CTO - Director of AI Engineering - NCT
banyansoftware • United States
Posted: June 11, 2026
Job Description
Head of AI Engineering
Company: Next Chapter Technology (An Operating Company of Banyan Software)
Location: US-Based (Remote) — Must meet federal-adjacent compliance eligibility Reports To: Chief Executive Officer
About Next Chapter Technology (NCT)
Next Chapter Technology builds CaseWorks, a mission-critical content and workflow management platform embedded in county-level Health and Human Services operations across the United States. With a 15-year engineering history, a captive install base, and structured operational data, NCT sits at an inflection point to become an AI-first platform. As a Banyan Software operating company, we combine the agility of an independent business with the permanent backing of a global enterprise that buys, holds, and grows software companies for life.
The Opportunity
We are seeking a Head of AI Engineering to spearhead NCT’s transition into an AI-first platform. This is an intensely hands-on, builder-to-leader role designed for an elite engineer who is energized by complex, legacy transformation.
You will lead from the front with a strict "build-solo-first" mandate. Your initial mission is to personally design, build, and prove the first version of NCT's AI-driven capability, shipping measurable customer value before expanding headcount. Once the AI factory framework is successfully established, you will take on the people-management responsibility of scaling and upskilling the engineering team to adopt these modern workflows. We are not looking for a hands-off manager or a slide-deck architect—anyone who has left day-to-day technical execution behind will not be a fit.
What You Will Own
- AI-First Modernization (Hands-On): Personally design and build NCT's foundational AI capabilities (RAG systems, code generation, LLM orchestration, and multi-agent workflows) to analyze legacy code and generate production-ready services.
- Platform Modernization: Pragmatically refactor legacy components into scalable, cloud-native services and replace manual workflows with AI-driven automation without succumbing to the temptation of a wholesale platform rewrite.
- Phased Engineering Leadership: Once the AI factory is proven solo, you will assume direct delivery outcomes: managing team execution, elevating talent density, setting engineering rhythms, and mentoring developers into an AI-native way of working.
- Safe, Compliant Execution: Safely deploy features (utilizing feature flags, shadow mode, and monitoring) while strictly operating within government-adjacent and public-sector compliance frameworks (HIPAA, CJIS).
- Banyan Ecosystem Partnership: Act as the core technical partner to the CEO while collaborating with Banyan's centralized AI initiatives to accelerate localized product value.
What We Are Looking For
- Deep Software Breadth: 8+ years of hands-on software engineering with a proven track record of modernizing complex architectures and establishing cloud-native/DevSecOps practices.
- Production AI Experience: Documented history of shipping functional AI/ML systems end-to-end to real users (data pipelines, modeling, deployment, and monitoring). You treat AI tooling as the core foundation of engineering productivity.
- The "Build-Solo" Appetite: Experience as a founding or first AI engineer who is completely comfortable delivering baseline architecture independently before relying on a large team.
- Pragmatic Refactoring Judgment: Exceptional judgment regarding build-vs-buy decisions and the patience required to guide a 15-year-old Microsoft-stack platform through a modernization step-change.
- Leadership Maturity: Proven track record of managing engineering teams and a genuine desire to develop technical talent rather than operating in a silo.
- Radical Humility: Non-negotiable at Banyan. You possess strong commercial acumen and an exploratory mindset, but you earn trust through coachability and clear-eyed self-awareness.
- Logistics: Must be US-based and fully eligible for government-adjacent/public-sector compliance work.
Nice-to-Haves
- Direct GovTech, public sector, or federal case management software experience.
- Familiarity with the Microsoft AI stack (Azure ML, Azure OpenAI integrations) given the CaseWorks platform heritage.
- Experience managing, coordinating, or collaborating with distributed/offshore engineering teams.
Success Metrics (First 3–6 Months)
- AI-assisted development model built and in production use.
- Initial wave of high-value AI features successfully shipped inside CaseWorks.
- Measurable, predictable improvements in engineering delivery speed and cadence.
- Core legacy components systematically modernized into scalable cloud services.
Why Join Us & The Banyan Family?
- A Permanent Home, Not a Portfolio Play: Banyan buys, holds, and grows companies for life. We never resell. You can invest in real architectural health and long-term value without an arbitrary 3-to-5-year exit clock cutting your work short.
- True Autonomy with Enterprise Backing: Complete ownership of the AI strategy, tool choices, and engineering execution, combined with the financial stability and shared expertise of a global network.
- Built-In Peer Network: Gain immediate access to a vibrant community of Banyan operating company leaders sharing playbooks, lessons, and real-world tech-stack modernizations.
