AI Engineer

Please note: This role is contingent upon a contract award. While it is not an immediate opening, we are actively conducting interviews and extending offers in anticipation of the award.

The Work

At ICF our Digital Modernization Division is an information technology and management consulting organization that delivers integrated, strategic solutions to federal clients. We bring expertise in cloud, cybersecurity, enterprise architecture, data modernization, and digital transformation to support mission-critical government programs.

Join a team accelerating the modernization of a large federal agency's enterprise data and analytics ecosystem. This cloud-based platform provides data storage, analytics, governance, and AI/ML capabilities that enable thousands of users to transform data into actionable insights. As demand continues to grow, the team is focused on migrating legacy workloads, streamlining onboarding and support, expanding platform capabilities, and helping organizations across the enterprise adopt modern data and AI solutions at scale.

The AI Engineer develops and operationalizes AI, machine learning, NLP, predictive analytics, and generative AI capabilities that accelerate data-driven decision making across the enterprise. This role builds reusable AI/ML solutions, model deployment frameworks, prompt orchestration patterns, agentic workflows, and MLOps pipelines leveraging Databricks ML, Azure Machine Learning, MLflow, Python, and cloud-scale data platforms. Working across engineering, governance, security, and business teams, the AI Engineer enables the adoption of AI at scale through model monitoring, performance evaluation, human-in-the-loop workflows, cost optimization, and responsible AI practices that ensure solutions are trusted, governed, and production-ready.

Job Location: Remote, however, strong preference for candidates who live in the Washington DC Metro Area. There will be occasional onsite meetings on the client site in Washington, DC.

• If you accept this position, you should note that ICF does monitor employee work locations, blocks access from foreign locations/foreign IP addresses, and prohibits personal VPN connections.

What You Will Do:

• Develops NLP, text analytics, prompt orchestration, guardrails, content-filtering approaches, and human-in-the-loop workflows using VA-approved AI/ML tools and data environments.
• Translates unstructured-data use cases into repeatable technical patterns that address privacy, provenance, evaluation, monitoring, and operational integration.
• Works with Trustworthy AI, Security, Data Governance, and Customer Experience personnel to ensure generative-AI capabilities are safe, useful, and governed.
• Apply NLP, LLM/GenAI patterns, prompt orchestration, retrieval/evaluation patterns, guardrails, content filters, human-in-the-loop workflows, and Azure AI to support role delivery.
• Collaborate with relevant product, engineering, security, governance, quality, and customer-facing stakeholders as required by the role.
• Document work products, decisions, risks, and delivery evidence to support traceability and continuous improvement.

Basic Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship is required due to federal contract requirements.
• Candidate must reside in the U.S., be authorized to work in the U.S., and all work must be performed in the U.S.
• Candidate must have lived in the U.S. for three (3) full years out of the last five (5) years.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Software Engineering, or a related field; Master's degree may substitute for two (2) years of relevant experience.
• 6+ years of designing, developing, and deploying AI/ML solutions in enterprise cloud environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with large language models (LLMs), generative AI, natural language processing (NLP), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), semantic search, vector databases, and prompt engineering techniques.
• Experience building AI applications and agentic workflows using Azure AI Services, Azure OpenAI, Databricks AI/ML, MLflow, LangChain, Semantic Kernel, or similar frameworks.
• Experience developing prompt orchestration, evaluation frameworks, model testing strategies, and AI application monitoring solutions.
• Experience implementing AI safety controls, content filtering, guardrails, human-in-the-loop review processes, and Trustworthy AI practices.
• Experience developing and maintaining MLOps pipelines, model deployment frameworks, model versioning, performance monitoring, and automated retraining processes.
• Strong programming experience using Python, SQL, and modern AI/ML libraries and frameworks.
• Experience with Databricks, Delta Lake, Azure Machine Learning, and enterprise-scale data platforms.
• Experience integrating AI solutions with cloud-native data pipelines, analytics platforms, APIs, and operational business applications.
• Experience supporting predictive analytics, document intelligence, text analytics, classification, summarization, recommendation, and generative AI use cases.
• Familiarity with enterprise data governance, metadata management, data lineage, privacy controls, and role-based access models in regulated environments.
• Experience optimizing AI/ML workloads for performance, scalability, reliability, and cloud cost management.
• Experience with CI/CD practices utilizing GitHub
• Experience working in Agile, cross-functional teams consisting of engineers, architects, data scientists, product owners, governance stakeholders, and business users.
• Experience supporting Federal government, healthcare, or other highly regulated environments is preferred.

Professional Skills:

• Highly effective analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to work effectively across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong organization, attention to detail, and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple responsibilities.
• Collaborative approach with a commitment to quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.

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Bot and Third-Party Applications

Please note that this application must be submitted directly by the applicant for consideration. Failure to do so may result in the application being excluded for consideration. Applicants needing an accommodation for disability or religious purposes in connection with the application process should contact Candidateaccommodation@icf.com for assistance.

Working at ICF

ICF is a global advisory and technology services provider, but we're not your typical consultants. We combine unmatched expertise with cutting-edge technology to help clients solve their most complex challenges, navigate change, and shape the future.

We can only solve the world's toughest challenges by building a workplace that allows everyone to thrive. We are an equal opportunity employer. Together, our employees are empowered to share their expertise and collaborate with others to achieve personal and professional goals. For more information, please read our EEO policy.

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Reasonable Accommodations are available, including, but not limited to, for disabled veterans, individuals with disabilities, and individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs, in all phases of the application and employment process. To request an accommodation, please email Candidateaccommodation@icf.com and we will be happy to assist. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.

Read more about workplace discrimination rights or our benefit offerings which are included in the Transparency in (Benefits) Coverage Act.

Candidate AI Usage Policy

At ICF, we are committed to ensuring a fair interview process for all candidates based on their own skills and knowledge. As part of this commitment, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to generate or assist with responses during interviews (whether in-person or virtual) is not permitted. This policy is in place to maintain the integrity and authenticity of the interview process.

However, we understand that some candidates may require accommodation that involves the use of AI. If such an accommodation is needed, candidates are instructed to contact us in advance at candidateaccommodation@icf.com. We are dedicated to providing the necessary support to ensure that all candidates have an equal opportunity to succeed.

Pay Range - There are multiple factors that are considered in determining final pay for a position, including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications and competencies that align to the specified role, geographic location, education and certifications as well as contract provisions regarding labor categories that are specific to the position.

The pay range for this position based on full-time employment is:

$108,476.00 - $184,409.00

Nationwide Remote Office (US99)