Engineering lead (AI COE)

WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands.  We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.    We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.   Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.    For more information, visit WPP.com.   Why we're hiring: WPP is a creative transformation company, helping clients create growth by combining technology and creativity. As one of the world's largest marketing and advertising services organizations, we are committed to driving innovation and operational excellence across our vast global network. You will be joining the Automation Operations Centre within WPP's Enterprise Technology, Automation & AI department. This is a pivotal time for us as we're building a dedicated, in-house team to deliver, manage, monitor, and optimize our growing portfolio of automation solutions. This team is at the forefront of our digital transformation, ensuring the seamless operation and continuous improvement of critical automation capabilities across WPP globally You will play a crucial role in solution delivery and day-to-day technology management of the Global Automation Operations Centre (AOC) program. Reporting to the AAI Operations Director and AAI Product Lead, you will lead the architecture, standards, and advanced development requirements for our global automation portfolio. Alongside AAI Leadership, you will guide a crew of 6-10 developers to ensure the release of high-quality automation products on time and within budget. The AOC is chartered to develop and delivery automation products, support global automation products or projects delivered by Automation delivery teams from around WPP. Our support apparatus gives those teams confidence and freedom to hand over their existing successes and continue innovating. Are you a visionary technical leader with a deep mastery of the Microsoft Power Platform and a passion for engineering excellence? We are looking for an Automation Engineering Lead to drive our technical strategy and architectural standards. In this senior role, you will be responsible for conducting research spikes, providing technical guidance to development teams, and ensuring that our global automation suite is built on a foundation of robust, scalable, and maintainable components. You will combine your extensive experience from the D365/Dataverse era with modern ALM practices to keep our global operations at the cutting edge of AI and automation. What you'll be doing: Automation Engineering Lead (Engineering Excellence + AI-Driven Automation)  We are looking for an experienced Automation Engineering Lead who combines a complete view across multiple engineering technology streams with a strong background in automation and AI-driven engineering practices across modern technology stacks.  This is not a single-stack or platform-specific role.  You will act as an enterprise engineering leader, responsible for designing scalable, high-performance solutions by evaluating the right engineering approach across diverse technology streams spanning APIs, backend services, modern frontends, cloud platforms, deployment architecture, and AI/ML capabilities.  You will play a critical role in shaping engineering strategy, establishing end-to-end engineering processes, guiding engineering teams, and ensuring solutions are fit-for-purpose, scalable, and future-ready.   What You’ll Be Doing  Solution Architecture & Technology Decisioning  * Own end-to-end architecture for automation use cases across the enterprise   * Evaluate and recommend the right approach across:   * Cloud-native engineering (microservices, serverless, container platforms)   * Custom engineering (APIs, backend services, UI frameworks)   * AI-augmented automation combining ML services, LLMs, and intelligent workflows   * Make informed trade-offs between build vs buy, custom vs platform, and AI-driven vs deterministic approaches based on scalability, cost, and maintainability   * Act as a key decision-maker on the right technology stream and tooling for each engineering problem   * Knowledge in Power Platform (Power Apps, Power Automate, Dataverse)   Architectural Governance  * Define and enforce global architecture standards, design patterns, and best practices   * Establish reusable engineering frameworks and AI-driven automation accelerators across teams   * Ensure consistency, scalability, and maintainability across implementations    Technical Leadership  * Lead and mentor a team of 6–10 engineers   * Provide hands-on guidance, solution reviews, and architectural oversight   * Drive engineering excellence and a culture of continuous improvement    Advanced & Hybrid Development  * Lead complex implementations involving:   * Custom connectors and API integrations   * AI/ML model integration and intelligent automation patterns   * Backend services (.NET / Java / Node.js / Python) where required   * Handle research spikes and evaluate new tools, frameworks, and capabilities    Integration & Data Architecture  * Design robust integration solutions using:   * REST APIs, webhooks, and service-based architectures   * Event-driven and asynchronous processing patterns   * Work with structured and unstructured data across:   * Cloud data platforms (Azure Data Lake, BigQuery, Snowflake, etc.)   * SQL / external data systems   * Dataverse  * Optimize performance, scalability, and reliability of automation workflows    ALM & DevOps Strategy  * Own and mature end-to-end engineering processes including ALM, code quality, and release governance across the organization   * Implement CI/CD pipelines, deployment automation, and infrastructure-as-code using Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or similar   * Drive adoption of code-first, version-controlled, and AI-assisted development practices    Stakeholder Collaboration  * Partner with business and leadership teams to translate requirements into scalable technical solutions   * Align architecture decisions with business goals, timelines, and budgets   * Communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders    Security, Compliance & Supportability  * Ensure solutions comply with enterprise security, governance, and data protection policies   * Design solutions for operational readiness, observability, and smooth handover to support teams    What You’ll Need  Experience  * 12+ years in software engineering, solution architecture, or enterprise application development   * Proven track record leading engineering teams across multiple technology streams with a strong background in automation and AI-driven engineering   * Knowledge in Power platform or Dynamics 365 ecosystem   Engineering Process & AI-Automation Expertise  * Deep expertise in:   * End-to-end engineering processes (SDLC, code reviews, quality gates, release management) implemented at organizational scale   * Deployment and technical architecture across cloud and hybrid environments   * Automation engineering (CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, test automation, workflow automation)   * Experience with:   * Engineering AI workstreams (LLMs, agentic systems, intelligent automation)   * Applying AI in automation (code generation, automated testing, intelligent code review, copilots)   * Ability to drive engineering excellence and modernize platforms using AI-augmented approaches    Architecture & Engineering Breadth (Critical)  * Strong experience with API design and REST-based integrations   * Solid understanding of SQL, data modeling, and performance optimization   * Hands-on experience with at least one backend technology (.NET / Java / Node.js / Python)   * Exposure to modern frontend frameworks (React or similar)   * Understanding of:   * Microservices and distributed systems   * Event-driven architecture (queues, messaging, pub/sub)   * Proven ability to design and deliver solutions across diverse engineering streams with the right deployment and architecture choices    DevOps & ALM  * Experience with CI/CD pipelines and automated deployments   * Familiarity with Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, or similar tools   * Strong understanding of environment strategy, solution segmentation, and release management    Leadership & Problem Solving  * Proven ability to lead and mentor engineering teams   * Strong architectural thinking and decision-making skills   * Ability to solve complex, ambiguous technical challenges   * Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills    Nice to Have  * Experience with Azure services (Functions, Logic Apps, Service Bus, API Management)   * Knowledge of enterprise integration patterns and iPaaS platforms   * Hands-on experience embedding LLMs, agents, or copilots into automation and engineering workflows    Certifications  * Certifications in AI/ML, DevOps, or enterprise architecture (TOGAF, SAFe, or equivalent), PL-600: Microsoft Power Platform Solution Architect (preferred)   Who you are: You're open: We are inclusive and collaborative; we encourage the free exchange of ideas; we respect and celebrate diverse views. We are open-minded: to new ideas, new partnerships, new ways of working. You're optimistic: We believe in the power of creativity, technology and talent to create brighter futures or our people, our clients and our communities. We approach all that we do with conviction: to try the new and to seek the unexpected. You're extraordinary: we are stronger together: through collaboration we achieve the amazing. We are creative leaders and pioneers of our industry; we provide extraordinary every day. What we'll give you: Passionate, inspired people – We aim to create a culture in which people can do extraordinary work. Scale and opportunity – We offer the opportunity to create, influence and complete projects at a scale that is unparalleled in the industry. Challenging and stimulating work – Unique work and the opportunity to join a group of creative problem solvers. Are you up for the challenge? We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. WPP is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. PLEASE READ OUR PRIVACY NOTICE (HTTPS://WWW.WPP.COM/EN/CAREERS/WPP-PRIVACY-POLICY-FOR-RECRUITMENT) FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW WE PROCESS THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE.

WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands.  We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.    We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.   Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.    For more information, visit WPP.com.   Why we're hiring: WPP Enterprise Technology delivers IT services across the WPP group — enabling the world's most creative brands to co  We are looking for a seasoned full-stack engineer who enjoys systems design, integration complexity, and intelligent workflow automation. You will join our Global Automation & Business Platforms programme and take ownership of designing, building, and refining production-grade solutions — both as standalone products and as integrations within our core Hero portfolio.  Day-to-day you will architect event-driven pipelines, build Python and React services, wire together enterprise APIs, and make smart engineering decisions on frameworks and data models.     What you'll be doing: Solution Design & Delivery  * Design and develop full-stack solutions (Python back-end, React front-end) that integrate with portfolio products or run as standalone platforms.  * Architect service-to-service integration patterns: synchronous APIs, event queues, webhook pipelines, and scheduled batch processes.  * Build and maintain FastAPI services with clear contracts, versioning, and observability from day one.  Workflow & Automation Engineering  * Implement sophisticated multi-step automation workflows that coordinate actions across enterprise systems — document management, CRM, HR, finance, and media platforms.  * Build integrations between internal data sources, third-party APIs, and cloud platform services (Azure, GCP).  Quality, Governance & Documentation  * Build evaluation and testing frameworks so that every automated workflow is measurable, auditable, and improvable.  * Work closely with the Engineering Lead to define governance standards: access control, audit logging, safe defaults, and compliance guardrails.  * Maintain thorough technical documentation — architecture diagrams, runbooks, API specs, and decision records.  Collaboration  * Operate within an Agile Kanban team, taking stories from backlog refinement through to production deployment.  * Act as the technical bridge between business stakeholders and engineering: translating requirements into pragmatic designs and communicating trade-offs clearly. * Support other automation delivery teams across WPP with technical guidance and code reviews.    What you'll need: Essential  * 7–9 years of professional software engineering experience, with Python as the primary back-end language.  * Strong React / TypeScript front-end skills — you can build and own the full vertical, not just the API layer.  * Solid FastAPI or equivalent Python API framework experience; you know how to structure a production service.  * Proven experience designing and operating event-driven or pipeline architectures (queues, schedulers, webhooks, streaming).  * Comfortable working across cloud platforms — Azure and/or GCP — including managed services for compute, storage, and messaging.  * Experience integrating with enterprise identity, directory, and SaaS APIs (Microsoft 365 ecosystem is a strong advantage).  * Hands-on experience building search or retrieval-augmented systems: embedding pipelines, vector databases, semantic indexing.  * Solid understanding of evaluation and testing practices for complex, non-deterministic systems.  * Agile practitioner — comfortable in Kanban or Scrum, familiar with backlog management, sprint ceremonies, and incremental delivery.  * Excellent written and verbal English; you document your work and communicate clearly with both engineers and non-technical stakeholders.  Nice to Have  * Familiarity with Microsoft Copilot Studio or Power Platform.  * Exposure to enterprise-grade governance patterns: RBAC, audit trails, policy-as-code.  Certifications  Mandatory (required in first 30 days)  * Microsoft Azure AI Engineer Associate (AI-102)  Desirable / Required within 3 months  * GitHub Copilot (GH-300)  * Microsoft Power Platform Fundamentals (PL-900)    Who you are: You're open: We are inclusive and collaborative; we encourage the free exchange of ideas; we respect and celebrate diverse views. We are open-minded: to new ideas, new partnerships, new ways of working. You're optimistic: We believe in the power of creativity, technology and talent to create brighter futures or our people, our clients and our communities. We approach all that we do with conviction: to try the new and to seek the unexpected. You're extraordinary: we are stronger together: through collaboration we achieve the amazing. We are creative leaders and pioneers of our industry; we provide extraordinary every day.   What we'll give you: Passionate, inspired people – We aim to create a culture in which people can do extraordinary work. Scale and opportunity – We offer the opportunity to create, influence and complete projects at a scale that is unparalleled in the industry. Challenging and stimulating work – Unique work and the opportunity to join a group of creative problem solvers. Are you up for the challenge? We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. WPP is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. PLEASE READ OUR PRIVACY NOTICE (HTTPS://WWW.WPP.COM/EN/CAREERS/WPP-PRIVACY-POLICY-FOR-RECRUITMENT) FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW WE PROCESS THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE.

WPP

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands.  We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.    We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.   Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.    For more information, visit WPP.com.   Why we're hiring: WPP Media is embarking on a transformative data journey through Databridge—our internal comprehensive data strategy and framework designed to unify our fragmented global data landscape. We are moving from isolated, market-specific implementations to a standardized, scalable, cloud-agnostic, and AI-ready data platform built on a modern tech stack: dbt, Databricks, Python (dlthub), and GitHub Actions.   As Data Operations Lead, you will establish and head our new Data Integration & Operations team in Chennai. This is a build-and-run role: you'll define how the team operates while leading day-to-day delivery of operational excellence across global data products.   You will be the custodian of production—owning the operational layer including CI/CD automation, deployment pipelines, monitoring, data quality enforcement, incident management, and support. This role requires deep technical knowledge of Databricks and modern data platforms, alongside the ability to lead, mentor, and scale a growing team.   What you'll be doing: Technical Ownership & Execution  * Lead the team responsible for data integration, orchestration, and platform operations across Azure and GCP environments  * Build and maintain automated CI/CD pipelines using GitHub Actions and Databricks Asset Bundles for data workflows  * Design platform-wide monitoring, logging, and alerting covering pipeline execution, data quality, SLA compliance, and cost  * Manage production deployments and own centralized job orchestration via Databricks Jobs/Workflows (scheduling, dependencies, retries, notifications)  * Implement comprehensive data quality testing and validation using dbt's testing framework and custom checks  Operational Standardization  * Create and roll out standard operating procedures, runbooks, onboarding guides, and automation patterns  * Establish reusable deployment frameworks and project templates for consistent implementation across markets  * Build and maintain the Central Data Solution Repository with reusable assets (dlthub pipelines, dbt models, tests, macros)  * Define repeatable deployment patterns ensuring standards and best practices are followed globally  Platform Support & Governance  * Set up and manage SLAs, incident workflows, and escalation models  * Proactively identify and resolve operational risks in cloud-based data platforms  * Partner with DevOps to leverage Databricks Unity Catalog for governance, access control, and lineage  * Enforce data quality standards and governance policies embedded within pipeline code  Team Leadership  * Lead and mentor the Data Integration & Operations team in Chennai  * Shape the team's operating model, priorities, and capabilities  * Act as subject matter expert and escalation point for technical operations  * Facilitate regular retrospectives to drive continuous improvement and optimize processes  * Collaborate with Data Engineering, DevOps, and Product teams globally  What you'll need: Experience  * 7+ years in data operations, platform engineering, or data engineering with hands-on production experience  * 3+ years in technical leadership or team lead capacity, with proven ability to build and scale teams  * Demonstrated experience establishing DataOps practices and operational frameworks from the ground up  Technical Expertise  * Deep, hands-on experience with Databricks platform, specifically:  * Databricks SQL Warehouses, Unity Catalog, Jobs/Workflows  * Databricks Asset Bundles for Infrastructure as Code  * Delta Lake performance optimization  * Strong proficiency with dbt (Core): project structure, macros, tests, documentation, CI/CD integration, production troubleshooting  * Expert-level cloud platform knowledge (Azure and/or GCP):  * Object storage (ADLS/GCS), secret management (Key Vault/Secret Manager)  * Infrastructure as Code (Terraform)  * CI/CD mastery with GitHub Actions: workflow design, secrets management, automated testing and deployment  * Proficient in Python for automation and scripting (experience with dlthub is a major plus)  * Strong SQL skills for data validation, quality testing, and troubleshooting    Operational & Leadership Skills  * Proven ability to design operational frameworks: monitoring, alerting, incident management, SLA tracking  * Experience managing production data platforms with high uptime requirements  * Excellent communication skills with ability to articulate technical concepts to diverse audiences  * Strong documentation skills and commitment to knowledge sharing  * Preferred Skills  * Experience working in multi-cloud environments (Azure + GCP)  * Familiarity with Power BI or similar BI platforms  * Understanding of FinOps practices for cloud cost optimization Who Should Apply   This role is ideal for candidates with:  * Real, hands-on project experience building and running production data platforms at scale  * Proven leadership in establishing DataOps practices and growing high-performing teams  * Deep technical expertise in the Databricks ecosystem and modern data stack  * Entrepreneurial mindset—comfortable with ambiguity and building systems from the ground up   This role is not a fit if your experience is primarily theoretical, course-based, or lacks production-grade exposure to the core technologies outlined above.  Who you are: You're open: We are inclusive and collaborative; we encourage the free exchange of ideas; we respect and celebrate diverse views. We are open-minded: to new ideas, new partnerships, new ways of working. You're optimistic: We believe in the power of creativity, technology and talent to create brighter futures or our people, our clients and our communities. We approach all that we do with conviction: to try the new and to seek the unexpected. You're extraordinary: we are stronger together: through collaboration we achieve the amazing. We are creative leaders and pioneers of our industry; we provide extraordinary every day.   What we'll give you: Passionate, inspired people – We aim to create a culture in which people can do extraordinary work. Scale and opportunity – We offer the opportunity to create, influence and complete projects at a scale that is unparalleled in the industry. Challenging and stimulating work – Unique work and the opportunity to join a group of creative problem solvers. Are you up for the challenge? We believe the best work happens when we're together, fostering creativity, collaboration, and connection. That's why we’ve adopted a hybrid approach, with teams in the office around four days a week. If you require accommodations or flexibility, please discuss this with the hiring team during the interview process. WPP is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without discrimination or regard to particular characteristics. We are committed to fostering a culture of respect in which everyone feels they belong and has the same opportunities to progress in their careers. PLEASE READ OUR PRIVACY NOTICE (HTTPS://WWW.WPP.COM/EN/CAREERS/WPP-PRIVACY-POLICY-FOR-RECRUITMENT) FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW WE PROCESS THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE.