Director, Tech Lead - AI Engineer
Job Classification:
Technology - Engineering & Cloud
The Engineering team is seeking a Senior Level candidate to lead the adoption and enablement of Claude Code and AI-powered development tools across Prudential. This exciting position will offer a qualified individual the opportunity to lead a team of engineers who are passionate about leveraging cutting-edge AI technology to transform the software development lifecycle and enhance developer productivity.
We are looking for someone who is self-motivated, has a passion for emerging AI technologies, strong presentation skills, and a desire to drive organizational change through innovative tooling and best practices.
The successful candidate will work on defining, building, and maintaining a comprehensive Claude Code ecosystem that includes custom plugins, skills, sub-agents, and slash commands. They will also be responsible for keeping the organization at the forefront of AI trends in the SDLC space.
This position requires an individual with strong analytical, programming, problem-solving, organizational, technical, and communication skills who must be able to work on complex projects with minimal guidance while effectively communicating progress to leadership and stakeholders.
What you will do:
- Demonstrate leadership experience managing teams focused on developer tooling, automation, and AI-powered development platforms
- Effectively lead a team responsible for architecting, building, maintaining, and supporting Claude Code plugins, skills, sub-agents, and custom commands
- Manage a highly technical Agile Delivery Team focused on AI tooling and developer experience
- Strong experience with AI development tools, prompt engineering, and LLM integration patterns
- Deliver end-to-end solutions using innovative approaches to integrate AI capabilities into the SDLC
- Design and implement custom Claude Code extensions including:
- MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers and integrations
- Custom skills for specialized workflows
- Sub-agents for autonomous task completion
- Slash commands for streamlined developer workflows
- Work with internal and external stakeholders to continuously improve upon AI tooling capabilities and develop technology roadmaps
Evangelization and Training
- Create and deliver compelling presentations to leadership and stakeholders on Claude Code adoption metrics, ROI, and strategic initiatives
- Run regular office hours to support developers and answer questions about Claude Code capabilities
- Develop comprehensive training materials including documentation, tutorials, video content, and hands-on workshops
- Evangelize AI best practices and trends in the SDLC space including AI-assisted development, prompt engineering, autonomous agents, and workflow automation
- Build a community of practice around AI-powered development tools within Prudential
Innovation and Trend Monitoring
- Stay current with the latest AI trends, tools, and best practices in software development
- Evaluate emerging AI technologies and their potential application to Prudential's development workflows
- Assess and evaluate MCP servers and integrations for security, reliability, and enterprise fit
- Identify opportunities to leverage AI for improving code quality, security, testing, and deployment processes
Want more jobs like this?
Get jobs in Newark, NJ delivered to your inbox every week.
- Drive continuous innovation in how development teams leverage AI capabilities
Governance and Best Practices
- Establish security and compliance guidelines for AI tool usage
- Define standards for prompt engineering, agent development, and integration patterns
- Implement metrics and monitoring to track adoption, usage patterns, and productivity gains
- Work with InfoSec and compliance teams to ensure AI tool usage meets enterprise requirements
What you bring:
- At least 5 - 8 years of experience working in technology and 2 - 4 years of technical leadership experience
- Extensive development/automation experience in an enterprise environment, either through 1st person implementation or driving a team that achieved such outcomes
- Demonstrated experience with AI/LLM tools and platforms (Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot, or similar)
- Strong programming background in multiple languages (Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Java, etc.)
