Overview Engineering Manager - Machine Learning role at Zendesk. Zendesk’s goal is to make Customer Experience better. Our products help more than 125,000 global brands make their billions of customers happy, every day. The AI/ML Platform team builds the foundation that powers every AI-driven experience at Zendesk, enabling product teams to build, evaluate, and deploy state-of-the-art Large Language Model (LLM) applications reliably and at scale. We are looking for an Engineering Manager to lead the next wave of GenAI infrastructure at Zendesk, including our internal LLM Proxy, benchmarking framework, data annotations, and agentic workflow orchestration tools. You’ll empower Zendesk’s ML/AI teams by building secure, cost-optimized, and developer-friendly ML platforms that scale across use cases and products. You’ll work with Engineering, Product, Architects and Tech Leads to ensure your team’s roadmap aligns with company strategy and ships architecturally sound software at a regular cadence. What you get to do every day Lead a high-performing team of AI/ML platform engineers to deliver the core infrastructure powering LLM-based applications. Own the design, rollout, and optimization of Zendesk’s LLM Proxy, enabling safe, observable, and cost-efficient access to multiple foundation models. Collaborate with existing ML/AI leadership to continually improve software delivery and service reliability. Partner with applied ML, product, and infrastructure teams to align platform investments with AI roadmap priorities. Establish strong engineering practices around observability, reliability, security, and cost monitoring. Foster a team culture that emphasizes mentorship, inclusion, and technical excellence. What you bring to the role Proven experience managing high-performing engineering teams in the ML/AI or infrastructure space. Deep understanding of LLM systems, GenAI applications, or ML/AI platform components such as vector databases, serving layers, and orchestration tools. Experience owning the full lifecycle of ML/AI platform components—from early design to production deployment. Strong communication skills and an ability to influence technical direction across teams and partners. A pragmatic mindset: you balance innovation with scalability and performance in enterprise environments. A dedication to continual self-development. Collaborative, upbeat work ethic where you can take ownership and have fun. Tech stack Python AWS LLM Vendors: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Llama Infrastructure: Kubernetes, Docker, Kafka, AWS What we offer Full ownership of the projects you work on. Opportunity to make a large impact. Team of passionate people who love what they do. Exciting projects with room to implement your ideas and improvements. Opportunity to learn and grow. Flexible working hours. Professional development funds. Hybrid work with a mix of onsite and remote. Comfortable office and a remote setup. Choice of laptop and other equipment. Premium Medical Insurance and Private Life Assurance. Hybrid In this role, our hybrid setup is team-level with onsite collaboration and the flexibility to work remotely part of the week. The specific in-office schedule is determined by the hiring manager. The Intelligent Heart Of Customer Experience Zendesk powers billions of conversations with brands you know and love. We value a fulfilling and inclusive experience, with a hybrid work model that enables in-person connection while allowing remote work for part of the week. Zendesk is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to global diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace. If you require a reasonable accommodation to submit this application, please contact peopleandplaces@zendesk.com. EEO Statement Zendesk is an AA/EEO/Veterans/Disabled employer. If you are based in the United States and would like more information about EEO rights under the law, please click here. Seniority level Mid-Senior level Employment type Full-time Job function Engineering and Information Technology Software Development Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at Zendesk. J-18808-Ljbffr
