Senior Specialist, AI Innovation Consultant

Job Description

The Opportunity 

Based in Rahway, New Jersey, join a global healthcare biopharma company and be part of a 130-year legacy of success backed by ethical integrity, forward momentum, and an inspiring mission to achieve new milestones in global healthcare. Be part of an organization driven by digital technology and data-backed approaches that support a diversified portfolio of prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal health products. Drive innovation and execution excellence. Be a part of a team with a passion for using AI to drive decision-making, and which creates custom software, allowing us to tackle some of the world's greatest health threats. 

Role Overview: 

As an AI Innovation Consultant, you will serve as a core analytical resource within the AI Innovation Studio, partnering closely with the AI Innovation Studio leads to evaluate, shape, and validate AI opportunities across the enterprise. In this role, you will analyze business processes, synthesize research findings, build value cases, and produce the structured assessments that inform Opportunity Assessments and downstream PoC planning. 

This role is highly research- and analysis-oriented. You will contribute directly to stakeholder research, process and workflow analysis, competitive and technology landscape scanning, and ROI modeling — producing rigorous, evidence-based outputs that enable alignment between business, AI, and delivery teams. While you will most often operate in partnership with Studio leads, you will also take ownership of specific analytical workstreams or lower-complexity assessments as appropriate. 

What will you do in this role: 

Conduct Research & Analytical Deep-Dives 

• Perform structured analysis of business processes, workflows, and pain points to identify and qualify AI opportunity areas across multiple business engagements. 

• Gather, organize, and synthesize data from stakeholder interviews, operational metrics, industry benchmarks, and internal systems to build a fact base for each engagement. 

• Conduct landscape scans of relevant AI technologies, vendor capabilities, and competitive applications to inform solution shaping. 

Translate Business Problems into AI-Ready Inputs 

• Analyze and synthesize findings from stakeholder interviews, journey maps, and user research into clear problem statements, use cases, and desired outcomes. 

• Document current-state workflows, user needs, pain points, and non-functional considerations required for Opportunity Assessment. 

• Produce clear, well-structured analytical artifacts that translate business ambiguity into actionable inputs for AI and delivery teams. 

Perform Technically Grounded Opportunity Analysis 

• Apply a strong understanding of AI, automation, data platforms, and cloud technologies to assess feasibility, complexity, and value potential of proposed AI solutions. 

• Evaluate technical and data constraints by reviewing architecture documentation, data availability, and integration requirements alongside architects, data scientists, and engineers. 

• Ensure proposed AI opportunities are grounded in technical reality and supported by evidence prior to handoff to delivery teams. 

Build Value Cases & Support PoC Planning 

• Own the end-to-end value case for each assessed AI opportunity — from initial data discovery and analysis through building ROI models and business cases — providing the quantitative rigor needed to validate, prioritize, and advance initiatives into PoC. 

• Define and document scope boundaries, assumptions, success metrics, and risk factors to support early PoC planning. 

• Ensure analytical outputs are complete, coherent, and decision-ready, reducing friction during transition to delivery teams. 

• Maintain traceability from business problem through value hypothesis to recommended path forward. 

Support Stakeholder Alignment & Reporting 

• Build strong working relationships with business and IT stakeholders through clear communication, analytical credibility, and follow-through. 

• Prepare executive-ready briefings, scorecards, and summary reports that distill complex analytical findings into clear recommendations. 

• Contribute to positive stakeholder experiences by maintaining rigor, transparency, and momentum throughout engagements. 

What Should you have: 

Experience 

• 5+ years of experience in business analysis, strategy, technology consulting, or innovation-focused analytical roles. 

• Experience evaluating technology-enabled initiatives, with exposure to AI, automation, or data platforms preferred. 

• Track record of producing structured analytical deliverables (business cases, opportunity assessments, ROI models) in complex enterprise environments. 

Core Skills 

• Research design and analytical synthesis, including the ability to structure ambiguous problems into clear analytical frameworks. 

• Strong quantitative and qualitative reasoning, with comfort building financial models, value cases, and data-driven recommendations. 

• Ability to clearly document business challenges, desired outcomes, and supporting evidence for audiences. 

Technical Skills 

• Solid understanding of technology value propositions, including AI/GenAI, data platforms, cloud services, and automation. 

• Ability to critically assess technical feasibility and engage technical partners with informed, evidence-based questions. 

• Familiarity with Agile and iterative delivery approaches. 

Soft Skills 

• Highly detail-oriented and intellectually rigorous, with comfort operating across multiple concurrent analytical workstreams. 

• Strong written and verbal communication skills and high emotional intelligence. 

• Organized, dependable, and effective in ambiguous, fast-moving environments. 

 

Required Skills:

Agile Transformation, Business Case Development, Business Process Analysis, Data Analytics, Digital Transformation Initiatives, Incident Management, ITIL Service Delivery, IT Infrastructure Management, Objectives and Key Results (OKRs), Process Leadership, Scientific Software Development, Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), Technical Leadership, User Acceptance Testing Support, Writing Technical Documents

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

EEOC Know Your Rights

EEOC GINA Supplement​

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

The salary range for this role is

$117,000.00 - $184,200.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

No relocation

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

N/A

Job Posting End Date:

05/21/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.