Staff Engineer - AI & Automation

About the role

This is a hands-on engineering position within Commercial Finance. You design, code, and deploy software as an individual contributor. There is no management responsibility. You translate finance process knowledge into automated systems powered by AI agents and orchestrated workflows. You will be responsible for reimagining how Commercial Finance operates by replacing manual, error-prone tasks with resilient, automated software. In this role, you will act as the primary architect and builder of intelligent systems that directly impact business outcomes. You will partner closely with finance specialists to understand their needs and translate them into robust technical solutions. Your work will enable the team to operate with greater speed, accuracy, and confidence.

Key facts

What you'll do

Redesign the Commercial Finance deal approval process from end to end and build the software that runs it.

Design, build, and deploy AI agents and LLM-based automation to replace manual review, reconciliation, and validation tasks.

Reduce unnecessary finance approvals by encoding rules and risk-based routing into automated workflows.

Own technical delivery from idea to prototype to production, working as a solo technical owner.

Integrate automation with Commercial Finance systems such as CRM, ERP, and finance data sources using APIs and MCP integrations.

Measure and improve efficiency by tracking cycle-time reduction and manual work removed.

Drive AI adoption within the function by building reusable agent capabilities and supporting day-to-day supervision and use.

Become the go-to technical expert for Commercial Finance automation initiatives.

Explore and prototype new automation opportunities by evaluating emerging tools and techniques.

Break down complex business requirements into technical specifications that guide implementation.

Champion software quality by implementing rigorous testing, observability, and monitoring practices.

Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure solutions meet operational and compliance needs.

Continuously iterate on deployed solutions based on feedback and performance metrics.

Contribute to the architectural vision for Commercial Finance technology within the broader engineering organization.

Requirements

Code every day and prefer writing production-grade software over theoretical discussions.

Take pride in shipping robust solutions with strong version control, testing, and observability.

Already build with AI agents and LLM applications, either at work or in personal projects.

Own problems from initial concept through deployment and adoption without needing detailed guidance.

Work comfortably with cloud technologies, especially Microsoft Azure.

Understand systems integration patterns for connecting APIs, data pipelines, and MCP services.

Have a deep understanding of software development lifecycle and DevOps best practices.

Be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment where priorities can shift quickly.

Nice to have

Experience designing agentic workflows and orchestration patterns for autonomous systems.

Skills & tools

Claude; LLMs; prompt engineering; tool use; retrieval; evaluation; safe deployment; APIs; MCP; Azure; cloud services; CI/CD; version control; testing; observability; clean, maintainable code; governance and security practices.

Practical notes

This is not a finance or transformation-leadership role. Finance specialists on the team own the process knowledge; you bring engineering expertise to solve their problems with software. A finance background is not required. Curiosity and the ability to learn the domain quickly are more important than prior finance experience. About you

You are a technical-first engineer who lives building software and experimenting with AI. You write code daily and want to continue doing hands-on work. You are interested in cloud automation, process efficiency, and the future of AI-assisted engineering.

Level, reporting & package

Level: Staff Engineer - a senior individual contributor who builds, not a people manager.

Reporting line: reports into an engineering leader within the wider engineering organisation, while being dedicated full-time to Commercial Finance projects.

Location: Staines-upon-Thames, United Kingdom - hybrid working.

At IFS we build award-winning enterprise software through a single cloud-based platform, helping businesses act at the Moment of Service™. We are a billion-dollar revenue company with 7000+ employees on all continents. We embrace flexibility and hybrid work to support diverse needs and lifestyles. We invest in community, innovation, and inclusion, and we focus on making a positive impact. If you want to change the source of truth, we will help you make your moment. Join Team Purple. Join IFS.

About the company

IFS builds an enterprise-grade AI hiring platform for HR and recruiting teams. The system centralizes applicant tracking and supports an all-in-one workflow that coordinates sourcing, assessment, and hiring.

People in talent roles use the platform to manage open roles, schedule interviews, and move candidates through defined stages. The interface emphasizes clear data, structured feedback, and steady progress tracking for every recruiter.