AI & Automation Technical Lead

About the Role: Baird is building out its AI capabilities, and the AI Acceleration team is at the center of that work. AI Acceleration is the IT team responsible for enabling AI technology across the firm, spanning everything from enterprise AI tools to custom agent solutions. This team is responsible for evaluating and deploying the tools, platforms, and solutions that make AI real for Baird associates and clients. The Tech Lead, AI & Automation is a new role on this team, created to address two growing needs: a broader view across the AI technology landscape to guide the right solution approach for each problem, and deeper hands-on capacity to enable and support the AI platforms and infrastructure that others across the firm use to build solutions. This is a practitioner role, not an advisory one. You will be expected to assess business needs, recommend the right technology approach, and then roll up your sleeves and help deliver. The work is real, the stakeholders are engaged, and the expectation is outcomes. This hybrid position is based in our downtown Milwaukee office offering flexibility to work 2-3 days remote. The Impact You’ll Make: Broad AI Solutioning across the Full Tool Suite: Bring a broad perspective on AI tools and approaches, helping ensure Baird evaluates the right solution for each problem rather than defaulting to a single platform. Microsoft is the preferred ecosystem, but the ability to assess and recommend across vendors is important as the AI landscape continues to evolve Assess incoming AI needs and determine the right solution approach, including whether a problem calls for low-code tooling, pro-code development, or something in between Serve as a knowledgeable guide across the full range of AI tools and platforms in use at Baird. Baird is a Microsoft shop and Microsoft tools (Microsoft Azure AI services and M365) are the default starting point, but the firm also has active use of Claude, ChatGPT, GitHub Copilot, and Rogo, and is expanding into additional platforms Partner with the AI Enablement Lead and business stakeholders to translate business needs into structured, actionable technology recommendations Identify repeatable solution patterns that can be documented and reused across the firm as AI capabilities scale Hands-on Platform Enablement and Technical Support: Take an active, hands-on role in enabling the AI platforms and infrastructure the firm relies on, not just advising on them. This means standing up environments, configuring and supporting platforms, and being a go-to technical resource for a given area of the stack. This is not a passive or purely advisory role Partner with IT delivery teams and business stakeholders to ensure AI platforms are properly configured, supported, and adopted across the firm AI Landscape Awareness and Team Enablement: Actively monitor the AI technology landscape, tracking new tools, platforms, and approaches as they emerge and evaluating their relevance to Baird Serve as a resource for the broader AI Acceleration team, sharing knowledge, bringing new thinking to the group, and helping raise the level of AI expertise across the team Translate awareness of the evolving landscape into practical recommendations, helping the team and the firm stay ahead rather than react Organizational Credibility and Communication: Build trust with both business and IT stakeholders as a knowledgeable, practical voice on AI technology, feasibility, and approach Communicate AI concepts clearly to non-technical audiences, including business leaders, compliance, and risk stakeholders Navigate a matrixed corporate environment effectively, building alignment across teams and functions What You’ll Bring to Baird: Proven, hands-on experience doing this kind of work at another organization. Baird is looking to bring in established expertise, not develop it. Candidates should be able to point to specific experience assessing and recommending AI technology for given use cases, and enabling or supporting AI platforms and infrastructure in a prior role 5 or more years of experience in a technical AI, automation, or solution design role Broad and current knowledge of the AI technology landscape, including commercial platforms, agentic solutioning approaches, and LLM-based tooling Hands-on depth in at least one area of the AI tool stack, with direct experience enabling and supporting that platform at another organization, not just using it or overseeing others who managed it. Bring demonstrated, hands-on depth in one or more of the following areas: Gen AI tools and productivity platforms (e.g., M365 Copilot, Claude, ChatGPT, GitHub Copilot), Business Agent platforms (e.g., Copilot Studio, Power Automate, Cowork) or Azure AI services platforms (e.g., Azure AI foundry, Azure AI Search). Familiarity with the Microsoft ecosystem is preferred, and broader knowledge across the AI landscape is a plus Demonstrated ability to evaluate technology options across vendors and approaches and recommend the right fit for the problem, rather than defaulting to a preferred platform Working fluency across AI tool categories, including enterprise AI productivity tools, low-code business agent platforms, and familiarity with pro-code or custom agent approaches Comfort working with ambiguity, moving between strategic framing and ground-level execution as the work demands Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with a track record of earning credibility across both technical and business audiences Experience working within or alongside risk, compliance, and governance functions in a regulated industry is a plus Equivalent practical experience in lieu of a formal degree is fully accepted. What matters is what you’ve built and delivered, not where you studied Why This Role: Baird has built real AI momentum, and the AI Acceleration team is where that momentum is being turned into tangible outcomes for the firm. This role sits at the intersection of two things that are hard to find in one person: the breadth to navigate a complex, fast-moving technology landscape and the hands-on ability to actually deliver. You will have a meaningful voice in how AI solutions are shaped and deployed at Baird, working alongside a team that brings strong technical foundations and genuine curiosity about what AI can do. This is not a role defined by slide decks and recommendations. It is defined by what gets built and what gets used. Baird is an employee-owned firm with a strong culture of collaboration and long-term thinking. The expectation here is to do good work, build real trust, and contribute to something that will matter to the firm for years to come. #LI-KC1 Baird is committed to diversity and provides employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, citizenship, national origin, age, disability, military service, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, or any other status protected by law.