Head of Engineering & AI (m/f/d)

Join us to make education accessible for all!

Strengthen our Synthetic Teaching / Syntea AI team in full-time (40 hrs./week) as Head of Engineering (m/f/d) within Germany or UK remotely or at one of our office locations.

This role focuses on leading the engineering vision for Syntea, a critical part of IU’s AI-first strategy.

• Lead multi-domain engineering teams (Frontend, Backend, AI Services, Platform) delivering SynteaOS, domain agents, and AI-driven micro-apps.

• Drive architectural excellence, ensuring scalability, modularity, and reliability of the Syntea ecosystem.

• Partner with Product and AI leads to transform innovative ideas into robust, production-grade solutions.

• Embed AI across the stack – from conversational interfaces to adaptive learning mechanisms.

• Foster engineering excellence and culture, mentoring leads and engineers to reach their full potential.

• Ensure collaboration and alignment across the AI Workbench, Learning & Tutoring, and Student Enablement domains.

• Build lean, AI-amplified teams, applying modern development practices (continuous delivery, code reviews, CoPs, and AI-assisted coding).

• Proven leadership in engineering management (5+ years), ideally across multiple cross-functional product teams.

• Strong technical foundation in modern software architecture, cloud-native development, and data or AI integration.

• Experience working in or alongside AI / ML product environments (e.g., LLM applications, MLOps, agent frameworks).

• Ability to balance technical vision with delivery – you know how to inspire teams while keeping execution sharp.

• Experience in scaling organizations, establishing standards, and building a strong engineering identity.

• Excellent communication skills in English; German is a plus

• Be you at IU: We support and empower you to achieve your personal and professional goals. After all, your happiness significantly contributes to a positive and productive environment.

• Work wherever you want…: Digitalization is part of our DNA. Decide for yourself which place sparks the most productivity in you. You love remote work? No problem! Would you like to work abroad for a while? Our WorkFlex Benefit makes it possible.

• … and flexible in terms of time: It’s your job; We trust you and give you the greatest possible freedom to organize yourself.

• Take your knowledge to a new level: Where else, if not with us? Enjoy free access to all our e-learning platforms. In addition, we will finance you a complete technology course of your choic

• Make your journey sustainable: Whether it’s a DeutschlandTicket subsidised to just €13.45, or a Jobrad (bike leasing) offer, enjoy the freedom of mobility for both work and personal activities, while also making an eco-friendly choice.

• 33 days to rest: Taking breaks is important! In addition to 30 flexible vacation days per year, we also give you additional days off on your birthday, Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

IU International University of Applied Science (IU) is Germany’s largest university of applied science – and we are not just an excellent choice for studying, but also an outstanding Great Place to Work®! As an Edutech company, we rely on state-of-the-art technology and data-driven approaches. That’s why AI-driven voice assistants and other GPT systems have long become part of our daily work routine, helping us to focus on exciting projects. Here at IU over 4,000 employees are dedicated to making a difference.

Become part of our Engineering team! We’re passionate, competitive, open to all things new – and we love data. We live to code anything that makes IU students and IU services better.

Sounds like the perfect job for you? Then apply now! Simple, fast and even without a cover letter. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact Ronja at Ronja.kaiser@iu.org.

Please note that, for data protection reasons, we are not allowed to process email applications.

Actions speak louder than words: We cherish our „Culture of Everyone“ and would like to take this opportunity to empathize that we do not tolerate discrimination towards any race, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation