Senior Director, Machine Learning Engineering

Company Description

It all started in sunny San Diego, California in 2004 when a visionary engineer, Fred Luddy, saw the potential to transform how we work. Fast forward to today — ServiceNow stands as a global market leader, bringing innovative AI-enhanced technology to over 8,100 customers, including 85% of the Fortune 500®. Our intelligent cloud-based platform seamlessly connects people, systems, and processes to empower organizations to find smarter, faster, and better ways to work. But this is just the beginning of our journey. Join us as we pursue our purpose to make the world work better for everyone.

Job Description

What you get to do in this role:

The CoreLLM team, part of the Platform and AI organization, is focused on building Small Language Models (SLMs), open-weight models like Apriel, and traditional machine learning algorithms and pipelines. Our models and platform power ServiceNow's Pro (ML) and Pro Plus (GenAI) offerings, delivering powerful AI capabilities to our customers.

As a Senior Director, Model Training and Evaluation, you will lead the teams responsible for the full lifecycle of our models. This includes everything from the initial training and fine-tuning to rigorous evaluation and deployment. Your leadership will be critical in developing state-of-the-art models that push the boundaries of what our platform can do.

This is a fast-growing, high-impact role where you will:

• Lead and scale a team of talented  researchers, applied researchers and machine learning engineers.
• Define the strategy and roadmap for model training and evaluation, ensuring we deliver high-quality, performant, and reliable models.
• Drive innovation in training techniques, including developing new methods for fine-tuning, knowledge distillation, and reinforcement learning.
• Establish best practices for model evaluation, including creating robust benchmarks, metrics, and frameworks to ensure model quality and integrity.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams across product, engineering, and research to translate business needs into technical requirements and deliver impactful solutions.
• Stay ahead of the curve by researching and implementing the latest advancements in large language models and AI research.

Qualifications

To be successful in this role you have:

• Experience in leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving. This may include using AI-powered tools, automating workflows, analyzing AI-driven insights, or exploring AI’s potential impact on the function or industry.
• Extensive experience in leading and managing high-performing machine learning or AI teams, with a focus on model training and evaluation.
• Deep technical expertise in modern machine learning and deep learning, including a strong understanding of LLM architectures, training paradigms (e.g., pre-training, supervised fine-tuning), and evaluation methodologies.
• Proven track record of building and deploying production-level AI models at scale.
• Strong leadership and management skills with the ability to inspire and grow a world-class team, with extensive experience managing large organizations of 50 or more engineers and researchers.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills to work effectively with stakeholders at all levels, from technical teams to senior executives.
• Hands-on experience with major deep learning frameworks like PyTorch or TensorFlow
• A Ph.D. or Master's degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, or a related field is a plus.

For positions in this location, we offer a base pay of $274,300 - $480,100, plus equity (when applicable), variable/incentive compensation and benefits. Sales positions generally offer a competitive On Target Earnings (OTE) incentive compensation structure. Please note that the base pay shown is a guideline, and individual total compensation will vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, competencies, and work location. We also offer health plans, including flexible spending accounts, a 401(k) Plan with company match, ESPP, matching donations, a flexible time away plan and family leave programs. Compensation is based on the geographic location in which the role is located and is subject to change based on work location.

Additional Information

Work Personas

We approach our distributed world of work with flexibility and trust. Work personas (flexible, remote, or required in office) are categories that are assigned to ServiceNow employees depending on the nature of their work and their assigned work location. Learn more here. To determine eligibility for a work persona, ServiceNow may confirm the distance between your primary residence and the closest ServiceNow office using a third-party service.

Equal Opportunity Employer

ServiceNow is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin or nationality, ancestry, age, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other category protected by law. In addition, all qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with legal requirements. 

Accommodations

We strive to create an accessible and inclusive experience for all candidates. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process, or are unable to use this online application and need an alternative method to apply, please contact globaltalentss@servicenow.com for assistance. 

Export Control Regulations

For positions requiring access to controlled technology subject to export control regulations, including the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), ServiceNow may be required to obtain export control approval from government authorities for certain individuals. All employment is contingent upon ServiceNow obtaining any export license or other approval that may be required by relevant export control authorities. 

From Fortune. ©2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All rights reserved. Used under license.