Director, AI Innovation

Overview

We're hiring a Director of AI Innovation to own how AI shapes our work, from how we run the agency to what we deliver for clients.

We're not starting from scratch. Over the past two years, a small internal team has built a proprietary suite of AI tools that already runs across our client work and operations, covering copywriting, media intelligence, brand strategy, research, and internal knowledge. The tools are a real competitive advantage. They let a lean team do the work of a much bigger one.

You'll lead where all of it goes next.

You'll work directly with our CEO, VP of Growth, VP of Operations, and Developers to turn what's been an informal internal effort into a real practice. You'll help decide where we build, where we buy, and when to bring in outside talent to get it done. You'll operate with the autonomy of a senior voice that the whole team leans on.

This is a hybrid role based out of our Maine headquarters, with flexibility for remote work. Maine-based applicants are preferred. You'll report to our VP of Growth.

About Anchour

Anchour is a creative agency of 40+ people focused on building unforgettable brands and digital experiences that help businesses punch above their weight.

Headquartered in Maine, we partner with SMBs and growing brands across industries like consumer goods, hospitality, financial services, home services, and retail. Our work spans brand strategy, identity design, website design and development, content strategy, and full-service marketing.

Great work happens when smart people are trusted to do it. We've built a place where senior talent has real ownership, real influence over direction, and the room to do the best work of their careers.

We call ourselves Creative Pragmatists. We've been building our own AI tools since 2024 because we'd rather shape where this goes than wait and see. Great work happens when smart people are trusted to do it, and we've built a place where senior talent has real ownership, real influence over direction, and the room to do the best work of their careers.

What You'll Do

• Lead the AI practice. Set the vision and roadmap for AI at Anchour. Decide what we build next, how we prioritize it, and the standards everyone works to. Keep a sharp read on the space and bring leadership real recommendations, not headlines.
• Build and deploy across the business. Find the friction in business development, client services, creative operations, and the back office, then build the workflows and automations that remove it. You'll prototype some of it yourself and spec the rest for our dev team.
• Turn AI into a client advantage. Build AI-driven capabilities into prospecting, proposals, and client work, and develop new offerings clients will pay for. This is about winning and keeping business, not just running leaner.
• Drive adoption across the team. Get 40+ people confidently using these tools every day. Run working sessions, write the documentation, and bring people along. Adoption is the hard part, and it's most of the job.
• Own responsible use. Set how we handle client data, protect confidential work, and decide what goes into which model. Clients are starting to ask, and we'll have good answers ready.
• Measure what's working. Track where AI is improving quality, speed, and output. Keep what earns its place and cut what doesn't.
• Build and deploy across the business. Find the friction in business development, client services, creative operations, and the back office, then build the workflows and automations that remove it. You'll prototype some of it yourself and spec the rest for our dev team. Either way, it's built to last, not taped together.
• Shape what we build. Partner with our Technical Lead and dev team on the product roadmap. Bring the agency's real needs into the build so what ships gets used.

What We'd Like To See

• Hands-on AI experience. You've deployed AI tools and automations in a working business and driven measurable change across teams.
• A builder's instinct. You're technical enough to prototype, build automations, and prompt with skill, and you can hold your own with a dev team. You don't have to be a software engineer, but you do have to build.
• Sharp, current point of view. You read the AI space well and move fast from insight to implementation. You know when to build, when to buy off-the-shelf, and when to bring in outside talent.
• Real technical foundations. You prototype fast, but you build on solid ground. You're fluent in modern web frameworks, APIs, and version control, and you know the difference between a throwaway prototype and durable, scalable software. You can hold your own with our dev team and write code someone else can pick up and maintain. You don't have to be a career engineer, but you do have to build, and build well.
• Senior presence. You're as comfortable with a CEO as you are configuring a new workflow. You can translate technical possibilities into outcomes a creative, business-minded team cares about.
• Adoption and enablement. You know the tool is the easy part. You teach, document, and get people using what you build.
• Judgment on risk and data. You understand the security, confidentiality, and IP questions that come with AI, and you make smart calls about client data.
• Agency or marketing fluency. Experience in an agency, marketing, or creative environment is a strong plus. Bonus if you've worked across verticals like DTC, CPG, or financial services.
• Self-directed. You see the work and move it. You don't wait to be told what to prioritize.
• New England-based. This is a hybrid role with regular in-office days. Maine-based applicants are preferred.

Work Style

• You build things that get used. Your work shows up in how the team operates every day.
• You're the senior voice in the room on AI. You bring perspective, push when something's off, and offer a clear direction.
• You communicate before you're asked. If something isn't landing, the team hears it from you first.
• You partner across creative, media, account, and operations. You make the work better by being in it.
• You're curious and current. You're reading, testing, and constantly sharpening how you think.
• You take the work seriously. Not yourself.

What You'll Get

• Competitive Salary & Profit Sharing: Share in our success as we grow.
• Hybrid Work Flexibility. Office-based in Maine with a weekly in-office day and flexibility for remote work.
• Retirement. Savings plan with a 4% company match.
• Premium Insurance. Premium health, dental, vision, and life insurance with generous coverage for our US-based team members.
• Optional HSA. An optional health savings account (HSA) for employees to set aside money on a pre-tax basis for medical expenses.
• Home Office Setup. Get a laptop + 50% reimbursement for home office equipment.
• Paid & Flexible Holidays. 12 paid holidays throughout the year, including three flexible holidays.
• Paid Time Off. Minimum three weeks of paid time off per year.
• Paid Leaves. Paid parental, medical, bereavement, and other types of leave.
• Flexible & Summer Fridays. Half-day Fridays throughout the summer, and a get-it-done-and-go mindset year-round.
• Lifelong Learners Fund. Cash for professional development (books, conferences, courses), and team bonding fun times.
• Baby Bonding Bucks. $500 bonus to cover diapers, meals, or other baby-related expenses for any employee welcoming a new child.