Automation & AI Lead

Automation & AI Lead

3-6 Month Contract-to-Hire

Hybrid in St. Louis ideally (can be 1 day in week or 1 day in month)

Ideally US Citizen or Green Card

Rate:- OPEN

Hands-on Automation & AI Lead with expertise in Agentic AI, Claude/OpenAI LLMs, Databricks AI, Python, Azure cloud, RPA tools, API integrations, and enterprise AI solution delivery with team leadership experience.

Top 3 Skills/Must Haves (can you provide any screening questions?)

Someone deploying AI solutions. Work hand in hand with the AI Director - hands on technically and people lead.

Claude, Databricks, Python, LLM's, DatabricksAI - this would be a huge plus. AgenticAI would be another

Automation & AI Lead

About the Opportunity

Our client is seeking an experienced Automation & AI Lead to drive enterprise-wide intelligent automation and AI initiatives.

Why This Role Stands Out

The Automation & AI Lead is a hands-on technical leadership role responsible for architecting, building, and scaling the company's intelligent automation and agentic AI capabilities.

This is not a strategy-only leadership position. You will lead a team of Automation and AI practitioners while remaining deeply involved in solution delivery—designing multi-step agentic workflows, building AI coworker solutions, and integrating intelligent automation across enterprise platforms including Azure and Databricks .

As a true player-coach, you will:

Own the technical vision for Automation and AI

Lead and mentor a growing team of engineers

Design and deploy real-world AI and automation solutions

Drive enterprise adoption across multiple business functions

Build scalable agentic AI capabilities that deliver measurable business impact

This is a unique opportunity to help shape the future of AI within a large, technology-forward organization while remaining hands-on with architecture, development, and implementation.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership & Strategy

Lead, mentor, and develop a team of Automation and AI Engineers

Establish and execute the Automation & AI roadmap

Partner with executive and business stakeholders to identify high-impact AI opportunities

Create governance frameworks, standards, and best practices for AI and automation initiatives

Agentic AI & Intelligent Automation

Design and implement agentic AI workflows utilizing LLMs, multi-step reasoning, tool use, and autonomous decision-making

Build AI coworker solutions and intelligent agents integrated with enterprise systems

Develop end-to-end automation solutions using Python, Power Automate, and RPA platforms

Apply advanced prompt engineering techniques to optimize AI performance, reliability, and adoption

Data, Platforms & Integration

Design and manage API integrations and data pipelines across enterprise applications

Leverage Azure and Databricks to support AI, automation, analytics, and workflow orchestration

Ensure solutions are secure, scalable, and aligned with responsible AI and data governance standards

Required Qualifications

7+ years of hands-on experience in Automation, AI/ML, Software Engineering, or related disciplines

3+ years of experience leading technical teams or enterprise initiatives

Strong proficiency with Python and enterprise automation development

Experience with RPA platforms such as UiPath, Automation Anywhere, or Blue Prism

Hands-on experience building solutions using LLMs and agentic AI frameworks

Experience with Microsoft Azure services and cloud-based architectures

Strong background in APIs, system integrations, and data pipelines

Proven ability to translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions and communicate effectively with executive stakeholders

Preferred Qualifications

• Databricks experience (Lakehouse, Delta Lake, AI/ML pipelines)

• Microsoft Power Platform experience

• Construction, engineering, manufacturing, or project-based industry experience

• AI governance, compliance, and responsible AI experience

• Azure AI, Power Platform, Databricks, or RPA certifications

• Technology Stack

• AI & LLMs: Claude, OpenAI, Azure OpenAI, Agentic AI Frameworks

• Cloud: Microsoft Azure (Azure AI, Azure Functions, Logic Apps, Data Factory)

• Data & Analytics: Databricks, SQL, Delta Lake, Synapse, Power BI, PySpark

• Automation: Python, Power Automate, UiPath, Automation Anywhere, Blue Prism

• Integration: REST APIs, Azure API Management, ERP Integrations, Database Pipelines