Job Description:
Company Description
We Dream. We Do. We Deliver.
At Merkle, a dentsu company, we power the experience economy. Whether we’re building the next great app, running CRM at scale for global brands, delivering technology architectures that support millions of users, or providing world-class data, identity, and insights solutions, it’s all in the name of crafting experiences that set brands apart from the competition. Backed by dentsu's legacy of innovation and creativity originating in Japan, we’ve spent over 35 years helping brands build loyalty, drive growth, and connect meaningfully with their audiences.
We’ve been named a global “Leader” by top industry analyst firms in categories as wide-ranging as digital transformation and commerce, experience design, engineering and technology integration, digital marketing, data science, CRM and loyalty, and customer data management.
Why choose Merkle?
Innovation at Our Core: As part of dentsu’s global network, Merkle pushes the boundaries of customer experience, integrating creativity, technology, and data to drive real-world impact. For over 35 years, we’ve been innovating to meet the changing needs of our clients.
**Global Reach with Local Expertise: **With over 16,000 employees across 30+ countries, and part of a 70,000 employees’ network at dentsu, Merkle blends global insights with a deep understanding of local markets to deliver personalized, effective solutions.
**Collaborative Culture: **At Merkle, your ideas and contributions truly matter. You’ll join a team that fosters innovation, collaboration, and creative problem-solving. Together, we work on impactful international projects, making meaningful connections every step of the way.
Job Description:
Most organisations treat AI consulting as a support function — specialists called in after decisions have been made. This position rejects that model. As Lead AI Consultant, you operate as a forward-deployed practitioner: embedded in client engagements from the earliest strategic conversations, present when problems are still being framed, and accountable through to delivery. You own the translation of practice direction into structured client work and measurable outcomes.
Client-facing delivery is half the mandate. The other half is internal: from your first weeks, you lead enablement programmes designed to raise AI literacy across Merkle’s own workforce. We transform ourselves before we offer to transform anyone else.
What sets this role apart is its orientation toward the future. We are not hiring engineers who optimise within the current state. AI is, by reasonable estimation, the most consequential technology for restructuring how organisations coordinate action, route information, and allocate decision-making authority. Linear hierarchies, siloed channels, static approval chains — these were designed for an information environment that started to shift. The person who thrives here sees that shift with clarity, thinks through its second-order consequences, and helps clients prepare for organisational forms that do not yet have names. Mindset comes first; technical proficiency without it is insufficient.
Key Responsibilities
1. Client-Facing Consulting & Delivery
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Act as primary consultant on AI engagements, advising senior client stakeholders on AI transformation strategy, AI architecture, and implementation.
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Develop AI strategies, solution concepts, and technical specifications calibrated to each client’s organisational reality, not templated frameworks applied regardless of context.
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Translate business requirements into technical specifications, and technical constraints into language stakeholders can act on. Both directions matter equally.
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Facilitate client workshops from AI discovery through implementation planning; contribute to pitches and business development as a subject matter expert.
2. Strategic Foresight & Scenario Thinking
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Anticipate how AI will reshape organisational structures, information flows, and decision-making over the next two to five years — advising clients with concrete, time-bound roadmaps.
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Build forward-looking scenarios that connect emerging capabilities (agentic systems, real-time retrieval, autonomous workflows) to concrete operational change.
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Challenge inherited assumptions about hierarchies and operating models. Propose AI-native alternatives grounded in feasibility and organisational readiness.
3. Internal Enablement & Workforce Transformation
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Support & Lead in-house training and enablement programmes from week one, designing materials calibrated from foundational concepts to advanced agentic workflow design.
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Serve as a visible example of AI-first practice. Cultural change does not come from slide decks; it comes from colleagues who work differently and produce better results.
4. AI Practice & Solution Architecture
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Contribute to the design of AI solutions — agent orchestration, retrieval-augmented generation, multi-agent coordination — strategically and structurally, not only at implementation level.
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Evaluate and operationalise new AI tools, frameworks, and platforms as they emerge. The expectation is a live understanding of the state of the art, not last quarter’s releases.
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Support Merkle’s service lines with AI-native expertise, integrating new paradigms into delivery rather than siloing them in a separate innovation function.
5. Ecosystem Building
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Sustain partnerships with startups, university research groups, and open-source communities. The frontier of applied AI does not live inside large organisations alone.
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Help organise technical hackathons and experimentation sprints designed to test ideas before they reach client engagements.
Requirements:
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Degree in Business, Information Systems, Computer Science, Data, or a closely related technical discipline. An engineering foundation is non-negotiable.
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Several years of experience in AI consulting, software engineering, or data with direct client interaction and delivery accountability.
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Professional fluency in English is mandatory and German a nice to have.
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Strategic foresight over reactive execution. You see where AI is heading and think in future scenarios. An consultant who lives in the present — however skilled — is not the person we are looking for.
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AI-first orientation. Every workflow begins with the question: can AI do this, and if so, how? You default to yes unless evidence compels otherwise.
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Deep practical literacy. Generative AI tools, coding assistants, agentic frameworks — used daily, not experimentally. You maintain current proficiency as the ecosystem evolves week by week.
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Empathy and communicative precision. Technical capability without the ability to listen, understand client constraints, and build trust is insufficient.
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Self-directed prioritisation. You manage your workload without waiting to be told what matters.
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A drive to learn that does not depend on external motivation. If the pace of change feels like disruption rather than opportunity, this role will not suit you.
**Nice to have: **
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Prior consulting, client-facing technical advisory, or forward-deployed engineering experience.
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Hands-on experience with agent orchestration frameworks, LLM integration, or AI-native product development.
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Track record of facilitating workshops or guiding clients through structured discovery.
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Familiarity with global professional services organisations.
About this challenge:
This is not an incremental hire into an established team. We are building something new, and early hires will shape what it becomes.
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Strategic influence within one of the largest digital transformation networks globally.
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Direct access to enterprise clients across industries, with autonomy to shape how AI adoption unfolds inside those organisations.
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An environment engineered for rapid growth: dedicated experimentation time, state-of-the-art tooling, collaboration with leading practitioners.
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Competitive compensation, flexible working arrangements, and the operational backing of Dentsu’s global infrastructure.
***Work visa sponsorship is not available. **For local documentation (NIF, NISS), please consult Portuguese authorities.
**Additional Information **
Benefits and perks:
🌴25 vacation days
🤝 Enjoy 2 additional volunteering days to support your passion project
💖 Mental Health: Benefit from 3 extra wellness days on top of your vacation days and a Mental Health First Aider and Employee Assisstance program to support your well-being
🏥 Health insurance (also possible for family members)
💻 Cutting Edge Technology & Latest IT tools
🏢 Software-house environment
⌛ Agile and Flexible working hours
🌍 Hybrid work system (remote friendly)
✈️ Digital nomad policy
🚀 Focus on career development
🎓 Full access to Dentsu Academy, our global online learning platform
🍻 Beers, foosball, and ping-pong! #workhardplayhard
🥐 Free breakfast every second Wednesday of the month
🛍️ Employee discounts
🎉 Team & Company events
💸 Referral bonus program
*At dentsu, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is central to our vision: "To be at the forefront of people-centered transformations that shape society."
We cherish the unique talents and perspectives of all individuals, welcoming applicants regardless of gender, gender identity, nationality, religion, ethnicity, cultural background, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental ability. By embracing diverse perspectives, we create meaningful change and sustainable growth for our people, clients, and society. Our hiring decisions are guided by qualifications and role-specific requirements, ensuring a workplace free from discrimination and harassment.
#LI-Hybrid #LI-MERKLE
Location:
Lisbon
Brand:
Merkle
Time Type:
Full time
Contract Type:
Permanent