Senior Machine Learning Engineering Manager, Ad Platforms

5014 Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC; Iowa (LA); Hybrid; USD 207,400 - 278,100; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Financial benefits

Potential bonuses

Job summary

5014 Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC is seeking a Senior Machine Learning Engineering Manager to lead the ML/AI team within Ad Platforms. The role includes overseeing the development of scalable AI/ML solutions that enhance advertising technology across Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in machine learning and data science, along with experience in people management and leading cross-functional teams. This position offers competitive salary and comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• 10+ years industry experience with at least 5 years in people-management.
• Proven ability to translate business problems into scalable ML solutions.
• Experience designing, building, deploying scalable machine learning models.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and guide senior ICs and engineering managers.
• Define strategic direction for machine learning projects.
• Drive best-practice adoption in model development and testing.

Skills

Machine Learning

Data Science

AI Techniques

Cloud Platforms

Python

Java

MLOps

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Statistics, or a related field

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

JAX

Hugging Face

Job description

Job Summary

Senior Machine Learning Engineering Manager – leading the ML/AI team within Ad Platforms, driving scalable AI/ML solutions to enhance Disney’s advertising technology across Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and guide senior ICs and engineering managers in data science, ML, and AI disciplines to deliver scalable solutions.
• Define strategic direction for machine learning projects in collaboration with product and engineering stakeholders.
• Drive best‑practice adoption in model development, code quality, testing, and documentation.
• Oversee the end‑to‑end ML workflow: data collection, model development, deployment, and monitoring.
• Foster innovation by exploring advanced ML techniques, tools, and technologies.
• Ensure responsible AI practices, including fairness, explainability, and compliance with privacy and ethical standards.
• Communicate strategies and results to leadership and cross‑functional teams.
• Participate in on‑call rotations per team escalation policy.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in computer science, engineering, mathematics, statistics, or a related field.
• 10+ years industry experience with at least 5 years in people‑management of senior ICs and managers.
• Proven ability to translate business problems into scalable ML and GenAI solutions.
• Experience designing, building, deploying scalable machine learning models and systems in production.
• Advanced programming proficiency (e.g., Python, Java) and experience with ML/DL frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, JAX, Hugging Face.
• Experience building, fine‑tuning, evaluating, and deploying LLM‑based systems (RAG, prompt engineering, model optimization).
• Strong knowledge of cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) and MLOps pipelines.
• Track record of leading global teams and collaborating across organizational boundaries.

Preferred Qualifications

• Domain knowledge in the Ad Tech industry.
• Experience working with large‑scale data and distributed systems.
• Knowledge of cloud platforms and MLOps pipelines.
• Track record of innovation and contributions to the ML/AI community (publications, talks, open source).

Benefits

• Base salary range: $207,400 – $278,100 (LosAngeles, CA) and $217,300 – $291,500 (Seattle, WA).
• Potential bonus and/or long‑term incentive units.
• Full range of medical, financial, and other benefits.

Location

Seattle, WA (primary); alternate location: LosAngeles, CA.