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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Director of Engineering, Artificial Intelligence (AI) - **Company:** Egen, LLC - **Location:** United States (Remote available) - **Salary:** $218,000.0 - $265,000.0 - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Artificial Intelligence, Systems Development Life Cycle, Google Cloud, Cloud Platform System, Machine Learning Operations - **Published:** September 22, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.builtincolorado.com/job/director-engineering-artificial-intelligence-ai/11284878?handler=ApplyRedirect ## About the Role * 12+ years of progressive engineering experience, including significant leadership experience guiding full engineering organizations rather than single development teams. * Demonstrated experience managing engineering leaders and managers, with a track record of scaling teams and organizational structures effectively. * Proven ability to build high-functioning organizational infrastructure-recruiting engines, onboarding programs, engineering standards, and career pathways-with measurable outcomes. * Deep technical strength in platform, pipeline, and infrastructure architecture required to command respect and direct technical strategy in executive client settings. * Hands-on expertise deploying production AI/ML systems, with primary focus on platform architecture, MLOps/LLMOps pipelines, governance, and operational resilience over pure model research. * Deep Google Cloud Platform (GCP) experience, or the proven technical agility to master our GCP-centric delivery stack rapidly. * Sharp consulting acumen: adept at managing ambiguity, navigating client-facing dynamics, leading concurrent engagements, and balancing business drivers. Preferred Qualifications * Professional services experience preferred. * Collaborative mindset and comfort partnering closely with practice leadership during a transitional quarter as operational authority shifts. * Exceptional communication and executive presence, with the ability to influence C-suite client stakeholders and internal executive leadership alike. ## Description We are seeking a high-impact Director of Engineering to spearhead a vital span of our AI Practice during a period of explosive growth. This is a dynamic player-coach role for a strategic engineering leader who excels at cultivating managerial talent and developing high-performing teams while staying directly engaged in transformative client delivery. Our AI Practice comprises roughly 78 top-tier engineers across North America, Europe, and India, delivering cutting-edge AI and machine learning solutions for global enterprise clients in healthcare, life sciences, hospitality, the public sector, and industrial markets. We don't just build proofs of concept-we architect and deploy robust, mission-critical production systems. Role Overview As our first dedicated engineering leader in this role, you will take full ownership of a team of roughly twenty engineers-shaping team structure, staffing engagements, and fostering accelerated professional growth. Beyond leading your span, you will partner with the AI Practice Lead to architect and refine practice-wide operational frameworks for hiring, onboarding, and continuous engineering enablement. Reporting directly to the AI Practice Lead, you will work side-by-side with practice leadership, particularly during your initial two quarters. Approximately 50% of your role will be billable client engagement, positioning you as a high-value fractional advisor and platform leader across critical technical domains: AI SDLC, AI governance, agentic deployments, and cloud platform/pipeline architecture. This position is tailored for a battle-tested leader with a proven track record of managing managers and engineering leaders. You have built and scaled the operational machinery that powers high-performing engineering organizations-and can showcase tangible, measurable outcomes from organizations that flourished under your design. What You'll Do: * Span Leadership and People Management * Practice Machinery: Hiring, Onboarding, and Enablement * Hands-on Delivery and Client Engagement Span Leadership and People Management * Empower and lead a dedicated span of roughly twenty world-class engineers. * Drive performance management, professional growth, career paths, and promotion pathways for everyone in your span in close alignment with the practice lead. * Serve as the primary leadership point of escalation for engineering challenges within your span. * Direct team staffing strategy in partnership with Resource Management and the practice lead, seamlessly matching engineering talent to high-impact engagements. * Oversee contractor operations to ensure smooth onboarding, strategic contract extensions, and healthy engagement delivery. * Mentor and coach team leads through crucial career conversations, performance coaching, and complex staffing decisions. Practice Machinery: Hiring, Onboarding and Enablement * Spearhead the practice-wide hiring engine in collaboration with the practice lead: optimize interview panels, calibrate interviewer standards, expand capacity, prioritize top candidates, and elevate our partnership with Talent Acquisition. * Champion the entire career progression pipeline from onboarding to senior technical leader-refining mentorship, management enablement, and performance review cycles on top of existing practice frameworks. * Lead the practice's internal accelerator program alongside the practice lead, defining production-ready client standards, driving practice-wide adoption, and curating internal assets. Hands-on Delivery and Client Engagement * Maintain an active billable portfolio (~50% focus) across strategic, fractional advisory and platform consulting roles spread intentionally across key client accounts. * Provide overarching technical leadership on AI SDLC initiatives-guiding client leadership in adopting modern AI tooling, setting standards of excellence, and measuring ROI. * Drive robust AI governance solutions within highly regulated industries, establishing comprehensive evaluation frameworks, observability platforms, audit trails, and production safety controls. * Architect enterprise platform and pipeline deployments, including agentic AI frameworks, automated promotion pipelines, and the operational infrastructure supporting them. * Serve as a trusted executive advisor to client engineering leaders, delivering expert guidance and constructively challenging technical approaches when needed. ## Related Videos - [The New Org Chart: When AI Joins the Workforce](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100036-the-new-org-chart-when-ai-joins-the-workforce) - [Edit Your Future: Queerverse Radical AI](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/909-edit-your-future-queerverse-radical-ai) - [The Cloud is Calling: Answer with In-Demand Skills](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/945-the-cloud-is-calling-answer-with-in-demand-skills) - [Cloud Vendor Lock-In - Is it just a new version of the Database Abstraction Layers?](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1185-cloud-vendor-lock-in-is-it-just-a-new-version-of-the-database-abstraction-layers) - [Coffee with Developers - Maria Apazoglou](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1209-coffee-with-developers-maria-apazoglou) - [AI is dead, long live AK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1093-ai-is-dead-long-live-ak) ## Related Articles - [Got AI ideas but no money? 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