AI Development Manager - PLS Financial Services, Inc.

PLS^®: People. Location. Service 

Why PLS? Because You Deserve Better!®  PLS — which stands for People – Location – Service — is a leading retail provider of financial services. The “P” comes first, because our customers are at the center of everything we do, and we recognize that it’s our exceptional team members who go above and beyond every day. The PLS Group, headquartered in Chicago, is comprised of over 200 financial service centers in 12 states. Through our check cashing stores, we provide consumers with convenient financial products and services to help them manage their day-to-day financial needs. Although many of our customers have banking relationships, we believe that our customers use our financial services because they are convenient, transparent, and frequently more affordable than available traditional alternatives. PLS was founded in 1997 by Bob and Dan Wolfberg, who serve as Co-Presidents.

Overview:

PLS is embarking on an exciting journey to integrate and enhance artificial intelligence (AI) systems within our work processes. The AI Development Manager will be an integral part of this work to develop and train artificial intelligence tools to help automate processes for PLS and our customers.

The Artificial Development (AI) Development Manager will lead the company’s AI and development team, consisting of Development Team Leads, Senior Developers, Developers, AI engineers, and other team members with technical expertise. This person will be responsible for the overall system architecture and an efficient software development lifecycle (SDLC) process. The AI Development Manager works with users to support business applications and AI development initiatives in addition to providing strategic direction on compliance for the design, development, and implementation of AI models into operational workflows. This is a journey‑level position in support of business applications and technical users with significant management exposure to technical and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities:

• Manages and promotes relationships with key stakeholders, including internal customers, 3^rd-party vendors and other groups within the organization
• Identifies and explores AI development tooling opportunities for consumption by the internal IT teams
• Ensures business solutions are 'fit for purpose.’ Evaluates system software architecture
• Develops and delivers effective solutions with adherence to time, cost, regulatory, and quality parameters
• Responsible for product maintenance and management
• Remains abreast of technology with an emphasis on artificial intelligence solutions and provides technology thought leadership
• Assists IT leadership in building a culture of high performance, pro-activity, business cooperation, continuous improvement, and service delivery
• Manages and provides leadership to a group of IT professionals, including Team Leads, Developers, AI Engineers, and other technical staff
• Manages team augmentation and resource allocation
• Trains and develops team members’ capability to improve skills and performance. Gathers meaningful metrics on team and individual performance
• Prepares reports outlining the proposed systems or revisions
• Manages others to perform specialized programming tasks requiring a high degree of technical proficiency in areas such as database, system design, and system architecture
• Establishes standards for code, tests, and documentation
• Has escalated responsibility for all applications for emergency support
• Mentors and develops technical team members
• Communicates effectively with all other company departments
• Creates schedules and manages resource levels appropriate for business needs
• Assists IT Leadership in the establishment of department budgets, goals, and metrics

Requirements:

• Bachelor of Science within the discipline of Information Technology preferred
• 2+ years of experience with data modeling and data exploration tools, including expertise in the use of scientific computing and data management packages
• Five or more years of application development management
• Knowledge of Azure platform services, such as App Services, Service bus, Cosmos, and SQL
• Familiarity with the .Net platform, the C# language, Angular, SSRS
• Some experience with AI tooling such as GitHub and Copilot

Key Customers:

• Vice President of Information Technology, Information Technology Director

Physical Requirements:

• Must be able to sit and/or stand for long periods of time.
• Ability to lift 15 lbs.

Benefits:

Benefits for eligible employees include medical/dental/vision, 401k, vacation, opportunities for advancement, on-going training available.

We strive to demonstrate our Core Values in all positions at PLS:

Communication ● Customer Focus ● Integrity and Trust ● Teamwork ● Results

PLS Financial Services is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, marital status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. PLS Financial Services is a drug-free workplace. PLS provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify your Recruiter or a member of our Human Resources