POSITION SUMMARY
The Forward Deployed AI Architect sits with a team, learns how their work
actually happens, and then rebuilds that work with them using AI. Reporting to
the Sr. Director of AI + Digital Transformation, with a close relationship to
the Direct, AI Platform Operations, this role takes prioritized processes from
across the Alzheimer’s Association and makes them agentic, in whole or in part.
Each engagement is a sprint. Weeks to a few months, one process at a time,
sometimes reaching across several business areas. The work starts with sitting
next to people and watching what they actually do, at a level of detail needed
for true transformation. It ends with something running that gives hours back,
documentation the team can live with, and a clean handoff to AI Platform
Operations and IT.
This is a builder role. You will spend your days inside our AI platforms
(primarily Claude) shipping working solutions rather than recommending them.
When we need something outside our existing technology stack, you will say so
and find what that is.
Every hour this role gives back to the Association and our staff goes somewhere
meaningful. Toward care, toward being in community, toward the research that
ends this disease—toward the work only a person can do.
ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES
Process Discovery: Embed with a team and learn their work in granular detail.
Sit through the actual task. Map where the time goes, where errors creep in,
and which parts of the job people dread. Bring the team into the redesign
from the first day so they own what comes out of it.
Building: Build working agents, automations, skills, and tools using approved
AI platforms, primarily Claude. Ship something people can use inside the
sprint. Work in real time alongside the staff who will use it, iterating on
their actual deliverables rather than a sample.
Sprint Delivery and Handoff: Run each engagement as a time-boxed sprint with
a defined start and end. Set the value target up front. Prove it at the
close. Hand the solution to AI Platform Operations and IT with the
documentation, test cases, and runbook they need to support it, then stay
available through a 30-day stabilization window before moving to the next
process.
Troubleshooting: Diagnose and fix what you built while a sprint is live and
through stabilization. After that, partner with the standing IT support group
on resolution rather than owning it. Feed every failure back into how the
next thing gets built.
Reuse and Pattern Library: Recognize when a solution built for one team fits
four others. Turn one-off builds into reusable skills, agents, and templates.
Maintain a working library that the AI Collective and staff across the
Association can pull from without asking permission.
Value Measurement: Define a measurable target for every engagement before the
work starts, whether that is hours returned, cycle time reduced, or capacity
created. Track it through delivery and after. Report results to the Sr.
Director and the AI Steering Committee, including the engagements that did
not pay off.
Responsible Deployment: Work inside the Association’s Responsible AI
guidelines, data handling standards, and information security requirements.
Know which processes should stay in human hands and say so early. Partner
with Enterprise Risk and AI Platform Operations before any solution touches
constituent, donor, research, or staff data.
Cross-Functional Partnership: Maintain a close working relationship with the
Director of AI Platform Operations, who owns platform configuration,
enterprise connectors, security review, and consumption. Coordinate early
when a build needs new system access or new credentials. Serve as a dedicated
member of the AI Collective.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor’s degree in a related field, or equivalent professional experience
3–5 years of professional experience in work that required understanding how
a process actually runs and then changing it. Consulting, operations,
product, program delivery, or a dedicated AI transformation role all qualify
Hands-on experience building AI agents, automations, or tools that real
people adopted and continued using in their day-to-day work. Candidates
should be prepared to walk through what they built, who used it, and what
changed as a result
Working fluency with Claude or a comparable enterprise AI platform, including
experience going beyond chat into agentic and multi-step workflows.
