Senior Software Engineer - AI Enablement HR

As a Senior Software Engineer focused on AI Enablement within the People team at Kraken (Payward), you will architect and build AI-powered solutions that transform manual HR workflows into autonomous, agentic systems serving thousands of employees globally. You own full-stack delivery from opportunity identification through design, deployment, governance, and capability transfer back to the People team so they can maintain and extend what you build.

What you'll do

• Architect and build agentic workflows using n8n, Claude API, Python, and MCP that take real actions in HR processes with appropriate human oversight and approval gates.
• Design multi-agent systems with tool use, function calling, and multi-step reasoning that connect fragmented HR tools (HRIS, ATS, payroll, ticketing) into coherent, end-to-end workflows.
• Build error handling, audit trails, payroll-calendar awareness, and human-in-the-loop checkpoints into every production system before deployment.
• Ensure all automations comply with data classification requirements for employee PII, regulated data, and cross-jurisdictional privacy obligations.
• Classify all automation builds by risk tier before work begins, ensuring every production system has a named Process Owner, documented data flows, and confirmed access controls.
• Maintain audit logging and documentation for all systems touching regulated employee data or payroll-adjacent workflows.
• Halt or redesign builds that introduce unacceptable payroll, legal, or data privacy risk and secure organizational acceptance before proceeding.
• Serve as the HRKX domain representative in contributing to governance standards and cross-functional build alignment.
• Produce documentation, workflow templates, and runbooks that HRKX professionals can use and maintain without technical support.
• Train People team members on AI-assisted tools and workflows deployed in production and drive adoption beyond delivery.
• Track and report on automation impact: manual hours eliminated, error rates reduced, payroll exceptions avoided, and capacity unlocked for strategic HR work.
• Act as a force multiplier for the HR KX team, enabling HR professionals to focus on high-value advisory and people judgment work through process, technology, and AI enablement.

What you bring

• 5+ years of software engineering experience, with at least 2+ years focused on building AI/ML-powered applications or agentic systems in production.
• 2-3+ years of experience working on HR, People Operations, or people technology problems, either at an HR tech company, on an internal People Engineering team, or in a technical role embedded within an HR function.
• Strong fluency with AI and workflow automation tools, with demonstrated experience designing, deploying, and driving adoption of AI solutions within HR workflows.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience designing and deploying AI-powered or automated workflows in a production environment used by others, not experimentation.
• Deep working knowledge of Workday, including job change workflows, worker conversions, EIB data uploads, integration architecture, and payroll dependencies.
• Systems thinking with a strong implementation mindset, able to move from discovery through design, build, deployment, and optimization without relying on external consultants.
• Proficiency with n8n, Python, Claude API/Anthropic SDK, or equivalent, with experience connecting HR systems via API.
• Strong analytical problem-solving skills with the ability to structure ambiguous people questions into clear, actionable, automated analysis.
• Solid understanding of employee data classification, PII handling requirements, and cross-jurisdictional HR compliance obligations.

Nice to have

• Experience with Workday Prism, Qualtrics, or other BI and HR analytics tools for people data reporting and strategy automation.
• Experience using AI for text analysis, survey insights, or workflow automation in an HRIS or people analytics context.
• Experience with Ashby including API integration and pipeline automation.
• Experience with spreadsheet automation such as Google Apps Script and advanced proficiency in Excel and Google Sheets for analytics solution development.
• Python or R programming skills for people data analysis, modeling, or pipeline automation.
• Background in HR technology platform administration: HRIS, ATS, survey platforms, or workforce management systems.
• Prior experience standing up or operating an HR automation or people analytics function.
• Degree with a quantitative focus such as Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Mathematics, or Statistics, combined with applied technical automation experience.
• Experience in fintech, crypto, or a high-growth remote-first company where HR systems serve employees across 50+ countries.

About Kraken (Payward)

Payward is the parent company behind Kraken, NinjaTrader, Breakout, xStocks, Payward Services, and CF Benchmarks. Founded in 2011, Kraken is one of the world's longest-standing crypto platforms, trusted by over 10 million individuals and institutions globally, offering spot trading, margin, futures, staking, and OTC services for both individual investors and institutional clients.