AI Development Manager

***C2C arrangements and third-party vendor submissions will not be considered for this role. We are seeking an AI Development Manager to build and lead the software development and AI engineering function for a rapidly growing manufacturing organization. This is a hands-on, builder-focused leadership role. We are looking for someone who has created a development capability, team, or engineering structure rather than only joining an established environment. The ideal candidate has built teams and processes from the ground up, developed production-ready applications and AI solutions, and achieved measurable user adoption and business results. Key Responsibilities Build and scale the software development and AI engineering function, including team structure, roles, processes, tools, and technical standards. Recruit, manage, mentor, and develop software engineers through hiring, one-on-one meetings, performance management, coaching, and career development. Establish the team’s delivery model, including sprint cadence, source control, code reviews, testing, staging, release management, and deployment practices. Translate business priorities into a clear, sequenced development and AI roadmap. Prioritize competing requests and keep the team focused on high-impact initiatives. Partner with Operations, Engineering, Procurement, Finance, and IT leaders to identify opportunities and deliver practical solutions. Evaluate emerging AI models, frameworks, and development tools based on business value, scalability, security, and implementation requirements. Establish AI-assisted development as a standard team practice. Lead the development and production deployment of AI agents, automation, internal applications, integrations, and operational software. Own solutions from initial concept and architecture through production launch, adoption, measurement, and continuous improvement. Establish technical standards for application architecture, system design, code quality, integration patterns, and technology selection. Coordinate application rollouts, gather user feedback, monitor adoption, and measure productivity, operational, revenue, or cost improvements. Remain technically engaged enough to evaluate architectural decisions, development approaches, and engineering tradeoffs. Required Qualifications Five or more years of professional software development experience. At least two years of direct software team leadership or management experience. Demonstrated experience building a software development, AI, or engineering capability from the ground up. Experience defining team structure, recruiting developers, implementing engineering processes, and establishing technical standards. Proven experience managing developers, not solely serving as a senior individual contributor or technical lead. Experience owning team delivery, including prioritization, sprint planning, release management, deployment, and quality. Track record of taking internal applications, AI solutions, automation, or integrations from concept through production deployment. Demonstrated success driving user adoption and producing measurable business outcomes after launch. Experience delivering internal tools, web applications, operational software, data integrations, or ERP integrations. Strong experience with relational databases, SQL, REST APIs, system integrations, and application architecture. Current hands-on experience building and integrating AI agents and automation using LLM APIs, agent frameworks, tool or function calling, and retrieval. Experience introducing AI-assisted development tools and practices into engineering workflows. Ability to evaluate emerging AI technologies, identify practical solutions, and lead organizational adoption. Proven ability to recruit, develop, retain, and hold technical talent accountable for timelines and quality. Excellent communication skills with technical teams and nontechnical business leaders. Ability to build structure and operate effectively in a fast-moving environment with evolving priorities. Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience. Preferred Qualifications Experience building a software or AI engineering function within a manufacturing, industrial, or operationally complex organization. Experience delivering software that produced measurable improvements in productivity, operations, revenue, or cost. Experience deploying production-ready AI agents that achieved sustained adoption and supported real-world business processes. Experience introducing new development practices, platforms, or engineering standards across an organization. Why Join? Build and own the development and AI engineering function from the ground up. Define the team structure, delivery processes, technical standards, and roadmap. Develop applications and AI solutions that directly influence production and business operations. Hold a highly visible leadership role with significant opportunity for growth and influence. Apply emerging AI technology to practical business problems with measurable outcomes. Create the engineering foundation needed to support a rapidly growing organization. #J-18808-Ljbffr CornerStone Technology Talent Services