Software Engineering Manager, Forward Deployed

Company Description

Air is the leader in Enterprise Readiness. Our mission is to establish readiness as a real-time condition that is continuously achieved. Today, a dangerous Readiness Gap exists between what the front line needs and what is delivered. Our AI-native platform, Air Enterprise Readiness, aligns development, production, delivery, and sustainment into one coordinated execution system for government agencies and industrial suppliers. By revealing true capacity, exposing real constraints, coordinating resources, and executing at the speed of operational demands, the front line gets what it needs to succeed.

Job Description

We are looking for a dynamic and experienced Data Science Manager to join our talented team as a Forward Deployed Data Science (FDDS) Manager at Air. Air is a leading technology company dedicated to supporting the defense and intelligence communities with cutting-edge software solutions. As an FDDS Manager, you will be pivotal in shaping and driving our data science and applied AI solutions to deliver tangible readiness outcomes for our customers.

As an FDDS Manager at Air, you will lead and grow a team of skilled Forward Deployed Data Scientists (FDDSs), working on both agentic AI and classical data science methods, and ensuring readiness solutions are delivered to our customers through Air’s Enterprise Readiness platform. You will oversee Agile ceremonies, set coding and testing standards, and ensure the quality of deliverables. Your leadership will be essential in translating business requirements into technical specifications, building scalable technology, and promoting innovation and efficiency within the team.

Doing this job well requires customer obsession, a strong need to solve problems, a passion for building high-functioning teams and an ability to deliver under pressure and in ambiguous environments.

This role is a full-time position located out of our office in Pittsburgh, PA, Arlington, VA, or San Francisco, CA.

This role may require up to 25% travel

Scope of Responsibilities

• Collaborate with the Go-To-Market and Forward Deployed Engineering teams to ensure appropriate support and delivery for government customers.
• Lead and mentor a team of Forward Deployed Data Scientists and AI Engineers to deliver readiness outcomes for our customers through Air’s Enterprise Readiness platform.
• Direct complex AI initiatives for U.S. Government clients, covering agentic AI, classical machine learning and statistical modeling approaches. Applications focus on critical defense sectors (Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force) for fleet readiness (MRO), predictive maintenance, supply chain analysis and other use cases.
• Establish coding, testing, and AI coding best practices and standards for engineers, driving excellence in software development.
• Oversee AI development for practical use cases in deployment by nurturing the AI team culture, defining AI/ML tool usage, and applying scientific methods.
• Oversee the quality of data scientists' deliverables, including model delivery, coding, evaluation, and testing, to maintain high standards of science and software.
• Collaborate closely with client stakeholders and Air’s delivery teams to translate business requirements into technical specifications.
• Continuously seek innovation and process improvement opportunities, finding efficiencies in all assigned tasks to drive the team's success.
• Work with AI platform teams to ensure generalization of AI cases built for particular clients into platform and product features.
• Collaborate closely with Air's product team ensuring a feedback loop from the edge to the core platform
• Work collaboratively with data engineers, software engineers, QA engineers, and DevOps engineers to enhance our platform's overall quality and performance.

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship is required

Required Skills

• 5+ years of external or internal customer-facing, complex, and large-scale project management experience.
• 5+ years of delivering data science solutions into production.
• 2+ years of experience leading and managing a team of data scientists and/or machine learning engineers and/or AI engineers developing new AI systems and deploying them into production.
• Strong technical background with expertise in developing AI/ML solutions for a wide variety of problems.
• Deep understanding of data assets and their applicability to AI/ML model development.
• Proven ability to continuously evaluate and adopt new AI tools and methods to improve delivery speed and quality.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to become a subject matter expert (SME) in the National Security domain and communicate complex technical concepts to both internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated success in recruiting, training, coaching, and mentoring high-performing technical teams.
• Strong problem-solving skills and a commitment to continuous innovation and process improvement.
• Proven track record of translating complex industrial challenges into AI/ML solutions that drive measurable impact.
• Experience with agile software development methodologies.

Desired Skills

• Current possession of a U.S. security clearance, or the ability to obtain one with our sponsorship.
• Experience in or exposure to the nuances of a startup or other entrepreneurial environment.
• Experience and interest in National Security.
• Experience collaborating with Product, Engineering, Engagement departments and clients to define and execute an AI/ML roadmap.
• Experience working on agile/scrum teams.
• Familiarity with big data frameworks (e.g., HDFS, Spark) and AWS.
• Practical understanding of LLMs and Agentic AI solutions.

We firmly believe that past performance is the best indicator of future performance. If you thrive while building solutions to complex problems, are a self-starter, and are passionate about making an impact in global security, we’re eager to hear from you.

Air is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and protected veterans status or any other characteristic protected by law.