AI Engineering Manager

Encova Insurance•Columbus, OH

23d•Hybrid

About The Position

Encova Insurance is seeking an AI Engineering Manager for a new role where you will be pivotal in shaping the organization’s AI strategy and delivering measurable business value. This hybrid role is based in Columbus, Ohio but we are open to well qualified candidates who could work a hybrid schedule from our Charleston, WV office as well. The AI Engineering Manager will build and lead a high-performing team responsible for designing, developing, and deploying AI solutions that drive meaningful business impact. This role combines deep technical expertise in machine learning and AI with strong people leadership, strategic thinking, and cross-functional partnership. You will guide the team in delivering scalable, reliable, secure, and responsible AI systems while shaping the organization’s long-term AI strategy. The AI Engineering Manager will work closely with key stakeholders to identify high-value AI opportunities and to plan, design, and oversee the delivery of secure AI capabilities that provide measurable business value.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field, required.
5+ years of experience in AI/ML engineering, with at least 2+ years in a technical leadership or people management role.
Proficiency in Python, ML frameworks, and modern LLM tooling.
Experience in designing GenAI solutions, with experience in MLOPS, LLM, AWS Bedrock, SageMaker, Snowflake Cortex is a plus.
Experience with LLM fine-tuning, vector databases, RAG architecture, and prompt engineering.
Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills, with the ability to design scalable solutions for complex business needs.
Ability to foster a sense of purpose among the team and create a culture of transparency with clear accountabilities and metrics
Demonstrated ability to foster a culture of innovation and a high-agency mindset
Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work across teams and with business stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Prior insurance industry experience is a plus

Responsibilities

Lead, mentor, and grow a team of AI/ML engineers, and MLOps specialists.
Create a culture of innovation, ownership, inclusivity, and excellence.
Provide technical leadership through code reviews, architectural guidance, hands-on problem solving, and the execution of proofs of concept (POCs).
Define the technical roadmap for AI initiatives aligned with business priorities.
Design and optimize end-to-end operational workflows by embedding automation, AI-driven workflow orchestration, intelligent decisioning, and continuous feedback loops to accelerate processes and reduce overall cycle times.
Oversee the development, deployment, and maintenance of machine learning models, LLM-based solutions, prompt Engineering, and AI-driven applications.
Ensure AI architectures are scalable, secure, and compliant with organizational and regulatory standards.
Drive adoption of best practices in AI/ML engineering, including versioning, testing, monitoring, CI/CD for ML, prompt design, and evaluation methodologies for LLMs.
Partner with product, engineering, data, and business stakeholders to identify and evaluate AI opportunities.
Collaborate with enterprise architecture, cybersecurity, compliance, governance, privacy, business, and IT teams to advocate for and align on AI strategies, standards, and best practices.
Communicate progress, risks, and results clearly to senior leadership.
Collaborate with cross-functional leaders to establish an AI governance framework, including standards and best practices for security, privacy, and observability.
Ensure model performance, reliability, and compliance with Encova’s policies and regulatory requirements.
Monitor and assess emerging data and AI threats, and design resilient architectures and controls to mitigate risks.
Championing the adoption of Data & AI best practices across teams.