Candidates coming from applied AI, forward deployed, or solutions delivery
backgrounds are encouraged to apply
Comfort working with APIs, connectors, and structured data well enough to
wire a solution to the systems where work lives
A clear understanding of what separates a prototype from a production system,
and the judgment to know which one a given situation calls for
Ability to teach while building, so that the people you build for can
maintain and extend the work after you leave
Strong written and verbal communication with non-technical staff, and the
patience to work through a process with someone who is skeptical of AI
Comfort operating in a role with no established playbook, in an organization
where trust is earned over time
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Direct experience with Claude Code, Claude Cowork, MCP servers, or comparable
agent development frameworks
Experience delivering AI or automation work inside a large, matrixed
organization
Background in one or more of the areas the Association works in: scientific
research, public policy and advocacy, healthcare, fundraising, or field and
volunteer operations
Familiarity with Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday, or CXone as the systems
a solution connects to
Prior nonprofit sector experience
Experience documenting and scaling a solution beyond the team it was built
for
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES
Granular Curiosity: Wants to know what someone clicks on at 9:15 on a
Tuesday. Learns an unfamiliar business area fast and earns credibility with
the people doing the work
Bias Toward Building: Would rather show a working prototype on someone’s real
deliverable this week than present a polished plan for next quarter
Teaching Instinct: Builds with people rather than for them, and measures
success partly by how little the team needs you afterward
Judgment on Where to Stop: Recognizes when a process should stay human, when
a prototype is good enough, and when a build needs to go to IT before it goes
any further
Plain Language: Explains technical decisions to a program director, a
fundraiser, and a C-suite leader without changing the substance
PHYSICAL & PRACTICAL REQUIREMENTS
Ability to work at a computer for extended periods
Occasional evening or weekend availability during active sprints or at
handoff
Travel up to 15% to work on site with teams, including field and chapter
operations
Ability to facilitate working sessions with groups of varying sizes, both
virtual and in person
Location: US Remote
Work Schedule: Full-Time (37.5 hours per week)
Reports To: Sr. Director, AI + Digital
Transformation
Position Grade & Compensation: Grade 512 The Alzheimer’s Association’s
good faith expectation for the salary range for this role is $155,000-$168,000.
This position is eligible for a bonus based on both individual and
organizational performance, up to 6%
The Alzheimer’s Association is the leading voluntary health organization in
Alzheimer’s care, support and research. Our mission is to lead the way to end
Alzheimer's and all other dementia– by accelerating global research, driving
risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support.
The Alzheimer’s Association announced a landmark $100 million investment in
research for 2023. This unparalleled commitment is illustrative of the momentum
we are building in dementia research — our investments today will lead to
breakthroughs tomorrow.
At the Alzheimer’s Association, our employees are at the core of all we do. Our
network of more than 1,900 employees across the United States makes a difference
each and every day for those impacted by Alzheimer’s and those at risk for the
disease.
We warmly invite qualified applicants to consider this opportunity to make a
life-changing impact on the millions living with Alzheimer’s, their caregivers
and those that may develop the disease in the future. Read on to learn more
about the role, then visit our website www.alz.org/jobs to explore who we are
and why we've been recognized as a Best Place to Work for the last twelve years
in a row.
At the Alzheimer's Association®, we believe that diverse perspectives are
critical to achieving health equity — meaning that all communities have a fair
and just opportunity for early diagnosis and access to risk reduction and
quality care. The Association is committed to engaging underrepresented and
underserved communities and responding with resources and education to address
the disproportionate impact of Alzheimer’s and dementia. The Alzheimer’s
Association commitment remains steadfast in engaging all communities in our full
mission. The Association provides equal employment opportunities to all
employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and
harassment to the fullest extent required by law, including, but not limited to,
on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, gender
identity, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual
orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic.
Employees working 24 hours/week or more are eligible for a comprehensive
benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, flex accounts, short and
long-term disability, life insurance, long term care insurance, tuition
reimbursement, generous Paid Time Off, 12 annual holidays and Paid Family Leave,
as well as an annual Cultural & Heritage Day and Volunteer Day of their
choosing. They are also eligible for our gold standard 401(k) retirement plan.
Please click HERE for more information.
Full time employees (37.5 hours/week), will enjoy all of the above plus an
annual School Visitation Day and an Elder Care Facility Day of their choosing.
Qualified Applicants with arrest or Conviction records will be considered for
Employment in accordance with the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for
Employers and the California Fair Chance Act at the Alzheimer's Association.
The Alzheimer's Association will conduct an individualized assessment of the
material job duties of this job include working with vulnerable communities
which the employer may reasonably believe that Criminal History may have a
direct, adverse and negative relationship for the safety of the community.
The background check will include searches for: social security person search,
public reports, county & federal criminal reports, multi-jurisdictional, sex
offender database, NSOPW national sex offender, education, employment history,
motor vehicle or driving history, and reference checks.