Director, AI & Automation

Crescent Energy•Houston, TX

About The Position

Crescent is a differentiated U.S. energy company committed to delivering value through a disciplined, returns-driven growth through acquisition strategy and consistent return of capital. Our long-life, balanced portfolio combines stable cash flows from low-decline production with a deep, high-quality development inventory. Crescent is a top three producer (by gross operated production) in the Eagle Ford basin. Crescent’s leadership is an experienced team of investment, financial and industry professionals that combines proven investment and operating expertise. For more than a decade, Crescent and our predecessors have executed on a consistent strategy focused on cash flow, risk management and returns. Through disciplined and accretive investments, we have successfully tripled the size of our company since going public in December 2021 while maintaining a strong balance sheet. The Director of AI & Automation is a strategic and hands-on leader responsible for defining, building, and scaling the enterprise AI and automation capability. This role will drive the adoption of Generative AI, workflow automation, and intelligent systems to improve productivity, decision-making, and operational efficiency across the organization. This leader will establish and lead a high-performing team of AI / Automation Engineers, embedding them within business functions to identify and deliver high-impact use cases. The role blends strategy, engineering leadership, and business partnership to ensure AI is deployed safely, pragmatically, and at scale. The ideal candidate brings deep experience with GPT-based technologies, automation platforms, and enterprise integrations, combined with a strong ability to translate business problems into deployable AI-enabled solutions. This individual will play a critical role in accelerating the company’s journey toward becoming a technology-enabled, automation-first enterprise.

Requirements

Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or related field. Equivalent practical experience will be considered.
Experience: 8+ years of experience in software engineering, automation, data engineering, or AI-related roles.
3+ years in leadership roles managing technical teams and delivering enterprise-scale solutions.
Hands-on experience with GPT-based platforms (OpenAI or equivalent) and prompt engineering.
Proven track record deploying AI and automation solutions in real business environments.
Technical Skills: Strong experience with APIs, Python and/or JavaScript, and system integrations.
Familiarity with workflow automation platforms (e.g., Power Automate, UiPath, serverless orchestration).
Experience integrating AI solutions with enterprise data platforms (e.g., Snowflake).
Understanding of secure architecture, identity, and access management.
Skills & Competencies: Strong ability to partner directly with business users, quickly build trust, and deeply understand how work actually gets done.
Equally comfortable writing code and sitting with users to map workflows, ask good questions, and iterate on solutions.
Bias toward action and simplification. Focused on removing friction rather than adding tooling.
Ability to move between high-level problem framing and low-level implementation details without losing momentum.
Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts and AI limitations in plain language.

Nice To Haves

Experience in upstream oil & gas or similar industrial environments strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

AI Strategy & Enterprise Enablement Define and execute the enterprise AI and automation strategy aligned with business priorities and digital transformation goals.
Identify high-value use cases across operations, engineering, finance, land, regulatory, and corporate functions.
Establish a scalable operating model for AI adoption, balancing centralized governance with embedded delivery.
Drive awareness, education, and adoption of AI tools across the organization.
AI Engineering & Solution Delivery Oversee the design, development, and deployment of GPT-based tools, assistants, and automation solutions.
Ensure solutions are production-grade, secure, scalable, and aligned with enterprise architecture standards.
Standardize reusable components including prompt frameworks, API integrations, and workflow patterns.
Guide the team in translating ambiguous business problems into structured, technical solutions.
Workflow Automation & Orchestration Lead the development of end-to-end automated workflows combining AI, enterprise data, and business logic.
Promote automation-first thinking across the organization, reducing manual and repetitive work.
Ensure solutions are resilient, observable, and maintainable with proper logging, monitoring, and controls.
Governance, Risk & Responsible AI Establish governance frameworks for AI usage, including security, privacy, and model risk management.
Partner with Cybersecurity and GRC teams to ensure compliant and secure deployment of AI technologies.
Define guardrails for prompt usage, data handling, and model outputs to ensure safe and responsible AI adoption.
Business Partnership & Delivery Model Build strong relationships with business leaders to understand workflows and prioritize automation opportunities.
Establish an embedded delivery model where AI engineers work directly with business teams.
Drive rapid prototyping, iteration, and continuous improvement based on user feedback.
Leadership & Team Development Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing team of AI / Automation Engineers.
Foster a culture of innovation, accountability, and bias toward action.
Define team standards, development practices, and career progression paths.
Attract and retain top talent in AI, automation, and applied engineering disciplines.