Engineering Manager - AI/ML

About Rula

At Rula, we believe that mental health is just as important as physical health. We recognize that mental health issues can be complex and multifaceted, and we are dedicated to treating the whole person, not just the symptoms.

We aim to create a world where mental health is no longer stigmatized or marginalized, but rather is embraced as an integral part of one's overall well-being. By providing quality care that is both evidence-based and compassionate, we empower individuals to take charge of their mental health and achieve their full potential.

Rula is a remote-first company. We currently hire in most U.S. states, with the exception of Hawaii.

About the Role

We are seeking an Engineering Manager for AI/ML to enable Rula’s AI Engineering team through technical leadership across both applied product capabilities and foundational ML platforms. This person will be responsible for guiding a highly AI-native group of Senior and Staff engineers to rapidly deliver user-facing features such as transcript summarization and search relevance, while simultaneously architecting our core AI/ML infrastructure such as feature stores and AI observability platforms.

You will apply a balance of strong execution speed, Radical Candor in coaching, and rigorous clinical safety sense to ensure our solutions and models scale safely. You will be at the vanguard of Rula's AI engineering, shaping a culture of high talent density and driving technological synergy that directly transforms how mental healthcare is delivered and experienced.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of professional software engineering and machine learning experience, including 5+ years designing, scaling, and deploying distributed backend systems in cloud environments (AWS, GCP, etc.).
• 3+ years of direct engineering management experience, with a proven track record of hiring, retaining, and directly managing high-performing Senior and Staff-level engineers.
• 3+ years of experience technically leading or building core ML infrastructure, such as feature stores, MLOps pipelines, model deployment systems, or AI observability platforms.
• 2+ years of experience directing or developing production-grade applied AI features, specifically focusing on LLM integrations (e.g., NLP, transcript summarization, RAG) or search, ranking, and relevance engines.
• Proven operational track record of concurrently managing the delivery of both user-facing product features and backend infrastructure platform work across multiple production release cycles.

Preferred Qualifications

• Regulated Industry Experience: Experience shipping advanced AI systems in high-stakes, regulated environments (such as HealthTech or FinTech), balancing privacy, compliance (e.g., HIPAA), and safety standards without hindering engineering velocity.
• Advanced AI Evaluation Expertise: Deep, hands-on experience designing production-ready evaluation frameworks for LLMs—combining automated metrics, LLM-as-a-judge, and Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) processes specifically aimed at mitigating hallucinations and bias.
• AI-Augmented Engineering Philosophy: A practiced philosophy on using AI to multiply engineering output (e.g., coding agents, advanced IDE integrations, automated testing bots).
• Dual-Mandate Prioritization Framework: Nuanced experience managing the tension between short-term product delivery and long-term platform investments, demonstrating clear frameworks for prioritizing technical debt against aggressive feature sprints.

Benefits & Well-Being

• 100% Remote Work Environment: Flexible working hours supporting work-life balance (must be US-based, excluding Hawaii).
• Transparent Pay & Benefits: Clear pay transparency across the US.
• Comprehensive Healthcare: Medical, dental, vision, life, disability, and FSA/HSA.
• 401(k) Plan: Access to retirement savings plans.
• Generous Time-Off: Includes 2 company-wide shutdown weeks each year for self-care.
• Paid Parental Leave: Supporting all parents (birthing, non-birthing, adopting, fostering).
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP): Mental and physical health support.
• Stipends:
  • New hire home office stipend + $50/month internet/cell phone stipend.
  • $50/month wellness stipend.
  • Quarterly department stipend for team gatherings and offsites.
• Community & ERGs: Employee resource groups celebrating identity and lived experiences.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

We believe that diversity, equity, and inclusion are fundamental to our mission of making mental healthcare work for everyone. We are dedicated to maintaining a culture of inclusion that supports our employees in feeling safe, seen, heard, and valued.