Job Description:

Reporting to the CEO, the Chief AI and Technology Officer will bring deep expertise in technology alliances/partnerships, software engineering, modern data architecture, and applied AI systems. The role is primarily focused on service line innovation, AI strategy, and the development of a service-line-focused AI architecture that enables scalable, agentic automation within and across service offerings.

This role centers on externally differentiated, market-facing capabilities - ensuring Baker Tilly's service lines are powered by modern, AI-native technology products that enhance client value, increase productivity, and strengthen competitive positioning.

Primary Responsibilities

1. Accelerate AI innovation across service lines by building a strong Product, AI and Engineering team that continuously innovates with the dynamic changes in the market.

2. Oversee the technology product portfolio across all service lines.

3. Define and execute the Service Line AI strategy to envisage the AI Solutions that will win for Baker Tilly and create differentiated market advantage.

4. Build and scale an Enterprise AI architecture and platform.

5. Establish disciplined product and engineering practices across service-line technology teams.

Required Experience

- 15+ years of progressive leadership in technology product management and engineering.

- Deep expertise in modern software engineering, data engineering, and AI systems architecture.

- Demonstrated experience building large-scale AI platforms deployed in complex operating environments (including MLOps, LLMOps, orchestration layers, and agent frameworks).

- Experience leading AI labs or structured R&D environments.

- Direct experience working with leading AI model providers, generative AI and research labs (e.g., OpenAI, Anthropic, or comparable frontier AI organizations), including model evaluation, integration, and co-development.

- Proven ability to scale technology products across complex, matrixed organizations.

- Experience in professional services, SaaS, fintech, or data-intensive environments preferred.

- Experience operating in PE-backed or investor-accountable environments strongly preferred.

Technical Competencies

- Cloud-native architecture and distributed systems design.

- Modern data platforms (lakehouse architectures, real-time data pipelines, feature stores).

- Applied AI systems including generative AI, agentic frameworks, and automation architectures.

- API-first and platform engineering approaches.

- Security, compliance, and responsible AI integration into production systems.

Leadership Attributes

- Product-oriented mindset with strong commercial acumen.

- Deep technical credibility with engineers and architects.

- Strategic thinker capable of translating AI potential into scalable platforms.

- Decisive operator with disciplined execution focus.

- Effective communicator capable of articulating complex technical concepts to executive stakeholders.

Success Metrics

- Adoption and impact of AI-enabled service-line products.

- Revenue growth or margin expansion attributable to AI initiatives.

- Reduction in time from concept to scaled deployment.

- Engineering maturity improvements across service lines.

- Stakeholder confidence in product investment discipline and value realization.