Director, Digital Engineering – AI & Commerce Platforms

kate spade new york•New York, NY

About The Position

The Director, Digital Engineering – AI & Commerce Platforms leads the design, delivery, and evolution of AI-enabled, cloud-native platforms on AWS, with ownership of DevOps and modern engineering practices and strong expertise in eCommerce and retail. This role partners with Brand, Digital, Product, and IT stakeholders to define and execute technology strategies that leverage AI, cloud, and automation to improve customer experience, operational efficiency, and speed to market. Responsibilities include AWS platform engineering, AI-enabled capabilities (e.g., personalization, search, chat agents, automation), CI/CD and DevOps practices, cloud security and governance, and performance optimization. The role also includes vendor management, SDLC governance, and ensuring delivery alignment across teams, along with leading regular operational and strategic reviews with engineering and business stakeholders.

Requirements

8+ years of experience in software or platform engineering, with 3+ years in leadership roles
Experience leading teams and working with cross-functional stakeholders and partners
Familiarity with DevOps and modern software delivery practices
Experience building and operating applications on AWS or similar cloud platforms
Solid understanding of backend systems, APIs, and distributed architectures
Exposure to microservices and cloud-native development
Experience supporting or integrating AI/ML capabilities in production environments
Familiarity with applying AI to customer experience or engineering productivity
Ability to align technology solutions with business goals
Experience supporting modernization or platform transformation initiatives
Understanding of eCommerce or retail environments, including digital customer experiences
Experience with AWS services (compute, storage, databases, APIs) and scalable system design
Familiarity with API-driven and modular architectures
Experience with CI/CD pipelines and infrastructure as code (e.g., Terraform, CloudFormation)
Awareness of cloud security, governance, and compliance best practices

Responsibilities

Lead the design and delivery of scalable systems, APIs, and microservices for customer-facing and enterprise platforms
Drive the development of next-generation, scalable, composable eCommerce platforms supporting omnichannel experiences
Build reusable platforms and services that accelerate product development
Promote best practices across architecture, coding standards, and CI/CD
Drive adoption of AI-powered capabilities, including Generative AI use cases such as personalization, search, and conversational experiences
Partner with data and analytics teams to integrate AI into products and workflows
Support deployment and continuous improvement of AI solutions in production
Guide modernization using cloud-native architectures, microservices, and event driven patterns
Define API-first integration patterns that enable scalable, flexible, and composable systems
Ensure platforms are modular and aligned with evolving business needs
Introduce tools and practices to improve engineering productivity, quality, and reliability
Promote DevOps best practices and continuous improvement across development and operations
Contribute to platform, AI, and composable commerce technology roadmap and innovation initiatives
Evaluate emerging technologies and support practical adoption
Lead and develop engineering teams, supporting hiring, growth, and a culture of accountability and learning