Lead AI/ML Engineer / Manager AI (In-person interview required)

Lead AI/ML Engineer / Manager – AI Engineering

Department : AI Engineering

Location: Denver, CO (In-person interview required)

Employment Type: Contract

Experience Required: 8+ Years Management | 8+ Years ML/Data Science

Role Overview

R Systems International is looking for a Manager of AI Engineering who brings a rare combination of deep hands-on AI/ML delivery experience and demonstrated people leadership. This is not a research role — we are seeking someone who has delivered real, production-grade AI/ML systems in industry and is now ready to lead teams that do the same. You will drive technical vision, build high-performing engineering teams, and ensure AI solutions move from concept to production reliably and at scale.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and grow a team of AI engineers working on production LLM, RAG, and ML systems.
• Define and drive the technical vision for AI engineering — from architecture decisions to tooling choices and coding standards.
• Own end-to-end delivery of AI/ML models into production: scoping, design, build, deployment, and monitoring.
• Partner with Data Science, Data Engineering, Product, and Business stakeholders to align AI engineering work with strategic priorities.
• Mentor and develop engineers — conducting code reviews, knowledge-sharing sessions, and career development conversations.
• Establish and enforce engineering best practices: CI/CD, MLOps, model monitoring, responsible AI, and documentation.
• Evaluate new LLM frameworks, RAG architectures, and agentic patterns and advise on their adoption.
• Communicate technical progress, risks, and blockers clearly to senior leadership and cross-functional partners.

Experience

• 8+ years of management experience leading technical teams in ML, AI, or data engineering.
• 8+ years of hands-on ML/Data Science experience in industry (production delivery, not research).
• 4+ years of LLM experience: fine-tuning, RAG, prompt engineering, and agentic system design.
• Proven track record of delivering AI/ML models into production environments at enterprise scale

Leadership & Communication

• Strong ability to mentor engineers and build high-performing, collaborative teams.
• Demonstrated ability to drive technical vision and influence across organizational boundaries.
• Excellent communication skills — able to translate complex AI/ML concepts for both technical and business audiences

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, AI, or a related technical field. Master's or PhD preferred.