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Klaviyo is seeking a Lead People Systems Engineer to be the first dedicated AI engineer within the People Technology (KPPL) team. This is a foundational role to reimagine how the People organization operates in an AI-first world by shaping architecture, standards, and long-term vision.
You will partner across People Operations, Talent Acquisition, Talent, and Finance to design and build intelligent systems that transform hiring, development, retention, and employee support globally. The focus is not incremental automation but fundamental reimagining of core People workflows through an AI-first lens.
Key responsibilities include:
**AI-First People Systems & Architecture**: Redesign recruiting, onboarding, performance, and daily workflows with AI at the core. Design and build AI-powered workflows, copilots, and agents. Architect systems integrating SaaS platforms (Workday, Greenhouse, Sana) and internal Klaviyo systems. Partner with the internal IT AI team to establish best practices for prompt engineering, LLM system design, versioning, testing, security, and observability. Enable AI use cases that drive faster execution and better decision-making.
**Driving an AI-First Operating Model**: Identify high-leverage opportunities to replace manual workflows with AI-native solutions. Define success metrics tied to efficiency gains and operational effectiveness. Help the People organization shift toward AI-augmented ways of working. Act as a thought partner to People leadership on what's possible with AI.
**Responsible AI, Privacy & Governance**: Design systems handling sensitive employee data with security, privacy, and trust at the core. Partner with Security, Legal, and Global IT to ensure compliant and ethical AI deployment.
**Cross-Functional Collaboration**: Work with Security, IT, and GTM Systems on shared AI infrastructure and standards. Enable People teams by building reusable frameworks, playbooks, and training materials. Help non-technical stakeholders confidently use AI-powered tools.
**Technical Leadership**: Advocate for scalable, well-governed AI systems. Shape how Klaviyo becomes AI-first internally, starting with People systems.
Required qualifications: 5+ years engineering or data engineering experience with 2+ years building AI/ML or LLM-powered systems delivering tangible business outcomes. Proven ability to set technical direction and build 0→1 systems with organizational impact. Strong experience with Python, SQL, modern APIs, LLM platforms (OpenAI, Claude, Gemini), LangChain/LangGraph, designing AI workflows/agents/copilots, integrating enterprise SaaS systems, designing scalable systems and automation frameworks, and working with sensitive data and responsible AI practices.
