Senior Director, AI Operations (AILLM Production Systems)

Were defining how AI runs in production across the enterprise.

As AI adoption scales the challenge shifts from building models to operating them reliably. This role owns how AI/LLM and agentic systems are run supported and governed ensuring they are reliable observable cost-efficient and continuously improving in real-world environments.

You will lead the development of the enterprise AI Operations practice establishing the standards operating model and visibility required to support AI at scale. This includes defining how systems are monitored how incidents are managed how risks are controlled and how performance is continuously improved.

Working closely with Engineering AI Platform Product and Delivery teams you will ensure all production AI systems meet clear operational standards and that leadership has consistent visibility into system health performance and risk.

This is a hands-on senior leadership role with end-to-end accountability for how AI systems perform in production.

This position will offer flexibility for hybrid work schedules to include both in-office presence and telecommute/virtual work to be based from either Houston or Dallas TX.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and scale the enterprise AI Operations practice including operating model standards and governance
• Establish production readiness and operability standards across AI/LLM and agentic systems
• Own production reliability including SLAs/SLOs incident management and support models
• Implement observability and monitoring for AI systems (latency drift behavior failures cost)
• Ensure clear ownership escalation paths and accountability across production AI systems
• Build controls for agent behavior model usage and operational risk
• Drive performance reliability and cost optimization across AI workloads
• Lead operational reviews and reporting providing visibility into system health risks and trends
• Identify systemic issues and drive continuous improvement across AI systems and processes
• Partner with Engineering Product and Platform teams to ensure production readiness and alignment

Qualifications :

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors Degree plus extensive years of SRE MLOps production operations or platform engineering experience including 6 years of leadership experience or demonstrated equivalency of experience and/or education
• Experience operating AI/ML/LLM systems in production (serving real users at scale) with clear ownership and accountability
• Background in SRE MLOps or distributed systems with depth in reliability and operational excellence
• Strong understanding of AI production failure modes (e.g. drift hallucinations orchestration issues cost inefficiencies)
• Experience building and scaling observability monitoring and telemetry systems (e.g. OpenTelemetry Datadog Prometheus Grafana)
• Proven track record defining SLAs/SLOs incident management and operational frameworks for complex systems
• Experience leading cross-functional efforts across engineering platform and product teams
• Ability to operate at both strategic and hands-on levels setting direction while driving execution

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with LLM platforms or frameworks (e.g. Azure AI AWS Bedrock LangChain)
• Experience with agentic systems RAG pipelines or orchestration frameworks
• Background in ITIL or service management applied to modern distributed systems
• Familiarity with Responsible AI and governance frameworks

Additional Information :

• Relocation assistance is not available for this position
• Sponsorship for US work authorization is not available for this position now or in the future.

About AECOM 

AECOM is proud to offer comprehensive benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees. Depending on your employment status AECOM benefits may include medical dental vision life AD&D disability benefits paid time off leaves of absences voluntary benefits perks flexible work options well-being resources employee assistance program business travel insurance service recognition awards retirement savings plan and employee stock purchase plan. 

AECOM is the global infrastructure leader committed to delivering a better world. As a trusted professional services firm powered by deep technical abilities we solve our clients complex challenges in water environment energy transportation and buildings. Our teams partner with public- and private-sector clients to create innovative sustainable and resilient solutions throughout the project lifecycle from advisory planning design and engineering to program and construction management. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm that had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025. Learn more at . 

What makes AECOM a great place to work 

You will be part of a global team that champions your growth and career ambitions. Work on groundbreaking projects - both in your local community and on a global scale - that are transforming our industry and shaping the future. With cutting-edge technology and a network of experts youll have the resources to make a real impact. Our award-winning training and development programs are designed to expand your technical expertise and leadership skills helping you build the career youve always envisioned. Here youll find a welcoming workplace built on respect collaboration and communitywhere you have the freedom to grow in a world of opportunity. 

As an Equal Opportunity Employer we believe in your potential and are here to help you achieve it. All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines. 

Remote Work :

No

Employment Type :

Full-time