Principal AI Engineer

Job description

Conceptual Proactive Problem-Solver Strategic Technologically Savvy Visual Thinker <meta data-json="{"ModuleType":13,"ApplyButtonText":"Apply","JobDetailsAlign":0,"JobDetailsDate":0,"JobDetailsJobTypeId":1,"JobDetailsSelectedDate":"2026-10-27T14:33:40.377Z","JobDetailsJobDateFormat":0,"JobDetailsJobLabelId":"Job ID","JobDetailsJobDatePosting":"Date posted","JobDetailsDescriptionFormat":0,"ShowApplyLater":false,"ShowApplyMobile":true,"ShowApplyLaterMobile":false,"ShowApplyLaterWeb":false,"ApplyLaterText":"Apply Later","ApplyLaterAlign":0,"ApplyLaterSubject":"[[JOB_TITLE]] at [[COMPANY_NAME]]","PublishedCandidateCardPageId":null,"ReferrerPageId":null,"ReferrerPageButtonText":"","ShowSavedJobsIcon":false,"IconLabel":"Save for Later","OverrideCandidateCard":false,"ModulePageType":2,"ModulePageName":"AJD - Design 1","DisplayJobDateFormat":"MM/dd/yyyy","JobDetailsSelectedId":"JR0155948","ApplyUrl":"https://mckesson.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/External_Careers/job/USA-OH-Columbus/Principal-AI-Engineer_JR0155948-1/apply","JobDescription":"\u003Cp style=\u0022text-align:left\u0022\u003EMcKesson is an impact-driven, Fortune 10 company that touches virtually every aspect of healthcare. We are known for delivering insights, products, and services that make quality care more accessible and affordable. Here, we focus on the health, happiness, and well-being of you and those we serve \u2013 we care.\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp style=\u0022text-align:inherit\u0022\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp style=\u0022text-align:left\u0022\u003EWhat you do at McKesson matters. We foster a culture where you can grow, make an impact, and are empowered to bring new ideas. Together, we thrive as we shape the future of health for patients, our communities, and our people. If you want to be part of tomorrow\u2019s health today, we want to hear from you.\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp style=\u0022text-align:inherit\u0022\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp style=\u0022text-align:inherit\u0022\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Principal AI Engineer provides the highest level of individual-contributor technical leadership for the company\u0027s AI platform, operating one level above the Lead AI Engineer role. This person sets the multi-year architecture strategy for agentic and LLM-powered systems \u2014 spanning model strategy, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), tool/connector ecosystems, and evaluation/governance tooling \u2014 across every team that builds on the AI platform, not just one. In a highly regulated healthcare environment, the Principal AI Engineer resolves the hardest, most ambiguous technical problems facing the platform, is a primary technical voice with executive leadership on AI strategy and risk, and shapes how the entire engineering organization adopts AI safely and effectively.\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESuccess is measured by the durability and adoption of the technical strategy this role sets across multiple teams, this role\u0027s ability to unblock cross-organizational technical risk before it becomes a delivery or compliance problem, and its influence on AI investment decisions at the executive level.\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003Ch1\u003E\u003Cspan style=\u0022color:#1f3864\u0022\u003E\u003Cb\u003EKey Responsibilities\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h1\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EEnterprise AI Strategy: Own the multi-year technical strategy and roadmap for the AI platform across all teams building on it, not a single product or team \u2014 model strategy, RAG/retrieval architecture, connector ecosystems, and evaluation frameworks.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003ETechnical Authority: Serve as the final technical escalation point for the hardest, most ambiguous architecture and reliability problems on the AI platform, spanning multiple teams and systems.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003ECross-Team Standards: Set architecture, security, and evaluation standards that multiple Lead AI Engineers and their teams adopt; audit and evolve those standards as the platform and threat landscape change.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EExecutive Advisory: Serve as a primary technical voice to VP- and executive-level leadership on AI platform strategy, model risk, and investment trade-offs.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EDeep Technical Delivery: Personally lead architecture and prototyping for the organization\u0027s highest-ambiguity, highest-risk AI initiatives \u2014 the problems no existing team or pattern already solves.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EMentorship at Scale: Develop Lead and Senior AI Engineers into stronger technical leaders through design review, technical coaching, and structured knowledge-sharing across teams.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EResponsible AI \u0026 Governance: Shape enterprise-wide AI governance policy \u2014 model risk review, connector/tool approval frameworks, and PHI-handling standards \u2014 in partnership with Legal/Compliance/Privacy leadership.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EVendor \u0026 Model Strategy at Scale: Own evaluation and long-term strategy for foundation model providers and AI infrastructure vendors across the company, not just a single team\u0027s stack.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EExternal Technical Representation: Represent the company\u0027s AI engineering capability externally \u2014 industry forums, partner/vendor technical relationships, and recruiting for senior technical talent.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EOrganizational Impact: Influence AI platform direction and investment across the broader enterprise, extending beyond a single business unit.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cb\u003E\u003Cu\u003EPriority will be given to candidates who reside in the Columbus, OH metropolitan area.\u003C/u\u003E\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cb\u003E\u003Cu\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003C/u\u003E\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cb\u003E\u003Cu\u003EWe are unable to provide sponsorship for this role, presently or in the future. \u003C/u\u003E\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003Ch1\u003E\u003Cspan style=\u0022color:#1f3864\u0022\u003E\u003Cb\u003EMinimum Requirements\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h1\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EBachelor\u0027s degree or equivalent experience; typically 12\u002B years of software engineering experience, including 6\u002B years focused on AI/ML, LLM, or NLP systems in production and 3\u002B years operating as a senior individual-contributor technical leader. Fewer years required with a relevant Master\u0027s or Doctorate.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cbr /\u003E\u003Ch1\u003E\u003Cspan style=\u0022color:#1f3864\u0022\u003E\u003Cb\u003ECritical Skills\u003C/b\u003E\u003C/span\u003E\u003C/h1\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EOne level of demonstrated technical leadership above a Lead AI Engineer \u2014 e.g., setting technical direction and standards across multiple teams, not just owning architecture for a single team or platform area.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EProven track record setting technical strategy that multiple teams adopt, not just delivering within one team\u0027s roadmap.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EDeep, hands-on expertise building production LLM applications at scale: prompt engineering, RAG, agentic workflows, tool use, and evaluation harnesses \u2014 with the judgment to know which patterns will and won\u0027t hold up over multiple years.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EExperience with commercial large language model APIs (e.g., Anthropic, OpenAI) and tool-integration protocols such as Model Context Protocol (MCP), including evaluating emerging alternatives.\u003C/li\u003E\u003C/ul\u00