Scotiabank

Principal AI Solutions Engineer

Scotiabank • $130K — $180K *
Toronto, ON M3C 0E3In-Person
Enterprise Technology
8 - 10 years of experience
Today
Be an Early Applicant
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 10+ years in software engineering, solutions architecture, or AI/ML engineering, with 5+ years in enterprise AI systems architecture.
  • Proven track record of turning complex business problems into implemented AI solutions across large teams.
  • Expertise in GenAI and agentic AI, especially on platforms like Vertex AI and Azure Databricks.
  • Experience collaborating with executives, translating technical concepts into business value.
  • Deep understanding of regulatory requirements influencing AI design in financial services.
  • Demonstrated ability in designing AI solution evaluation programs and metrics frameworks.
  • Outstanding technical communication skills for both technical teams and non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

  • Own solution architecture for complex AI engagements across Scotiabank's business lines.
  • Create reference libraries including solution patterns and integration blueprints.
  • Lead discovery and design for strategic AI programs with business owners and experts.
  • Define and maintain an AI solution adoption playbook for business line teams.
  • Engage with Principal Engineers and CTOs to govern cross-functional AI solutions.
  • Lead proof-of-concept initiatives and make production recommendations.
  • Establish and uphold AI solution quality standards across the function.
  • Mentor junior engineers to enhance the overall capability of the team.
  • Represent AI and Agentic Engineering externally at forums and industry standards bodies.

Benefits

  • Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Allyship for a welcoming workplace.
  • Accessibility accommodations ensuring an inclusive environment.
  • Opportunities for professional upskilling through courses and development programs.
  • Competitive Rewards program with bonuses and flexible vacation policies.
  • Dynamic work environment with collaborative spaces and amenities.
  • Engagement in community initiatives and programs fostering belonging.
Full Job Description
Requisition ID: 267796

The Principal AI Solutions Engineer is the function-wide technical authority for how GenAI and agentic AI capabilities from the enterprise AI Platform are translated into production-grade solutions across Scotiabank's business lines - retail banking, commercial banking, wealth management, and enterprise shared services. They own end-to-end solution architecture for the most complex, high-value AI engagements, authoring reference solution patterns, integration blueprints, and adoption playbooks that squads and business unit teams implement when deploying capabilities from the GCP AI Platform (Vertex AI, Vertex AI Agent Engine, Apigee X LLM Router, MCP Control Gateway, Model Armor) and the Azure Databricks ML Platform. This role engages as a technical peer with Principal AI and ML Engineers, business unit CTOs, and the Chief AI Officer's office - shaping how AI platform capabilities are surfaced, governed, and scaled across the enterprise - and is accountable for technical quality across the most strategically significant AI solution programmes in AI and Agentic Engineering.

Is this role right for you? In this role, you will:

