Associate Director, Product Software Engineering - AI

*** This is a hybrid position requiring 8 days per month at an approved Wolters Kluwer location. ​***

We're looking for an Associate Software Director - AI to join InnovateHub, our startup-within-the-enterprise that co-designs AI solutions with customers across Wolters Kluwer's Tax and Accounting product portfolio. You'll help build teams and cutting-edge AI features that transform how accounting professionals work, focusing on real customer problems rather than technology-first solutions.

InnovateHub operates with close collaboration between engineers and product managers—engineers deeply understand business problems while product managers can prototype their own ideas. We work in fast feedback cycles, obsess over customer value, and blur traditional role boundaries to focus on solving the right problems. We practice Agile and XP methodologies with weekly sprints, BDD/TDD practices, and pair programming with daily rotation to support high team cohesion and knowledge sharing.

This role is ideal for someone who lives at the intersection of hands-on technical work and strategic leadership; you’ll architect solutions, write code, mentor engineers, establish organizational AI capabilities, and co-design with customers to solve real problems in the tax and accounting domain.

Key Responsibilities:

Major Initiative Ownership:

• Lead end-to-end delivery of complex AI products from concept to production, measured in weeks not quarters.
• Drive technical strategy for initiatives, make rapid architecture decisions, and coordinate execution across engineering teams.

Hands-On Technical Leadership:

• Design and implement AI features using Python, TypeScript, and modern frameworks for document intelligence, RAG systems, and agentic platforms within CCH Axcess.
• Lead 1-2 technical workstreams or cross-functional initiatives from concept to production.
• Make architectural decisions balancing technical excellence with compliance requirements.
• Mentor Lead and Senior Engineers through pair programming, code reviews, and architectural guidance.
• Establish technical standards, reusable infrastructure, and development frameworks that accelerate team velocity.

Customer Co-Design:

• Lead customer sessions for early access programs and technical validation with accounting firms.
• Ship production-ready software through rapid feedback cycles, focusing on measurable business value.
• Present technical solutions to customers and executive stakeholders.

Requirements:

Technical Leadership:

• 7+ years building software applications (experience with Python, JavaScript/TypeScript preferred) and cloud-native architectures (Azure preferred)
• 1+ years hands-on experience with LLMs or AI systems (NLP preferred)
• Full-stack development capabilities with focus on modern frameworks and cloud services
• Experience with Agile/XP practices including TDD/BDD and pair programming
• Proficiency with AI coding tools (GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or similar)

AI/ML Experience:

• Experience with LLM platforms: LangChain, LangGraph, OpenAI APIs, Azure OpenAI
• Experience with RAG architectures, vector databases, embeddings, and semantic search

• Experience with MLOps practices and AI system monitoring

Organizational Impact:

• Experience building capabilities that scale beyond immediate team (training, standards, frameworks)
• Strong mentorship capabilities and collaborative engineering culture building

• Excellent communication – explain complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders and drive adoption across teams

Compliance & Domain Knowledge:

• Experience with AI governance and compliance frameworks for sensitive data
• Understanding of data security, privacy regulations, and audit controls
• Background in document processing, financial data analysis, or B2B professional software

Preferred Qualifications:

• Microsoft Azure AI-102 certification is highly desired - our team is 100% certified and we value this demonstration of Azure AI expertise
• Experience with Azure AI services, advanced AI frameworks, or multi-modal AI systems
• Background in dynamic environments like startups, innovation teams, or product-focused companies that prioritize customer co-design and rapid value delivery
• Experience with document processing, financial data analysis, or B2B professional software
• Track record building training programs or champion networks that drove organizational adoption
• Published technical papers or recognized thought leadership in AI/ML

We encourage applications from candidates with diverse backgrounds who have strong technical skills, project leadership experience, and can adapt quickly to new challenges in a customer-focused, innovation-driven environment.

Our Culture:
At Wolters Kluwer, our core values—Focus on Customer Success, Make it Better, Aim High and Deliver, and Win as a Team—guide everything we do. We are committed to driving success for our customers by delivering innovative solutions that exceed expectations. We continually strive to improve our processes and products, aiming for excellence in all our efforts. Collaboration and teamwork are central to our culture, enabling us to achieve great results together.

To maintain a fair and genuine hiring process, we kindly ask that all candidates participate in interviews without the assistance of AI tools or external prompts. Our interview process is designed to assess your individual skills, experiences, and communication style. We value authenticity and want to ensure we’re getting to know you—not a digital assistant. To help maintain this integrity, we ask to remove virtual backgrounds and include in-person interviews in our hiring process. Please note that use of AI-generated responses or third-party support during interviews will be grounds for disqualification from the recruitment process.

Applicants may be required to appear onsite at a Wolters Kluwer office as part of the recruitment process.

Compensation: