Staff AI and Productivity Engineer

Workiva Inc.•Ames, IA

1d•$129,000 - $207,000

About The Position

As a $1B publicly traded SaaS company operating in a rapidly evolving technology landscape, Workiva is seeking a Staff AI & Productivity Engineer to lead the design, deployment, and scaling of our enterprise AI capabilities. This role sits at the intersection of AI engineering and employee productivity, with a mission to make AI tools genuinely useful for the people of Workiva. You will serve as the lead technical practitioner for our AI and collaboration platforms, building intelligent integrations and automated workflows that measurably improve how employees work. You are a hands-on engineer with a product mindset, the technical depth to build at the code level, and the business instincts to prioritize what matters most.

Requirements

6+ years of experience in systems engineering, technical implementation, or a related engineering field within a high-growth SaaS environment
Practical experience implementing AI tools at the code level: API configuration, prompt engineering, and integrating LLMs into existing software ecosystems
Hands-on experience with MCP (Model Context Protocol) server development and deployment
Experience building production AI agents or agentic workflows using Claude, OpenAI, or Gemini APIs
Familiarity with enterprise security and governance requirements for AI tooling, including data classification and access controls
Strong proficiency in Python with deep understanding of REST APIs, webhooks, and modern integration patterns
Demonstrated experience building multi-step, logic-heavy automations using platforms like Workato or equivalent
Working knowledge of Google Workspace, Slack Enterprise, and Zoom administration and configuration

Nice To Haves

Experience in a technical product owner or platform engineering lead capacity
Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders
Ability to operate with direction from broad objectives, self-identifying technical gaps and building the solutions to close them
Technical writing experience and a track record of building institutional knowledge through documentation

Responsibilities

Build and operationalize AI-driven tools including custom Slack agents, automated knowledge-retrieval systems, and intelligent workflow triggers using Claude, Gemini, OpenAI, MCP servers, and related APIs
Configure and manage AI endpoints and LLM integrations directly, including MCP server development, prompt engineering, API configuration, and performance tuning
Move quickly from proof-of-concept to production-ready tooling, taking a hands-on approach to prototyping and rapid iteration
Partner with stakeholders across the company to uncover root-cause friction and engineer specific solutions that deliver long-term productivity value
Engineer and maintain integrations between enterprise systems using Workato and API-based automation, with a focus on AI-augmented workflows
Serve as subject matter expert for our productivity stack (Google Workspace, Slack, Zoom), performing advanced configuration and complex integration work
Architect technical guardrails and governance practices that balance enterprise security with a frictionless employee experience
Design modular, repeatable integration patterns that allow the environment to be managed with precision across global teams
Perform deep-dive technical audits of SaaS utilization to identify and execute cost optimization and system rationalization opportunities
Own the AI enablement product lifecycle alongside the product owner, including roadmap input, feature delivery, stakeholder communication, and vendor alignment
Provide technical mentorship and guidance to team members, championing AI-forward practices and upskilling the team on emerging tools and architectures