  • Own end-to-end solution architecture for the highest-complexity, highest-business-value AI engagements across Scotiabank's business lines - including multi-agent agentic solutions built on Vertex AI Agent Engine and Google ADK / LangGraph, RAG solutions spanning Vertex AI Vector Search and Mosaic AI Vector Search, LLM-powered automation integrated through the Apigee X LLM Router, and ML-assisted decision systems on the Azure Databricks ML Platform - from discovery through to production deployment inside the Montreal walled garden.
  • Author the function-wide AI solutions reference library: canonical solution patterns, integration blueprints, and architectural decision records for recurring AI use-case categories - conversational AI, document intelligence, agentic workflow automation, real-time recommendation, risk signal generation - written at the precision required for squads to implement without ambiguity and at the clarity required for business unit CTOs to approve.
  • Lead technical discovery and solution design for strategic AI programmes - partnering with business unit product owners and domain experts to translate ambiguous business problems into structured AI solution designs with explicit feasibility, regulatory risk, data dependency, and platform integration assessments before a squad commits to delivery.
  • Define and own the AI solution adoption playbook for business line teams: onboarding architecture for Vertex AI Agent Engine and Agentspace, integration patterns for the MCP Control Gateway's tool ecosystem, data access and data sharing patterns compliant with PIPEDA and Quebec Law 25, model selection guidance for Gemini, Claude, GPT-5.x (via APIM), and open-weights (Llama), and the solution-tier controls framework that separates dev-built, business-user-built, and agent-built AI in production.
  • Engage as a technical peer with Principal AI and ML Engineers, Enterprise Architecture, and the Chief AI Officer's office in cross-function solution governance forums - providing authoritative technical positions on how platform capabilities are exposed to business lines, influencing the AI Platform roadmap based on aggregate solution demand signals, and translating OSFI E-23, OSFI B-13, OSFI B-10, PIPEDA, AIDA, and Quebec Law 25 requirements into solution-layer controls embedded in adoption playbooks.
  • Lead proof-of-concept and technical validation programmes for strategic AI use cases - designing evaluation methodology, authoring evaluation frameworks using Mosaic AI Agent Evaluation and Vertex AI Evaluation, interpreting results with business stakeholders, and making the go/no-go production recommendation with a concrete technical risk register.
  • Own function-wide AI solution quality standards: define the solution-layer quality bar that sits above squad-level engineering standards - minimum evaluation coverage, responsible AI instrumentation via Model Armor and Sensitive Data Protection, Azure AI Content Safety + Prompt Shields, explainability requirements for model-assisted decisions in regulated product lines, and the audit evidence packaging required for OSFI E-23 model risk management review.
  • Identify systemic solution delivery friction - integration complexity, data access blockers, regulatory ambiguity, platform capability gaps - and drive resolution through platform roadmap influence, architecture standard updates, or direct co-design with the AI Platform engineering team; produce the gap analysis that informs the function's quarterly platform investment decisions.
  • Mentor Senior and Staff AI Solutions Engineers and cross-functional embedded technical leads: conduct solution architecture reviews, develop engineers toward independent solution leadership on complex engagements, and raise the function-wide AI solution delivery capability.
  • Represent AI and Agentic Engineering's solution delivery capability externally: present at industry forums on enterprise AI adoption patterns, contribute to responsible AI and financial services AI standards bodies, and build Scotiabank's credibility as a reference architecture in enterprise AI at scale.


Do you have the skills that will enable you to succeed in this role? We'd love to work with you if you have:

  • 10+ years of software engineering, solutions architecture, or AI/ML engineering experience, with at least 5 years leading solution architecture for production AI systems at enterprise scale - owning technical outcomes across multiple business lines or customer segments, not internal platform components only.
  • A demonstrable track record of translating ambiguous, high-stakes business problems into production AI systems - reference solution patterns, integration blueprints, or adoption playbooks adopted and implemented by engineering teams across 30+ engineers or multiple business units, with demonstrated business outcomes.
  • Mastery of the enterprise GenAI and agentic AI solution stack: multi-agent system design on Vertex AI Agent Engine and Google ADK / LangGraph (including the deep agents harness), RAG architecture spanning Vertex AI Vector Search and Mosaic AI Vector Search, LLM integration through Apigee X and Azure APIM, MCP tool ecosystem design via the MCP Control Gateway, and the three-pillar agent model (dev-built, business-user-built via Agentspace and Genie, agent-built) - at the depth required to resolve solution design ambiguity without escalation.
  • Proven ability to engage at VP and C-suite level: framing technical solution trade-offs in business value terms, presenting architecture positions under regulatory scrutiny, and influencing investment decisions by translating aggregate solution demand into platform roadmap requirements.
  • Deep fluency in the regulatory constraints that shape AI solution design in a federally regulated Canadian financial institution: OSFI E-23 model risk management requirements for model validation, approval, and monitoring; OSFI B-13 technology and cyber risk implications for agentic systems; OSFI B-10 third-party risk controls at the LLM vendor interface; PIPEDA, AIDA, and Quebec Law 25 data residency and consent obligations - and the practical experience embedding these as solution-layer architecture controls, not documentation-only compliance artefacts.
  • Track record of designing and executing AI solution evaluation programmes: LLM evaluation harness design using Mosaic AI Agent Evaluation and Vertex AI Evaluation, responsible AI red-teaming methodology aligned to OWASP LLM Top 10, evaluation metrics frameworks that address business KPIs alongside technical quality, and the structured evidence packaging needed for OSFI E-23 pre-production approval.
  • Experience leading technical discovery and feasibility assessment for AI programmes at enterprise scale: data dependency analysis, platform integration complexity assessment, regulatory risk scoping, and the ability to produce a structured go/no-go recommendation that VP-level stakeholders can act on.
  • Exceptional technical communication: solution architecture documents precise enough for engineers to implement and clear enough for business unit executives to fund, and the ability to translate failure modes and regulatory risk into language that resonates with non-technical governance forums.
  • External technical presence in enterprise AI, financial services AI, or responsible AI: conference presentations, standards contributions, or published solution methodology that establishes credibility beyond the organization.


