Job Description
Staff AI/ML Full Stack Engineer Lead Normal, IL (Hybrid--2 days)
Duration:
initial 12-month contract Pay:
$70-75/hr We are looking for a Staff AI/ML full Stack Engineer Lead to drive the architecture, design, and delivery of enterprise-scale, high-performance applications. This role blends deep hands-on engineering with strategic architectural leadership. Key Responsibilities Architecture & Technical Leadership Define system architecture, integration patterns, and engineering standards for large-scale applications Design end-to-end AI/ML systems, from data ingestion through model deployment Establish best practices for scalable, distributed, and maintainable systems Full-Stack Engineering Develop and maintain modern applications using frameworks such as React, Vue, Angular, or Streamlit Build backend services using Python, Golang, or Rust Design and implement robust APIs (REST and GraphQL) for internal and external integrations Cloud & Infrastructure Architect and deploy cloud-native solutions using AWS and Databricks Build and manage containerized environments using Docker and Kubernetes Lead infrastructure design with a focus on scalability, security, and performance DevOps & MLOps Implement CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and infrastructure-as-code (e.g., Terraform, Pulumi) Design and manage MLOps frameworks, including model monitoring, retraining, and lifecycle management Develop agentic AI pipelines and enable collaborative model development workflows AI/ML System Development Design and deploy traditional ML, deep learning, and LLM-based applications Build RAG pipelines, embedding workflows, and integrate vector databases Define best practices for model serving, data pipelines, and production AI systems Data & Database Engineering Lead database selection, design, and deployment strategies Ensure efficient, scalable, and secure data architectures Performance & Optimization Drive system performance improvements, including load balancing and optimization strategies Collaboration & Mentorship Mentor engineers and conduct design/code reviews Partner with cross-functional teams to deliver business-aligned solutions Qualifications Required Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field 10+ years of experience delivering enterprise-grade, cloud-based solutions 5+ years of hands-on experience in software development and cloud-based MLOps Proven experience with AWS and Databricks for AI/ML deployments Strong software engineering skills in Python, with experience in APIs, microservices, and distributed systems Experience building and deploying end-to-end AI/ML systems, including traditional ML and RAG-based applications Expertise in LLMs, embeddings, and modern AI frameworks Hands-on experience with Docker and Kubernetes Strong understanding of CI/CD pipelines and production-grade model monitoring Experience designing scalable data pipelines and distributed architectures Ability to architect reusable AI/ML pipelines and frameworks for team-wide adoption Preferred Experience with event-driven architectures and messaging systems (e.g., Kafka, NATS, RabbitMQ) Familiarity with authentication and authorization frameworks (OAuth2, JWT, SSO) Experience with observability tools (Prometheus, Grafana, OpenTelemetry) Background in building large-scale enterprise or SaaS platforms Proficiency in Golang and/or Rust Experience in manufacturing, predictive maintenance, or industrial systems Background in controls engineering ...
