VP, AI Transformation & Business Operations

Who We Are:

UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 700 million fans and approximately 300 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world while broadcasting to over 950 million households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 80 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO) and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC and @UFC on X, Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok: @UFC. TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO) is a premium sports and entertainment company. TKO owns iconic properties including UFC, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization; WWE, the global leader in sports entertainment; and PBR, the world’s premier bull riding organization. Together, these properties reach 1 billion households across 210 countries and territories and organize more than 500 live events year-round, attracting more than three million fans. TKO also services and partners with major sports rights holders through IMG, an industry-leading global sports marketing agency; and On Location, a global leader in premium experiential hospitality.

About the Role:

TKO is embedding AI capabilities across each business to drive competitive advantage, operational efficiency, and fan engagement. This VP role carries a dual mandate within UFC: leading AI strategy and transformation for the business unit, while serving as a senior operational partner to the UFC President and COO in running the day-to-day business.

This is a business leadership role, not a technology role. The right person understands how large, complex organizations operate, can translate business needs into AI-ready opportunities, and has the executive presence and follow-through to keep a leadership team aligned and on-budget. Roughly 50% of the role is dedicated to AI transformation; the remaining 50% to business operations and organizational leadership support.

This role reports to the UFC COO with a dotted-line relationship to the AI + Data Transformation COE (Tashina Charagi, SVP Data & AI Transformation).

What You'll Own:

AI Transformation (≈ 50%)

UFC-Specific AI Strategy & Use Case Leadership

• Identify, evaluate, and prioritize AI use cases across UFC operations - athlete performance, fan engagement, content personalization, event operations, sponsorship activation, and international expansion
• Build and maintain a UFC AI roadmap that balances near-term wins with foundational investments; connect AI priorities to UFC's revenue growth, cost efficiency, and competitive differentiation
• Partner with the enterprise AI + Data Transformation COE to scope, design, and deploy UFC-specific solutions; serve as the UFC's voice in COE planning forums, portfolio reviews, and vendor evaluations
• Define success metrics and value hypotheses for each initiative; track business impact and course-correct based on outcomes
• Ensure UFC initiatives comply with enterprise governance standards - DTC intake routing, acceptable use policies, and security and legal requirements

Enterprise AI Adoption & Organizational Capability

• Lead UFC's adoption of enterprise AI solutions (productivity platforms, knowledge management, automation tools) deployed by the enterprise COE
• Drive engagement strategies that move teams from awareness to active usage - executive sponsorship, use case storytelling, and success communication
• Build and maintain a network of AI champions across UFC functions; surface adoption barriers and drive resolution with the COE
• In partnership with People + Culture, support AI literacy initiatives and workforce readiness for AI-enabled roles. P+C owns curriculum design and change management delivery; this role provides the UFC-specific business context and executive sponsorship
• Monitor adoption metrics and usage patterns; provide UFC leadership with clear, outcome-oriented reporting on transformation progress
• In partnership with Finance, track financial KPIs and ROI of AI investments

Business Operations (≈ 50%)

Senior Operational Partnership

• Serve as a senior operational partner to the UFC COO - translating strategic priorities into structured plans, clear accountabilities, and disciplined execution across the leadership team
• Prepare and steward the UFC leadership team's operating rhythm: agenda-setting, decision forums, offsites, and senior stakeholder engagements
• Own follow-through on leadership decisions - tracking commitments, surfacing blockers, and driving resolution before issues escalate
• Develop pre-reads, briefing materials, and executive communications that give UFC leadership the clarity and context needed to make fast, well-informed decisions
• Coordinate across UFC functions and TKO shared services (People + Culture, Legal, IT, Procurement, Corporate Affairs) to unblock cross-functional work and maintain organizational momentum

Process Excellence & Operational Effectiveness

• Continuously assess operational workflows across UFC identifying inefficiencies and leading improvement initiatives
• Design and implement scalable processes that reduce friction, improve coordination, and support UFC's growth and international expansion
• Lead or support strategic special projects on behalf of UFC leadership - from organizational initiatives to cross-BU coordination efforts
• Partner with Finance on business planning cycles, quarterly performance reviews, and resource allocation discussions; provide the operational context and business intelligence Finance needs to support UFC leadership - financial planning and P&L ownership remain with Finance

What You Bring:

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressive experience across business operations, strategy, digital transformation, or management consulting - with measurable outcomes delivered in complex, matrixed organizations
• Proven ability to operate as a senior organizational partner to executive leadership - setting agendas, driving follow-through, and serving as a trusted integrator across functions
• Understanding of AI/ML capabilities and how to translate technology into tangible business value; comfort engaging with vendors and technical teams on solution design and tradeoffs
• Experience driving enterprise technology adoption and building organizational capability - change management, champion networks, executive sponsorship, and adoption measurement
• Exceptional communication and influencing skills; able to build alignment across diverse stakeholders without direct authority
• Strong business acumen — able to connect AI investments and operational improvements to revenue, efficiency, and competitive outcomes
• Experience in sports, entertainment, media, or live events strongly preferred

Preferred

• Working knowledge of enterprise AI platforms (Glean, Microsoft Copilot, or equivalent productivity and knowledge management tools)
• Experience evaluating and engaging AI vendors; familiarity with modern data and analytics foundations
• Track record designing training programs or organizational capability development initiatives
• Exposure to international business operations and the complexity of scaling across geographies

Leadership Attributes

• Strategic thinker with strong execution discipline — sets direction and drives follow-through
• Change agent and storyteller - builds momentum through influence, not mandate
• Low-ego, high-output operator - comfortable doing the work and elevating the people around them
• Outcome-oriented - uses data to demonstrate value, guide decisions, and course-correct
• Composed and effective in ambiguity - can lead in fast-moving, evolving environments

TKO EEO Statement:

TKO is an Equal Opportunity Employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws regarding non-discrimination in employment. TKO makes employment decisions based on merit and qualifications, without considering an employee’s or applicant’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other basis prohibited under federal, state or local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the Company has facilities. TKO also provides reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and applicable state or local laws. For information about Privacy and Information Security for TKO employment candidates, please review our Privacy Policy. For information regarding Terms of Use for this and other TKO websites, please review our Terms of Use.