Technical Lead, AI and Engineering, HBS Foundry - Boston - Harvard Kennedy School

Description

Overview

Company: Harvard University. By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills and expertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcoming environment where everyone can thrive.

Why join HBS Foundry?

HBS Foundry is building a scalable, AI-enabled platform that helps founders turn ideas into real ventures. As a Tech Lead, you'll play a key role in shaping the core architecture and AI infrastructure, with real ownership over how the platform is designed, built, and scaled.

We're a small, collaborative team working within Harvard Business School, combining the focus and momentum of a startup with a mission-driven setting. You'll have the space to make thoughtful technical decisions, work hands-on with production AI systems, and see your work have direct impact for founders.

If you're excited by building durable systems, leading by example, and applying AI in practical, responsible ways, Foundry offers a chance to do meaningful technical work in a setting that values craft, clarity, and impact.

Job Summary

Lead development and implementation of complex information technology projects and architecture to solve problems with wide impact, requiring high levels of functional integration.

The Technical Lead acts as the primary architectural authority and engineering manager for the HBS Foundry platform. This hands-on role is responsible for architecting scalable technical solutions, managing the engineering team, and working closely with the Product Team and Business Leadership to build AI-powered tools that deliver measurable value.

Job-Specific Responsibilities

Technical Architecture & Strategy

• Architect, design, and provide hands-on contribution to the development and deployment of scalable, secure, and maintainable technical solutions that support business goals and product initiatives.
• Make technical design choices and follow technical standards, including cyber security, software languages, tools, and infrastructure.
• Balance fast, lean innovation with practical implementation, technical feasibility, technical debt, and system stability in production environments.
• Evaluate emerging AI technologies and determine their applicability to platform needs and understand risk mitigation strategies.

Engineering Leadership & Priorities

• Manage the engineering team in alignment with product roadmap and critical deadlines.
• Translate business and product requirements into detailed technical specs and engineering tasks.
• Mentor software developers, conduct code reviews, and ensure high-quality coding.
• Oversee the software product development lifecycle, including MLOps, CI/CD pipelines, testing frameworks, and release management, as well as data pipelines, and governance.

Product Collaboration

• Partner with the Product Team, Designers, and Business Director to align on strategic priorities, estimate development effort, and define timelines.
• Communicate complex technical concepts and trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders including executives and customers.

Ethics & Risk Management

• Ensure responsible data management and AI practices (fairness, transparency, and data privacy) and ensure governance frameworks for AI model deployment and monitoring.
• Navigate regulatory requirements, security needs, and compliance consideration.

Other Responsibilities

• Build trust and collaboration by being present on-site and engaging directly with colleagues and various constituents.
• This role is responsible for other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications

• Minimum of seven years' post-secondary education or relevant work experience

Additional Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Data Science, or a related technical field
• 5+ years of Software Engineering (ideally AI-focused) experience, including 2+ years in a Lead Engineer, Architect, or equivalent technical leadership role

Core Technical Expertise

Deep understanding of and strong hands-on experience with:

• Application & Product Engineering
  • Modern web application architecture, including frontend, middleware, backend, and full-stack development
  • Languages and frameworks including Python, TypeScript/JavaScript, NextJS, React, , and SQL
• APIs, Services & Data
  • Microservices and API design, including REST and GraphQL
  • Asynchronous and event-driven systems
  • Authentication and authorization
  • Data and storage systems (relational, NoSQL, and vector databases)
• Cloud Platforms & Infrastructure
  • Cloud-native and distributed systems design
  • Containerization and orchestration (e.g., Terraform, Docker)
  • AWS, including Bedrock, SageMaker, EC2, Lambda, S3, RDS, and IAM
  • Additional cloud platforms (Azure, GCP) and cloud-agnostic design principles
• DevOps, MLOps & Delivery
  • CI/CD pipelines and infrastructure as code
  • Model deployment, monitoring, and operational reliability
• AI & LLM Systems
  • AI/ML tools and frameworks (e.g., LangGraph) and production-grade API integrations
  • Design, deployment, and evaluation of LLM-powered systems, including prompt engineering and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) architectures
• System Architecture & Delivery

Additional Information

• Appointment End Date: This position is approved as a term appointment with an end date of June 30, 2027. There is a possibility of renewal/extension
• Compensation Range: $170,000 - $200,000, commensurate with experience
• Visa Sponsorship Information: Harvard University is unable to provide visa sponsorship for this position
• Pre-Employment Screening: Identity, Education, Criminal
• Other Information:
  • This is a hybrid position which we consider to be a combination of remote and onsite work at our Boston, MA based campus. HBS expects all staff to be onsite a minimum of 3 days per week and departments provide onsite coverage Monday – Friday. Specific hours and days onsite will be determined by business needs and are subject to change with appropriate advanced notice.
  • We may conduct candidate interviews virtually (phone and/or via Zoom) and/or in-person for this role.
  • As part of our evaluation, candidates are required to complete a Take Home Assignment / Hacker Rank assessment after clearing Technical Recruiter Screen. This assignment will test your specific skills/knowledge areas relevant to the role
  • A cover letter is required to be considered for this opportunity.

What you should know about this opportunity: This is a hybrid position; some duties may be performed at a non-Harvard location. Salary information and other details are provided above for your reference.

Benefits

• Generous paid time off including parental leave
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage starting on day one
• Retirement plans with university contributions
• Wellbeing and mental health resources
• Support for families and caregivers
• Professional development opportunities including tuition assistance and reimbursement
• Commuter benefits, discounts and campus perks

Learn more about these and additional benefits on the Harvard Benefits page.

EEO/Non-Discrimination Commitment

Harvard University is committed to equal opportunity and non-discrimination. We seek talent from all parts of society and the world, and we strive to ensure everyone at Harvard thrives. Our differences help our community advance Harvard's academic purposes.

Harvard has an equal employment opportunity policy that outlines our commitment to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law. Harvard's equal employment opportunity policy and non-discrimination policy help all community members participate fully in work and campus life free from harassment and discrimination.