innovation Fluency – Able to engage deeply with tech and AI teams and translate between clinical, programmatic, and technical domains.
  
• Stakeholder Management – Strong credibility with government, partners, and donors.
  
• Execution Excellence – Strong program management, risk management, and delivery discipline.
  
• Communication & Influence – Clear, confident communicator at senior levels.
  

Measures of Success

• Nashik Innovation Site recognized for Intelehealth as a model learning and innovation hub nationally and internationally.
  
• Successful deployment, and scaling of innovative telemedicine and AI solutions with measurable impact.
  
• High-performing, motivated multidisciplinary teams with strong retention and growth.
  
• Strong government and partner confidence in Intelehealth’s innovation leadership.
  
• Clear pathways from pilots to policy adoption, scale, and sustainability
  

 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): First 12–18 Months:

• 1-2 high-impact innovation pilots (telemedicine / AI / digital health) deployed, and evaluated at the Nashik site.
  
• Demonstrated measurable outcomes in at least two areas (e.g., access, quality, efficiency, clinician productivity, patient outcomes).
  
• Secure 2–3 strategic partnerships (academia, AI/tech partners, donors) aligned with innovation priorities.
  
• Build and stabilize a high-performing multidisciplinary team, with:
  a) Strong collaboration with clear role clarity across program, tech, AI, clinical, and research teams
  b) 85% retention of key team members at 12 months
  
• Support to produce 2–3 high-quality knowledge outputs (case studies, policy briefs, learning notes, publications showcasing Nashik innovations. 
  
• Facilitate at least 2 learning exchanges / site visits for partners, or donors.
  

• Flexible working hours.
  
• Great work culture.
  
• 5 days working.
  
• Group Medical Insurance