AI Engineering Manager

We’re seeking an experienced AI Engineering Manager to lead the design, development, and operational excellence of scalable AI solutions in a well-known Kiwi enterprise. This is a key leadership role with direct management responsibility for a team of four (2 x Senior AI Engineers, 1x Mid-level AI Engineer, and 1 x MLOps Engineer). About the RoleReporting to the Senior Manager of Engineering and Architecture, you will lead and develop a high-performing AI engineering team that delivers production-grade AI/ML and Generative AI systems on modern cloud platforms (Azure, Databricks Lakehouse). You will set the technical direction, drive engineering standards and maturity, and ensure the team consistently delivers high-impact solutions that embed intelligence into business workflows, decision-making, and customer experiences. Key Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and mentor a team of AI Engineers -setting clear expectations, developing capability, managing performance, and fostering a culture of engineering excellence.
• Provide technical leadership and direction across the full AI lifecycle: data preparation, model training, MLOps (CI/CD, monitoring, governance), and production operations.
• Drive the design, deployment, and optimisation of scalable, secure AI/ML and GenAI solutions (including RAG, vector search, prompt orchestration, and enterprise integrations).
• Partner with Data Science, Engineering, Architecture, and business stakeholders to translate opportunities into prioritised roadmaps and measurable outcomes.
• Establish and continuously improve MLOps maturity, reusable frameworks/accelerators, and alignment with security, governance, and responsible AI standards.
• Stay ahead of emerging AI technologies and guide the team on their safe, practical adoption.
• Act as a visible leader who articulates AI value to the business and drives transformation in areas such as asset management, trading/portfolio, finance, and customer interactions (e.g. reducing contact-centre pressure through intelligent automation). Strong focus on value delivery and ROI in a cost-conscious environment.

This role combines people leadership with hands-on technical direction. You will spend significant time developing your team while remaining close enough to the technology to guide architecture and delivery quality.

What You’ll Bring (Essential)

• Proven people-leadership experience managing and mentoring technical teams (ideally AI/ML or data engineering), including performance management, capability uplift, and delivery of cross-functional initiatives.
• Significant hands-on experience designing, deploying, and maintaining production-grade AI systems, with strong focus on Generative AI/LLMs (Azure OpenAI, RAG, vector search, etc.).
• Deep expertise with Databricks Lakehouse (Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, MLflow) and Azure cloud environments.
• Strong full-stack data/AI engineering background, CI/CD pipelines, MLOps practices, and the ability to bridge technical and business perspectives.
• Tertiary qualification or equivalent industry experience.

Preferred

• Experience in energy/utilities or complex operational domains.
• Cloud certifications (Azure/AWS/GCP) and AI/ML leadership credentials.
• Background in establishing AI governance and platform standards.

On Offer: Highly competitive salary package + benefits, flexible hybrid working, Auckland CBD offices, strong career progression potential, and the opportunity to lead a very capable team during a major period of AI-driven transformation.

Interested? If you are a credible AI leader ready to take the next step, apply now. For more information, please contact Joe on 0204226741.