- Fluency with Agile Delivery methodologies
- Proven ability to create technical training content and deliver presentations to diverse audiences
- Experience running office hours, workshops, or technical enablement sessions
- Strong written and verbal communication skills with ability to influence at all organizational levels
Technical Skills
- Hands-on experience with Claude Code or similar AI development tools
- Strong technical troubleshooting and problem-solving skills
- Knowledge of the Model Context Protocol (MCP) and building MCP servers
- Experience evaluating and integrating MCP servers from various sources
- Familiarity with AI agent frameworks and autonomous agent development
- Understanding of prompt engineering principles and best practices
- Experience with DevOps, CI/CD pipelines, and development automation
- Knowledge of VS Code extensions, IDE integrations, or developer tooling
Soft Skills
- Ability to process new concepts and technologies quickly; has an appetite for learning in the fast-moving AI space
- Ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to non-technical audiences
- A problem-solving mindset with skills and attributes to find the most appropriate solutions that bring desired change/outcomes
- Exceptional presentation and communication skills; comfortable presenting to executive leadership
- Patient and empathetic when teaching and enabling others
- A passion to provide world-class developer experience and customer service
- Self-directed with ability to work independently while also being a strong collaborator
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science/Information Systems or related technical field
Bonus Qualifications
- Previous experience as a software engineer or developer advocate
- Experience building developer tools, IDE extensions, or CLI applications
- Background in machine learning, NLP, or AI/ML engineering
- Knowledge of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) capabilities like observability, monitoring, and error budgeting
- Experience with enterprise-scale tool adoption and change management initiatives
- Contributions to open-source AI or developer tooling projects
- Speaking experience at technical conferences or meetups
- Experience creating video tutorials or technical content for developer audiences
Success Metrics
Success in this role will be measured by:
- Claude Code adoption rates across Prudential development teams
- Number and quality of custom plugins, skills, and commands developed
- Developer satisfaction scores and productivity improvements
- Quality and reach of training materials and office hours participation
- Stakeholder feedback on presentations and communications
- Innovation in applying AI to solve real development challenges
Join us in shaping the future of software development at Prudential through the power of AI!
What we offer you:
Prudential is required by state specific laws to include the salary range for this role when hiring a resident in applicable locations. The salary range for this role is from $171,500.00 to $257,300.00. Specific pricing for the role may vary within the above range based on many factors including geographic location, candidate experience, and skills.
- Market competitive base salaries, with a yearly bonus potential at every level.
- Medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability insurance, Paid Time Off (PTO), and leave of absences, such as parental and military leave.
- 401(k) plan with company match (up to 4%).
- Company-funded pension plan.
- Wellness Programsincluding up to $1,600 a year for reimbursement of items purchased to support personal wellbeing needs.
- Work/Life Resources to help support topics such as parenting, housing, senior care, finances, pets, legal matters, education, emotional and mental health, and career development.
- Education Benefit to help finance traditional college enrollment toward obtaining an approved degree and many accredited certificate programs.
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan: Shares can be purchased at 85% of the lower of two prices (Beginning or End of the purchase period), after one year of service.
Eligibility to participate in a discretionary annual incentive program is subject to the rules governing the program, whereby an award, if any, depends on various factors including, without limitation, individual and organizational performance. To find out more about our Total Rewards package, visit Work Life Balance | Prudential Careers. Some of the above benefits may not apply to part-time employees scheduled to work less than 20 hours per week.
Prudential Financial, Inc. of the United States is not affiliated with Prudential plc. which is headquartered in the United Kingdom.
Prudential is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, genetics, disability, marital status, age, veteran status, domestic partner status, medical condition or any other characteristic protected by law.
If you need an accommodation to complete the application process, please email accommodations.hw@prudential.com.
If you are experiencing a technical issue with your application or an assessment, please email careers.technicalsupport@prudential.com to request assistance.
Perks and Benefits
Health and Wellness
- Dental Insurance
- Vision Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Short-Term Disability
- Long-Term Disability
- FSA
- FSA With Employer Contribution
- HSA
- HSA With Employer Contribution
- Health Insurance
Parental Benefits
- Adoption Leave
- Birth Parent or Maternity Leave
- Adoption Assistance Program
- Family Support Resources
Work Flexibility
Office Life and Perks
Vacation and Time Off
- Paid Holidays
- Personal/Sick Days
Financial and Retirement
- 401(K)
- 401(K) With Company Matching
- Pension
- Stock Purchase Program
Professional Development
Diversity and Inclusion