AI Forward Engineering Lead - Client-Embedded, Hands-On

EY; City of Rochester (NY); Hybrid; USD 126,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Competitive compensation package

Paid time off

Job summary

EY is seeking a Lead Forward Deployed Engineer to own end-to-end delivery of AI‑native systems within a single client engagement. You’ll act as the technical authority, guiding a small cell and embedding with the client to translate business needs into secure, production‑grade solutions.

You’ll lead a hands‑on, senior team focused on achieving outcomes in regulated environments, balancing tradeoffs, and communicating clearly with technical and executive stakeholders.

Qualifications

• 8+ years delivering complex enterprise systems, ideally in regulated or client‑facing contexts.
• Hands‑on engineering depth across integration‑heavy architectures, cloud platforms, and distributed systems.
• Experience with modern AI‑enabled application stacks (e.g., agentic systems, orchestration frameworks, LLM‑backed services).
• Proven ability to operate in forward‑deployed, customer‑facing, or solutions‑architecture roles, owning outcomes end to end.
• Demonstrated ability to lead a small technical team while remaining an individual contributor.
• Strong stakeholder‑management skills, including managing client expectations under pressure.
• Solid understanding of software delivery lifecycle, quality gates, and production readiness in enterprise settings.

Responsibilities

• Own end‑to‑end outcome delivery for the cell, including scoping, tradeoffs, technical direction, and production readiness.
• Embed directly with the client to define the real problem and translate ambiguous business needs into an executable technical solution.
• Serve as the primary technical interface and trusted advisor to client stakeholders, managing expectations and tradeoffs.
• Stay hands‑on, designing and building critical parts of the solution and diving into client systems as needed.
• Deploy, adapt, and stabilize solutions in the client environment with release readiness and runtime accountability.
• Direct the work of the cell’s Implementation Engineer and Data Engineer to ensure coherent, production‑grade outcomes.
• Ensure deployments meet safety, integrity, and cost constraints, partnering with control authorities.

Skills

Outcome ownership

Client presence

Hands-on engineering

Technical judgment

Communication skills

Autonomy

Regulatory awareness

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Cloud platforms

Orchestration frameworks

LLM-backed services

Job description

EY is seeking a Lead Forward Deployed Engineer to own end-to-end delivery of AI‑native systems within a single client engagement. You’ll act as the technical authority, guiding a small cell and embedding with the client to translate business needs into secure, production‑grade solutions.

You’ll lead a hands‑on, senior team focused on achieving outcomes in regulated environments, balancing tradeoffs, and communicating clearly with technical and executive stakeholders.