Role overview
**Lead Machine Learning Engineer (AI/ML Lead)**
**Type:** Fulltime or W2-Contract
**Location:** Onsite – Schaumburg, IL
**Required experience:** 10+ years
**Position Overview**
* We are seeking a **Lead Machine Learning Engineer** to spearhead the design, development, and deployment of AI/ML-driven solutions that enhance automation, insights, and decision-making across insurance operations.
* This role combines **hands-on machine learning expertise**, **leadership responsibilities**, and exposure to cutting-edge **GenAI and LLM-based frameworks**.
* The successful candidate will lead a small, high-performing team to research, prototype, and operationalize AI capabilities for real-world business use cases in underwriting, claims, and customer engagement.
**Key Responsibilities**
* **Research & Innovation:** Explore and implement **state-of-the-art AI/ML and GenAI techniques**, adapting them to business challenges within the insurance domain.
* **Model Development:** Build, train, and deploy **classical ML and deep learning (DL)** models using structured and unstructured data.
* **Domain Understanding:** Rapidly grasp new business domains and data ecosystems to design contextually relevant ML solutions.
* **GenAI & LLM Integration:** Experiment with and apply **Large Language Models (LLMs)**, **agentic AI frameworks**, and **generative models** for automation, NLP, and decision support use cases.
* **Team Leadership:** Guide and mentor a small team of data scientists and ML engineers; oversee project delivery from conception to production.
* **MLOps & Scalability:** Implement **best practices for MLOps**, version control, model governance, monitoring, and retraining pipelines.
* **Stakeholder Collaboration:** Partner with business and data engineering teams to ensure AI solutions are aligned with strategic objectives and scalable across the enterprise.
**Required Qualifications**
* **Education:** Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Machine Learning, or a related quantitative field.
* **Experience:** 8+ years in data science, machine learning, or AI solution delivery, with 3+ years in a technical leadership or lead role.
* Strong proficiency in **Python** and major ML/DL frameworks — **TensorFlow**, **PyTorch**, **Scikit-learn**, **XGBoost**, etc.
* Solid understanding of **ML algorithms**, **neural networks**, and **natural language processing (NLP)** concepts.
* Hands-on experience with **cloud-based ML platforms** (AWS SageMaker, Azure ML, or GCP Vertex AI).
* Exposure to **Generative AI**, **LLMs**, **LangChain**, **OpenAI**, or **agentic AI** frameworks.
* Familiarity with **data pipelines**, **feature stores**, and **model serving** using MLOps tools (MLflow, Kubeflow, or Airflow).
* Strong communication, collaboration, and stakeholder engagement skills.
**Preferred Skills**
* Background in **insurance, finance, or regulated industries** with data-heavy processes.
* Experience integrating AI solutions into **enterprise data warehouses** or **customer-facing applications**.
* Knowledge of **data privacy**, **AI ethics**, and **responsible AI practices**.
* Working familiarity with **Databricks**, **Snowflake**, or **Vector Databases (Pinecone, FAISS)**.
**Why Join?**
* Lead a skilled technical team and influence enterprise-level data and AI strategy.
* Collaborate in a fast-paced, forward-thinking environment with opportunities for extension and growth.
Job Types: Full-time, Contract
Benefits:
* 401(k)
* Dental insurance
* Health insurance
* Paid time off
* Vision insurance
Work Location: In person