IT AI Innovation Engineer

We are a Firm where people truly believe in what they do and strive to achieve the highest standards of performance and success. This position may be based at the Firm's Global Operations Center in Tampa Florida, or at the Operation Center in Dallas Texas. General Description: We are seeking an IT AI Innovation Engineer to join our team. The IT AI Innovation Engineer is responsible for designing, building, and maintaining software systems that leverage AI technology to enhance Holland & Knight’s legal practice and operational efficiency. This cross-functional role spans systems architecture, software development, workflow orchestration, and project implementation. The engineer will collaborate closely with the Innovation team, IT Applications, IT Risk, Legal, and key business stakeholders to deliver cutting-edge solutions tailored to the legal domain. Key Responsibilities and Essential Job Functions: Develop AI-Oriented Workflows: Build advanced AI workflows such as retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) pipelines, prompt chaining, contract automation, and interactive Q&A assistants for attorneys and legal support teams. Full-Stack Engineering: Develop front-end systems using modern and scalable frameworks (React, TypeScript, Vue) back-end systems with Python or Node.js, and integration with internal and third-party systems. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work with Cloud Architects, IT Security, UI/UX Designers, Application Developers, and Data Governance teams to ensure compliance, scalability, and reliability. Iterative Prototyping with Stakeholders: Rapidly build prototype solutions, engage legal users in feedback cycles, and refine tools to deliver high utility and usability. Software Lifecycle Management: Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines and GitHub Action workflows, ensuring adherence to firm SDLC and data governance guidelines while fostering collaboration between teams. Evaluation and Innovation: Evaluate third-party AI tools and vendor offerings through hands-on testing, code-based validation, and performance benchmarking. Strive to deliver tailored, maintainable engineering solutions that align tightly with the firm’s unique legal needs. Security Focus: Using a strong understanding of secure development practices, apply principals from industry standard frameworks (OWASP Top 10, SANS CWE, NIST). Conduct code reviews, applying least-privilege principals in design, and implementing automated security checks in CI/ CD pipelines. Required Skills: Strong foundation in software engineering and AI systems design. Proficiency in full-stack development (React/TypeScript, Python, Node.js). Experience with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and prompt engineering. Familiarity with vector databases, semantic search, and LLM orchestration. Proficiency with version control (git). Hands-on experience with ServiceNow platform and architecture. Solid understanding of cloud architecture and tools (e.g., Azure, AWS). Experience with cloud infras