Additional Content
Head of AI Engineering
Company: Next Chapter Technology (An Operating Company of Banyan Software)
Location: US-Based (Remote) — Must meet federal-adjacent compliance eligibility Reports To: Chief Executive Officer
About Next Chapter Technology (NCT)
Next Chapter Technology builds CaseWorks, a mission-critical content and workflow management platform embedded in county-level Health and Human Services operations across the United States. With a 15-year engineering history, a captive install base, and structured operational data, NCT sits at an inflection point to become an AI-first platform. As a Banyan Software operating company, we combine the agility of an independent business with the permanent backing of a global enterprise that buys, holds, and grows software companies for life.
The Opportunity
We are seeking a Head of AI Engineering to spearhead NCT’s transition into an AI-first platform. This is an intensely hands-on, builder-to-leader role designed for an elite engineer who is energized by complex, legacy transformation.
You will lead from the front with a strict "build-solo-first" mandate. Your initial mission is to personally design, build, and prove the first version of NCT's AI-driven capability, shipping measurable customer value before expanding headcount. Once the AI factory framework is successfully established, you will take on the people-management responsibility of scaling and upskilling the engineering team to adopt these modern workflows. We are not looking for a hands-off manager or a slide-deck architect—anyone who has left day-to-day technical execution behind will not be a fit.
What You Will Own
- AI-First Modernization (Hands-On): Personally design and build NCT's foundational AI capabilities (RAG systems, code generation, LLM orchestration, and multi-agent workflows) to analyze legacy code and generate production-ready services.
- Platform Modernization: Pragmatically refactor legacy components into scalable, cloud-native services and replace manual workflows with AI-driven automation without succumbing to the temptation of a wholesale platform rewrite.
- Phased Engineering Leadership: Once the AI factory is proven solo, you will assume direct delivery outcomes: managing team execution, elevating talent density, setting engineering rhythms, and mentoring developers into an AI-native way of working.
- Safe, Compliant Execution: Safely deploy features (utilizing feature flags, shadow mode, and monitoring) while strictly operating within government-adjacent and public-sector compliance frameworks (HIPAA, CJIS).
- Banyan Ecosystem Partnership: Act as the core technical partner to the CEO while collaborating with Banyan's centralized AI initiatives to accelerate localized product value.
What We Are Looking For
- Deep Software Breadth: 8+ years of hands-on software engineering with a proven track record of modernizing complex architectures and establishing cloud-native/DevSecOps practices.
- Production AI Experience: Documented history of shipping functional AI/ML systems end-to-end to real users (data pipelines, modeling, deployment, and monitoring). You treat AI tooling as the core foundation of engineering productivity.
- The "Build-Solo" Appetite: Experience as a founding or first AI engineer who is completely comfortable delivering baseline architecture independently before relying on a large team.
- Pragmatic Refactoring Judgment: Exceptional judgment regarding build-vs-buy decisions and the patience required to guide a 15-year-old Microsoft-stack platform through a modernization step-change.
- Leadership Maturity: Proven track record of managing engineering teams and a genuine desire to develop technical talent rather than operating in a silo.
- Radical Humility: Non-negotiable at Banyan. You possess strong commercial acumen and an exploratory mindset, but you earn trust through coachability and clear-eyed self-awareness.
- Logistics: Must be US-based and fully eligible for government-adjacent/public-sector compliance work.
Nice-to-Haves
- Direct GovTech, public sector, or federal case management software experience.
- Familiarity with the Microsoft AI stack (Azure ML, Azure OpenAI integrations) given the CaseWorks platform heritage.
- Experience managing, coordinating, or collaborating with distributed/offshore engineering teams.
Success Metrics (First 3–6 Months)
- AI-assisted development model built and in production use.
- Initial wave of high-value AI features successfully shipped inside CaseWorks.
- Measurable, predictable improvements in engineering delivery speed and cadence.
- Core legacy components systematically modernized into scalable cloud services.
Why Join Us & The Banyan Family?
- A Permanent Home, Not a Portfolio Play: Banyan buys, holds, and grows companies for life. We never resell. You can invest in real architectural health and long-term value without an arbitrary 3-to-5-year exit clock cutting your work short.
- True Autonomy with Enterprise Backing: Complete ownership of the AI strategy, tool choices, and engineering execution, combined with the financial stability and shared expertise of a global network.
- Built-In Peer Network: Gain immediate access to a vibrant community of Banyan operating company leaders sharing playbooks, lessons, and real-world tech-stack modernizations.