AI Engagement Manager
Top Benefits
About the role
We're transforming the grocery industry
At Instacart, we invite the world to share love through food because we believe everyone should have access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. Where others see a simple need for grocery delivery, we see exciting complexity and endless opportunity to serve the varied needs of our community. We work to deliver an essential service that customers rely on to get their groceries and household goods, while also offering safe and flexible earnings opportunities to Instacart Personal Shoppers. Instacart has become a lifeline for millions of people, and we’re building the team to help push our shopping cart forward. If you’re ready to do the best work of your life, come join our table.
Instacart is a Flex First team
There’s no one-size fits all approach to how we do our best work. Our employees have the flexibility to choose where they do their best work—whether it’s from home, an office, or your favorite coffee shop—while staying connected and building community through regular in-person events. Learn more about our flexible approach to where we work.
Overview
The Enterprise AI Pod is a forward-deployed, field-first unit within Instacart's Enterprise Solutions team — purpose-built to take the Instacart Intelligence Platform to market with B2B retail and CPG partners. As the AI Engagement Manager, you are the operational backbone of the engagement — the person who makes complex, multi-stakeholder AI engagements actually move. This is an orchestration role, not a commercial one; success is measured by getting partners to value, not by signings or P&L. You own the partner relationship from discovery through workflow adoption, hold the team accountable to delivery, and serve as the primary bridge between field execution and R&D — all while managing multiple engagements simultaneously in an environment where the playbook is still being written.
About the Job
Own the full AI engagement arc. From first discovery through sustained workflow adoption — serving as the external partner's single point of contact across every phase while driving scope, timelines, milestones, and escalations and keeping cross-functional workstreams aligned and moving. There is no "launch and hand off" in this model. Drive requirements and delivery precision. Shape engagement structure, align on objectives, translate partner needs into a clear execution plan, and track against it with rigor. Surface risks early and keep stakeholders — partner and internal — ahead of problems, not behind them. Champion continuous quality. In AI engagements there's no single gate — value is proven iteratively. You oversee the testing and feedback loops that ensure the platform is performing against real partner workflows, track adoption progress, and stay on top of the change management work that determines whether a deployment becomes a lasting behavior change. Hold the R&D feedback loop. You are accountable for ensuring field learnings flow back to R&D and that R&D delivers on agreed roadmap commitments. When either side of the loop breaks down, you own the escalation. Build playbooks. Identify reusable patterns across engagements and turn them into scalable delivery frameworks the whole pod can use. We are early; what you build now will become the foundation for how this team operates at scale. Own engagement economics. Track the full cost structure of every active engagement — resource allocation across the pod, time spent per workstream, and cost card inputs — and maintain a running view of cost-to-deliver across the portfolio. Surface cost/benefit signals to inform prioritization and go/no-go decisions on new engagements. As the pod scales, your cost data becomes the foundation for delivery efficiency benchmarks. This is a field-first role. Travel is part of the job — expect to be on-site at partner locations during key engagement phases, with travel that could reach 50%+ at peak. Presence matters in this model.
About You
Minimum Qualifications 8+ years in technical project management, enterprise engagement management, or a related field — with a track record of delivering complex, multi-stakeholder technical programs end to end to external enterprise clientele. Demonstrated experience managing programs across the full software development lifecycle — from requirements definition and scoping through build, test, and launch — including the ability to identify and manage risk, develop detailed work plans, and allocate resources across concurrent workstreams. Technical fluency sufficient to hold credible conversations with partner engineering teams, understand AI/ML implementations and integration dependencies, and manage technically complex delivery workstreams without being the technical expert in the room. Experience building and maintaining engagement cost models — tracking resource utilization, time allocation, and cost inputs across concurrent programs and translating those into cost/benefit analysis that informs business and deal-level decisions. Exceptional communication, organizational, and time management skills, paired with a sharp attention to both details and overarching project objectives. An expert in facilitating highly productive internal and external meetings - and creating assets and processes which drive project clarity at every step. Comfort operating in ambiguous, fast-moving environments where structure doesn't yet exist. Proficiency across program management tools (Jira, Asana, Smartsheet), collaboration and documentation platforms (Confluence, Google Workspace), and executive-level presentation tools (PowerPoint, Google Slides). Bachelor's degree in Technology, Engineering, Business, or related field, or equivalent practical experience. Willingness to travel ~50% within North America.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience managing AI, data platform, or systems integration deployments at enterprise scale. Background in retail tech, e-commerce, operations, or CPG. Experience working at the intersection of engineering, product, and commercial teams. Familiarity with agentic AI platforms, LLM APIs, or RAG-based systems — enough to be conversant with partners and contextualize where Instacart's platform fits. Familiarity with CRM tools (Salesforce), BI and reporting platforms (Tableau, Looker, Power BI), and workshop facilitation tools (Miro, Lucidspark) — enough to stay aligned with pipeline, interpret engagement metrics, and run a working session when needed. PMP or equivalent program management credentials. Prior work in a forward-deployed, embedded, or startup environment. #LI-Remote Instacart provides highly market-competitive compensation and benefits in each location where our employees work. This role is remote and the base pay range for a successful candidate is dependent on their permanent work location. Please review our Flex First remote work policy here. Currently, we are only hiring in the following provinces: Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia. Offers may vary based on many factors, such as candidate experience and skills required for the role. Additionally, this role is eligible for a new hire equity grant as well as annual refresh grants. Please read more about our benefits offerings here. For Canadian based candidates, the base pay ranges for a successful candidate are listed below.
