Advarra is looking for a Director, Software Engineering – AI & Innovations to deliver AI-enabled capabilities across our technology portfolio. This player-coach role provides hands-on technical leadership while driving disciplined execution and performance across multiple engineering teams.
What You'll Do
- Architect and lead implementation of AI-powered features within applications, including LLM integrations, workflow automation, and data-driven insights.
- Provide hands-on technical leadership in system design, RAG architectures, prompt engineering, and AI orchestration patterns.
- Establish governance standards for responsible AI usage, including data controls, auditability, and risk management.
- Partner with Product Management to convert AI use cases into executable technical plans with defined scope and timelines.
- Lead implementation of AI assistants and automation across engineering workflows, from code generation to incident triage.
- Define operational guardrails to ensure AI-assisted development maintains security, compliance, and code quality.
- Track and report measurable improvements in cycle time, defect rates, and team productivity driven by AI enablement.
- Drive continuous improvement across CI/CD pipelines, observability, and system reliability practices.
- Establish experimentation frameworks for piloting AI capabilities with defined success criteria.
- Lead multiple agile engineering teams with accountability for roadmap execution, sprint predictability, and high-quality releases.
- Establish and monitor KPIs for delivery performance, system uptime, AI feature adoption, and defect trends.
- Partner with the VP of Engineering to develop quarterly and annual execution plans.
- Own resource planning, capacity forecasting, and team structure to ensure alignment with delivery commitments.
- Contribute to budgeting discussions, vendor evaluations, and cost optimization strategies.
- Proactively manage risks, dependencies, and cross-team coordination to eliminate delivery friction.
- Remain technically engaged through architecture reviews, design sessions, and critical code reviews.
- Collaborate closely with Cloud, IT, Security, QA, Data, and Operations to ensure production readiness.
- Participate in technical discussions with customers and vendors regarding AI integrations and architectural decisions.
- Facilitate alignment across Engineering and Product teams to improve prioritization clarity and maintain momentum.
- Coach and develop engineering managers and senior engineers, building AI competency and succession depth.
- Conduct performance management with clarity, consistency, and high expectations.
- Recruit and retain high-performing engineering and AI talent.
- Reinforce a culture of urgency, ownership, transparency, and disciplined execution.
- Promote continuous learning and responsible innovation in emerging AI technologies.
What We're Looking For
- Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, Information Technology, or related field or equivalent experience.
- 10+ years of progressive software engineering experience.
- 5+ years in engineering leadership roles.
- Demonstrated hands-on experience integrating AI/ML or LLM capabilities into production applications.
- Experience leading agile teams with accountability for delivery predictability and operational performance.
- Strong architectural background in distributed systems, SaaS platforms, APIs, and cloud-native environments.
- Experience implementing AI assistants or automation tools to improve engineering productivity.
- Proven track record managing multi-team delivery in complex, cross-functional environments.
Nice to Have
- Master’s Degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, or related field.
- Experience in clinical research, healthcare technology, or regulated industries.
- Hands-on experience with LLM integrations, vector databases, embeddings, RAG architectures, and AI model deployment strategies.
- Experience managing budgets, vendor relationships, and cost optimization initiatives.
- Strong understanding of DevOps practices, CI/CD automation, infrastructure-as-code, and observability frameworks.
- Demonstrated success driving operational maturity and engineering performance improvements.
- Strong executive communication skills and ability to translate technical concepts for diverse audiences.
- Balanced leadership style combining technical depth, operational rigor, and collaborative partnership.
Technical Stack
- AI/ML
- LLM
- RAG architectures
- Vector databases
- SaaS platforms
- APIs
- Cloud-native environments
- DevOps
- CI/CD automation
- Infrastructure-as-code
Team & Environment
This role involves player-coach leadership of multiple agile engineering teams and reports to the VP of Engineering.
Benefits & Compensation
- Compensation range: $122,000 - $250,000
- Health coverage
- Paid holidays
- Other benefits
Work Mode
This role is local-country based in the United States.
Advarra is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and providing a workplace free from discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, creed, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information or other protected characteristics.