What's in it for you?

  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Allyship - We strive to create an inclusive culture where every employee is empowered to reach their fullest potential, respected for who they are, and are embraced through bias-free practices and inclusive values across Scotiabank. We embrace diversity and provide opportunities for all employee to learn, grow & participate through our various Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that span across diverse gender identities, ethnicity, race, age, ability & veterans.
  • Accessibility and Workplace Accommodations - We value the unique skills and experiences each individual brings to the Bank, and are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone. Scotiabank continues to locate, remove and prevent barriers so that we can build a diverse and inclusive environment while meeting accessibility requirements.
  • Upskilling through online courses, cross-functional development opportunities, and tuition assistance.
  • Competitive Rewards program including bonus, flexible vacation, personal, sick days and benefits will start on day one.
  • Dynamic Ecosystem - Free tea & coffee, universal washrooms, and lots of space for team collaboration.
  • Community Engagement - No matter where you choose to work from; we offer opportunities for community engagement & belonging with our various programs.


Location(s): Canada : Ontario : Toronto

About Scotiabank

Scotiabankers are committed to helping individuals, companies, and communities to thrive in a changing world. From personal and business banking, brokerage, and insurance, to private wealth, and the most sophisticated commercial, corporate and institutional services, they serve the diverse needs of some 21 million customers in more than 55 countries. Founded in 1832 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, their growth has always been fuelled by the success of their customers and their longevity secured by an unshakable commitment to carefully and expertly managing risk and capital. That focus on doing what's right for customers—short- andlong-term—has made us a global financial services leader. Headquartered in Canada, they are over 86, 000 Scotiabankers strong. Each of us are committed to being the best at understanding their customers' needs and all of us working together to deliver practical advice and relevant solutions that help their customers become financially better off.

Scotiabank Careers

Join Scotiabank, a premier financial institution, and become part of a diverse and inclusive team that’s leading the way in global banking. At Scotiabank, we offer more than just job opportunities; we provide a platform for professional growth and innovation in the financial services industry.

Work You’ll Do

At Scotiabank, we’re not just filling positions; we’re cultivating leaders. Dive into a workplace where diversity training and leadership development shape the path to your future. Our commitment to professional growth is evident in our robust training programs and continuous learning opportunities that foster innovation and strategic thinking.

Explore a World of Opportunities

Whether you’re looking for a full-time position, an internship, or a leadership role, Scotiabank has a spectrum of opportunities to fit your career ambitions. Our team is composed of individuals who bring a wealth of skills and perspectives to our company, driving us forward with their creativity and strategic insights.

Innovative Work Environment

Scotiabank’s culture is one of collaboration and respect, where each team member’s contribution is valued. Engage in meaningful work that challenges you to leverage your skills and push the boundaries of what’s possible in the banking sector. Our innovative projects not only support the growth of the company but also ensure our position as a leader in the industry.

Benefits and Growth

Choosing a career at Scotiabank means opting for a life of growth and opportunity. Our employees enjoy competitive benefits, including comprehensive health coverage, retirement plans, and flexible working conditions, all designed to support your career and personal life. We believe in nurturing our team’s potential by providing them with the tools they need to succeed both professionally and personally.

Join Our Team

Ready to take the next step in your career? Explore the job opportunities at Scotiabank by searching our open positions that match your skills and interests. We are continuously hiring and looking for passionate, curious, and solution-driven team players.

Networking and Professional Development

Stay connected and advance your career through Scotiabank’s extensive networking opportunities. Participate in events that connect you with other professionals and leaders within the industry. Our career resources will help you prepare your resume, ace your interviews, and land the job that best suits your career goals.

Stay Ahead

Keep up to date with the latest in career tips, industry insights, and company news—all from the people who work here at Scotiabank. Personalize your experience by subscribing to job alert emails tailored to your preferences and be the first to know about new openings and exciting developments. Join Scotiabank and be part of a team that values integrity, respect, and accountability. Discover how your career can flourish in an environment committed to your professional development and personal growth.
Learn more about Scotiabank
Size
90,619 employees
Market Cap
$57.5 billion
Industry
Finance & Insurance
5 Year Trend
+7%
NASDAQ
BNS
* Ladders Estimates

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