Director, Agentic Lab

Novartis AG; East Hanover (NJ); On-site; USD 195,000 - 361,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel up to 20%

Job summary

Novartis AG in East Hanover, NJ seeks a Director to lead the Agentic Lab, overseeing design, prototyping and validation of next-generation AI agents and autonomous workflows. You will evaluate emerging AI technologies, build reusable reference implementations, and partner with engineering teams to scale innovations into enterprise capabilities.

The role requires 7+ years in AI/ML or software engineering with technical leadership, hands-on experience with LLMs, agent frameworks, RAG, vector

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience building AI/ML or software engineering solutions with technical leadership experience.
• Hands-on expertise with LLMs, agent frameworks, RAG, vector databases, APIs, Python, and cloud-native development.
• Strong software engineering background with production-grade AI applications.
• Excellent communication and collaboration across research, engineering, and business teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead rapid prototyping and technical validation of agentic AI solutions and autonomous workflows.
• Evaluate foundation models, agent frameworks, orchestration technologies, and developer tooling.
• Develop reusable proof-of-concepts, accelerators, and reference implementations for the Agentic Factory.
• Partner with AI Engineering, Platform Engineering, Product, and Architecture teams to productionize successful prototypes.
• Define best practices for prompt engineering, reasoning strategies, memory architectures, evaluation, and observability.
• Contribute to enterprise standards, documentation, and reusable engineering patterns for AI agents.
• Mentor AI engineers and cultivate a culture of experimentation, innovation, and continuous learning.

Skills

LLMs

Agent frameworks

RAG

Vector databases

APIs

Python

Cloud-native development

Software engineering

Communication

Education

Bachelor's or advanced degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Engineering

Job description

Job Description Summary #LI-Hybrid

Reporting to the Executive Director, Agentic Architecture & Lab, the Director, Agentic Lab leads the design, prototyping, and validation of next‑generation AI agents and autonomous workflows. The role evaluates emerging AI technologies, develops reusable reference implementations, and partners with engineering teams to transition successful innovations into enterprise‑scale capabilities.

This position will be located at East Hanover site and will not have the ability to be located remotely. This position will require up to 20% travel as defined by the business (domestic and/ or international).

Please note that this role would not provide relocation, and only local candidates will be considered.

Job Description

Major Accountabilities

• Lead rapid prototyping and technical validation of agentic AI solutions and autonomous workflows.
• Evaluate foundation models, agent frameworks, orchestration technologies, and developer tooling.
• Develop reusable proof‑of‑conceptions, accelerators, and reference implementations for the Agentic Factory.
• Partner with AI Engineering, Platform Engineering, Product, and Architecture teams to productionize successful prototypes.
• Define best practices for prompt engineering, reasoning strategies, memory architectures, evaluation, and observability.
• Contribute to enterprise standards, documentation, and reusable engineering patterns for AI agents.
• Mentor AI engineers and cultivate a culture of experimentation, innovation, and continuous learning.

Essential Requirements:

• Education: Bachelor's or advanced degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 7+ years of experience building AI, machine learning, or software engineering solutions, including technical leadership experience.
• Hands‑on expertise with LLMs, agent frameworks, RAG, vector databases, APIs, Python, and cloud‑native development.
• Strong software engineering background with experience building production‑grade AI applications.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills with the ability to work across research, engineering, and business teams.

Desirable Requirements:

• Experience in pharmaceutical, healthcare, or other regulated industries.
• Experience building enterprise agentic AI platforms and developer ecosystems.

Novartis Compensation Summary:

The salary for this position is expected to range between $194,600 and $361,400 per year.

The final salary offered is determined based on factors like, but not limited to, relevant skills and experience, and upon joining Novartis will be reviewed periodically. Novartis may change the published salary range based on company and market factors.

Your compensation will include a performance‑based cash incentive and, depending on the level of the role, eligibility to be considered for annual equity awards.

US‑based eligible employees will receive a comprehensive benefits package that includes health, life and disability benefits, a 401(k) with company contribution and match, and a variety of other benefits. In addition, employees are eligible for a generous time off package including vacation, personal days, holidays and other leaves.

EEO Statement:

The Novartis Group of Companies are Equal Opportunity Employers. We do not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, promotion or other employment practices for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.

Accessibility and reasonable accommodations

The Novartis Group of Companies are committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or to perform the essential functions of a position, please send an e‑mail to [e-mail] or call [phone] and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. Please include the job requisition number in your message.

Salary Range

$194,600.00 - $361,400.00

Skills Desired

Artificial Intelligence (AI), Business Value Creation, Change Management, Curious Mindset, Data Governance, Data Literacy, Data Quality, Data Science, Data Visualization, Deep Learning, Learning Agility, Machine Learning (ML), Machine Learning Algorithms, Mentorship, Stakeholder Engagement, Statistical Analysis, Time Series Analysis