Operating Executive of AI & Software Engineering

Burtch Works; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 250,000 - 390,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive Salary

Bonus

Carry Participation

Job summary

Burtch Works is seeking an Operating Executive of AI & Software Engineering to join our portfolio at the fund level. The role blends strategic leadership with hands-on AI engineering, embedding within portfolio companies to scale AI adoption and move engineering toward advanced, agentic workflows.

Ideal candidates will have 10+ years leading software teams in B2B SaaS, with proven ability to recruit and guide elite engineers, and to communicate complex AI concepts to non-technical investors.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.
• 10+ years of progressive technical leadership leading software teams in B2B SaaS or multi-entity setups.
• Hands-on experience moving teams to production-grade AI frameworks and agentic workflows.

Responsibilities

• Establish and enforce standard AI development frameworks across portfolio companies.
• Train portco executives and teams on AI-enabled workflows and adoption.
• Lead forward-deployed engineering teams embedded in portcos to accelerate product development.
• Collaborate with operating executives and deal teams to align AI initiatives with playbooks and diligence.
• Drive product delivery velocity with CTOs and engineering leaders, improving speed and quality.
• Define and track KPIs related to AI adoption, automation, and engineering efficiency.

Skills

AI implementation

Team leadership

Strategic thinking

Stakeholder comms

Education

Bachelor's in CS/Engineering

MBA preferred

Tools

LLM orchestration

Cloud architecture

Job description

Job Title: Operating Executive, AI & Software Engineering

Location: Remote (occasional travel to portfolio companies)

About The Company

We are a growth-oriented private equity firm with a substantial base of Assets Under Management, built on a foundation of more than 100 years of collective technology and private equity experience. We identify attractive markets and products, partnering with exceptional management teams to help realize organic growth, and invest across the software and tech-enabled services ecosystem in fragmented, secularly growing sub-sectors with mission‑critical and defensible software and SaaS solutions. We are committed to five core values: Humility, Transparency, Collaboration, Mentorship, and Innovation, and operate as an integrated team of seasoned investors and operators who partner closely with management on strategic value creation.

Job Summary

We are looking for an Operating Executive of AI & Software Engineering to join our Operating Executive team at the fund level. The ideal candidate is a "business athlete": equal parts strategic executive and hands‑on technical practitioner, with deep AI/GenAI implementation expertise and the EQ to influence leadership at our portfolio companies. This role will involve building fund‑level playbooks for AI adoption, supporting pre‑acquisition diligence, and leading a forward‑deployed engineering team that embeds directly within portfolio companies to move their engineering organizations from basic assistive AI into advanced, agentic workflows.

Key Responsibilities

• Implement Standard AI Methodologies: Establish, scale, and enforce standard AI development frameworks across the portfolio, transitioning engineering teams from assistive AI to highly productive agentic workflows. Success looks like a consistent, repeatable AI framework adopted across portfolio companies.
• Train Portco Executives and Functional Teams: Execute AI enablement workshops and train select executives and functional teams at portfolio companies to build, maintain, and evolve agentic workflows. Success looks like portco teams operating these workflows independently.
• Build & Lead the Forward‑Deployed Engineering Team: Recruit, mentor, and orchestrate a fund‑level team of forward‑deployed engineers, embedding them within portcos to implement AI strategies and accelerate product development. Success looks like a high‑performing team that leaves each portco self‑sufficient.
• Collaborate with Operating Executives and Deal Teams: Partner with existing fund‑level operating executives to align AI initiatives with established playbooks for cloud architecture and data maturity, and work with deal teams during diligence and value creation. Success looks like AI strategy fully integrated into the firm's broader playbooks.
• Drive Product Delivery Velocity: Work directly with portco CTOs and engineering leaders to ensure AI adoption translates into measurable improvements in software quality, developer productivity, and time‑to‑market. Success looks like measurable gains in shipping speed and product quality.
• Quantify AI Return on Investment: Define and track KPIs related to AI adoption, workflow automation, and engineering efficiency, providing clear visibility to leadership. Success looks like a reliable reporting framework leadership can act on.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field. MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• Experience: 10+ years of progressive technical leadership, including a proven track record leading high‑performance software engineering teams and delivering complex, scalable products in a B2B SaaS or multi‑entity environment.
• Technical Skills: Practical, hands‑on experience moving software teams beyond simple code‑assist tools into production‑grade AI frameworks, agentic workflows, and LLM orchestration; demonstrated success recruiting, scaling, and managing elite, agile engineering teams (e.g., specialized R&D, architecture, or forward‑deployed engineering pod teams); ability to do the work and, in critical cases, produce shippable output directly.
• Other: Willingness to travel occasionally to portfolio companies; comfort with ambiguity and a consultative mindset when working with portco executives and CEOs; excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain complex AI and engineering concepts to non‑technical investment partners and institutional stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

Prior experience operating within a private equity framework or a top‑tier technology consulting firm; exposure to rapid operational scaling environments driven by intensive product development; an MBA or advanced degree at the intersection of business and computer science.

Benefits

• Competitive Salary, Bonus, Carry Participation
• Work-Life Balance: Remote with up to 50% travel