Senior Lead AI Engineer

Senior Lead AI Engineer

Employment type: Full-time

Company Description

IFS is a billion-dollar revenue company with 7000+ employees on all continents. Our leading AI technology is the backbone of our award-winning enterprise software solutions, enabling our customers to be their best when it really matters–at the Moment of Service™. Our commitment to internal AI adoption has allowed us to stay at the forefront of technological advancements, ensuring our colleagues can unlock their creativity and productivity, and our solutions are always cutting-edge.

At IFS, we're flexible, we're innovative, and we're focused not only on how we can engage with our customers but on how we can make a real change and have a worldwide impact. We help solve some of society's greatest challenges, fostering a better future through our agility, collaboration, and trust.

We celebrate diversity and understand our responsibility to reflect the diverse world we work in. We are committed to promoting an inclusive workforce that fully represents the many different cultures, backgrounds, and viewpoints of our customers, our partners, and our communities. As a truly international company serving people from around the globe, we realize that our success is tantamount to the respect we have for those different points of view.

By joining our team, you will have the opportunity to be part of a global, diverse environment; you will be joining a winning team with a commitment to sustainability; and a company where we get things done so that you can make a positive impact on the world.

We're looking for innovative and original thinkers to work in an environment where you can #MakeYourMoment so that we can help others make theirs. With the power of our AI-driven solutions, we empower our team to change the status quo and make a real difference.

About the Role

The Senior Lead AI Engineer is a squad leader responsible for mentoring their squad members and ensuring conformance to GCS AI Engineering technical architecture, governance and processes. This role drives innovation across their Squad's AI Use Cases, whilst ensuring alignment with enterprise strategy, and acts as an authority on AI systems and agentic platforms.

Duties & Accountabilities

• Lead design of complex, large-scale, multi-agent systems
• Influence engineering standards, governance models, and development frameworks
• Act as technical expert across AI Engineering initiatives
• Drive innovation through evaluation of emerging technologies and approaches
• Influence technical direction across multiple teams and portfolios
• Mentor AI engineers within their Squad
• Ensure alignment with responsible AI principles, security, and compliance

Scope & Impact

• Operates at portfolio level
• Shapes technical direction across multiple initiatives within their Squad
• Influences strategic decisions on AI architecture
• Impact is enterprise-level within GCS AI Engineering
• Acts as a key bridge between strategy and execution

Competencies & Skills

• Expertise in enterprise AI architecture and distributed systems
• Deep understanding of AI platforms, LLM ecosystems, and agentic systems
• Strong strategic thinking and systems mindset
• Proven ability to lead complex technical programmes
• Strong influence across engineering and product leadership

Essential Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Mathematics, Statistics, or related technical field. Masters will be an added advantage
• Equivalent practical experience with software engineering and AI/ML
• For Senior Lead: 8–10+ years in software engineering
• Evidence of curiosity and continuous learning, with practical AI/ML or LLM application experience
• Understanding of data handling and AI model behaviour

Value Additions

• Prior exposure to enterprise SaaS platforms and large-scale AI/ML deployments
• Familiarity with IFS industries and domain product offerings
• Experience with executive-level customer engagement
• Demonstrated hands-on experience with CI/CD pipelines, utilizing tools such as Bitbucket Pipelines, Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, or Jenkins
• Proficiency in Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) tools, including Terraform or Bicep
• Familiarity with test automation practices and tools as part of the CI/CD process
• Comprehensive working knowledge of Microsoft Azure, encompassing compute, storage, networking, and cost optimization

Work Environment

We embrace flexibility and hybrid work opportunities to support diverse needs and lifestyles, while also valuing inclusive workplace experiences. By fostering a sense of community, we drive innovation, strengthen connections, and nurture belonging. Our commitment ensures you can work in a way that suits you best, while also engaging with colleagues to share ideas and build meaningful relationships.