AI Engineer

About Whānau Āwhina Plunket

Whānau Āwhina Plunket stands as Aotearoa’s foremost provider of health and wellbeing support services for tamariki under five and their whānau, reaching over 80% of newborns across the nation and partnering with pēpē, tamariki, and their whānau during early childhood.

Position Opportunity

This full-time fixed term role, lasting until September 2027, invites an experienced AI engineer to transform emerging AI technologies into secure, practical applications that enhance organisational workflows and outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and staff. Embedded within the Data & Insights team, the position involves advancing proof of concept projects into scalable, operational AI solutions as well as laying down frameworks for responsible AI adoption.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain scalable data engineering and MLOps pipelines integrated with enterprise systems.
• Define reusable engineering patterns, establish reference architectures, and enforce development standards.
• Apply AI governance, monitoring, and lifecycle management protocols to deployed solutions.
• Ensure full compliance with privacy, cybersecurity, and information governance policies.
• Integrate Responsible AI principles, Te Tiriti o Waitangi commitments, and Māori Data Sovereignty considerations into design and implementation.
• Collaborate across Data & Insights, Digital & Improvement, ICT, clinical, service delivery, and operational units to identify and prioritise impactful AI uses.
• Produce detailed technical documentation and facilitate knowledge transfer to support sustainability beyond the contract term.
• Foster organisational AI confidence and skills via mentoring, knowledge sharing, and transparent communication.

Candidate Profile

Ideal candidates are seasoned AI engineers skilled at transitioning projects beyond experimental stages into secure, reliable, and scalable solutions with a user-centred approach.

• Minimum five years’ experience designing, developing, and deploying enterprise AI solutions within cloud platforms, preferably Microsoft Azure.
• Proficient in Python programming and SQL database querying.
• Experienced with Azure Databricks tools including Spark/PySpark, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, workflows, MLflow, and Databricks Machine Learning.
• Developed generative AI and machine learning systems involving LLMs, retrieval-augmented generation, embeddings, vector search, AI assistants, and automated intelligent processes.
• Familiar with Azure AI services such as Azure OpenAI, Azure AI Foundry, Azure Machine Learning, and Azure AI Search or similar technologies.
• Good understanding of enterprise data platforms, API integration, data quality assurance, governance, security protocols, and access control.
• Applied MLOps and DevOps methodologies including Git version control, automated testing, Azure DevOps pipelines, continuous integration/deployment, monitoring, and model lifecycle management.
• Skilled at embedding AI capabilities into enterprise applications, knowledge bases, and business workflows.
• Committed to ethical AI development, understanding privacy, transparency, security, and Responsible AI practices.

The role also expects curiosity, collaboration, sound judgment, and a balance of innovation and privacy/security concerns. A willingness or ability to learn about Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori Data Sovereignty principles is essential.

What We Provide

• Opportunities to apply your expertise towards socially meaningful projects enhancing the wellbeing of tamariki and whānau.
• Part of a supportive Data & Insights team collaborating across the organisation.
• Access to wellness benefits, including fitness passport and dedicated health days.
• Flexible work arrangements and sponsorship for continuous professional growth.
• A chance to influence enterprise AI development from its early stages within the organisation.

Additional Information

Whānau Āwhina Plunket is devoted to fostering a culturally inclusive and safe workplace guided by core values: Māia, Tūhono, Manaaki, and Māhaki. The organisation upholds a pro-equity approach emphasising the Treaty principles of partnership, protection, equity, and options to ensure the health of tamariki and confidence of whānau and communities.