CAN
$185,000—$195,000 CAD
Not the right fit? Search for AI Engagement Manager jobs in Wasaga Beach, Ontario, Canada
About Instacart
Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America, works with grocers and retailers to transform how people shop. The company partners with more than 1,500 national, regional, and local retail banners to facilitate online shopping, delivery and pickup services from more than 85,000 stores across North America on the Instacart Marketplace. Instacart makes it possible for millions of people to get the groceries they need from the retailers they love, and for approximately 600,000 Instacart shoppers to earn by picking, packing and delivering orders on their own flexible schedule. The Instacart Platform offers retailers a suite of enterprise-grade technology products and services to power their e-commerce experiences, fulfill orders, digitize brick-and-mortar stores, provide advertising services, and glean insights. With Instacart Ads, thousands of CPG brands – from category leaders to emerging brands – partner with the company to connect directly with consumers online, right at the point of purchase. With Instacart Health, the company is providing tools to increase nutrition security, make healthy choices easier for consumers, and expand the role that food can play in improving health outcomes. For more information, visit www.instacart.com/company.
Similar Jobs
AI Engagement Manager
Top Benefits
About the role
We're transforming the grocery industry
At Instacart, we invite the world to share love through food because we believe everyone should have access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. Where others see a simple need for grocery delivery, we see exciting complexity and endless opportunity to serve the varied needs of our community. We work to deliver an essential service that customers rely on to get their groceries and household goods, while also offering safe and flexible earnings opportunities to Instacart Personal Shoppers. Instacart has become a lifeline for millions of people, and we’re building the team to help push our shopping cart forward. If you’re ready to do the best work of your life, come join our table.
Instacart is a Flex First team
There’s no one-size fits all approach to how we do our best work. Our employees have the flexibility to choose where they do their best work—whether it’s from home, an office, or your favorite coffee shop—while staying connected and building community through regular in-person events. Learn more about our flexible approach to where we work.
Overview
The Enterprise AI Pod is a forward-deployed, field-first unit within Instacart's Enterprise Solutions team — purpose-built to take the Instacart Intelligence Platform to market with B2B retail and CPG partners. As the AI Engagement Manager, you are the operational backbone of the engagement — the person who makes complex, multi-stakeholder AI engagements actually move. This is an orchestration role, not a commercial one; success is measured by getting partners to value, not by signings or P&L. You own the partner relationship from discovery through workflow adoption, hold the team accountable to delivery, and serve as the primary bridge between field execution and R&D — all while managing multiple engagements simultaneously in an environment where the playbook is still being written.
About the Job
Own the full AI engagement arc. From first discovery through sustained workflow adoption — serving as the external partner's single point of contact across every phase while driving scope, timelines, milestones, and escalations and keeping cross-functional workstreams aligned and moving. There is no "launch and hand off" in this model. Drive requirements and delivery precision. Shape engagement structure, align on objectives, translate partner needs into a clear execution plan, and track against it with rigor. Surface risks early and keep stakeholders — partner and internal — ahead of problems, not behind them. Champion continuous quality. In AI engagements there's no single gate — value is proven iteratively. You oversee the testing and feedback loops that ensure the platform is performing against real partner workflows, track adoption progress, and stay on top of the change management work that determines whether a deployment becomes a lasting behavior change. Hold the R&D feedback loop. You are accountable for ensuring field learnings flow back to R&D and that R&D delivers on agreed roadmap commitments. When either side of the loop breaks down, you own the escalation. Build playbooks. Identify reusable patterns across engagements and turn them into scalable delivery frameworks the whole pod can use. We are early; what you build now will become the foundation for how this team operates at scale. Own engagement economics. Track the full cost structure of every active engagement — resource allocation across the pod, time spent per workstream, and cost card inputs — and maintain a running view of cost-to-deliver across the portfolio. Surface cost/benefit signals to inform prioritization and go/no-go decisions on new engagements. As the pod scales, your cost data becomes the foundation for delivery efficiency benchmarks. This is a field-first role. Travel is part of the job — expect to be on-site at partner locations during key engagement phases, with travel that could reach 50%+ at peak. Presence matters in this model.
About You
Minimum Qualifications 8+ years in technical project management, enterprise engagement management, or a related field — with a track record of delivering complex, multi-stakeholder technical programs end to end to external enterprise clientele. Demonstrated experience managing programs across the full software development lifecycle — from requirements definition and scoping through build, test, and launch — including the ability to identify and manage risk, develop detailed work plans, and allocate resources across concurrent workstreams. Technical fluency sufficient to hold credible conversations with partner engineering teams, understand AI/ML implementations and integration dependencies, and manage technically complex delivery workstreams without being the technical expert in the room. Experience building and maintaining engagement cost models — tracking resource utilization, time allocation, and cost inputs across concurrent programs and translating those into cost/benefit analysis that informs business and deal-level decisions. Exceptional communication, organizational, and time management skills, paired with a sharp attention to both details and overarching project objectives. An expert in facilitating highly productive internal and external meetings - and creating assets and processes which drive project clarity at every step. Comfort operating in ambiguous, fast-moving environments where structure doesn't yet exist. Proficiency across program management tools (Jira, Asana, Smartsheet), collaboration and documentation platforms (Confluence, Google Workspace), and executive-level presentation tools (PowerPoint, Google Slides). Bachelor's degree in Technology, Engineering, Business, or related field, or equivalent practical experience. Willingness to travel ~50% within North America.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience managing AI, data platform, or systems integration deployments at enterprise scale. Background in retail tech, e-commerce, operations, or CPG. Experience working at the intersection of engineering, product, and commercial teams. Familiarity with agentic AI platforms, LLM APIs, or RAG-based systems — enough to be conversant with partners and contextualize where Instacart's platform fits. Familiarity with CRM tools (Salesforce), BI and reporting platforms (Tableau, Looker, Power BI), and workshop facilitation tools (Miro, Lucidspark) — enough to stay aligned with pipeline, interpret engagement metrics, and run a working session when needed. PMP or equivalent program management credentials. Prior work in a forward-deployed, embedded, or startup environment. #LI-Remote Instacart provides highly market-competitive compensation and benefits in each location where our employees work. This role is remote and the base pay range for a successful candidate is dependent on their permanent work location. Please review our Flex First remote work policy here. Currently, we are only hiring in the following provinces: Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia. Offers may vary based on many factors, such as candidate experience and skills required for the role. Additionally, this role is eligible for a new hire equity grant as well as annual refresh grants. Please read more about our benefits offerings here. For Canadian based candidates, the base pay ranges for a successful candidate are listed below.
CAN
$185,000—$195,000 CAD
Not the right fit? Search for AI Engagement Manager jobs in Wasaga Beach, Ontario, Canada
About Instacart
Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America, works with grocers and retailers to transform how people shop. The company partners with more than 1,500 national, regional, and local retail banners to facilitate online shopping, delivery and pickup services from more than 85,000 stores across North America on the Instacart Marketplace. Instacart makes it possible for millions of people to get the groceries they need from the retailers they love, and for approximately 600,000 Instacart shoppers to earn by picking, packing and delivering orders on their own flexible schedule. The Instacart Platform offers retailers a suite of enterprise-grade technology products and services to power their e-commerce experiences, fulfill orders, digitize brick-and-mortar stores, provide advertising services, and glean insights. With Instacart Ads, thousands of CPG brands – from category leaders to emerging brands – partner with the company to connect directly with consumers online, right at the point of purchase. With Instacart Health, the company is providing tools to increase nutrition security, make healthy choices easier for consumers, and expand the role that food can play in improving health outcomes. For more information, visit www.instacart.com/company.