Chief Technology & AI Officer

About U.S. Digital Response

U.S. Digital Response (USDR) works alongside state, local, and tribal governments to modernize how they deliver digital services and better meet the public's needs.

We envision a future where communities trust governments to deliver. We operate with humility and deep respect for our partners and believe that modern and resilient technology applied in the public interest can deliver people-centered services at the speed of need.

Since March 2020, USDR’s projects have impacted tens of millions of people in nearly 50 U.S. states and territories. We’ve worked with more than 650 governments and organizations on over 700 projects.

Leveraging an internal team of ~30 staff along with a network of over 12,000 pro-bono technical experts, USDR addresses and uncovers solutions for common, systemic challenges that public servants are facing. We bring the innovation and agility of a tech startup that is tailored to serve the unique needs and challenges of government.

Learn more in our 2025 Year in Review.

About The Role

USDR is seeking a Chief Technology & AI Officer to own the strategic vision and technical leadership for how USDR approaches digital transformation and AI — working in close partnership with our program leaders, who own execution in their respective domains. We are a small, senior, matrixed team, and we want to mature our view of how USDR can empower public servants to leverage new technologies to deliver services and manage operations more effectively.

This is a doer role on our executive team, not an advisory role. The right person relieves capacity across the organization by owning hard problems end to end — getting genuinely hands-on with programs and the org rather than weighing in from the sidelines. They bring technical depth, get energized by raising the technical capability of a whole organization, and can translate USDR's mission into concrete standards, tools, and a point of view that strengthens our delivery and operations. At the same time, they are excited to lead and be responsible for both excellence in what we do today and a clear vision for what we should do next. 

This is a high-agency role that works both inside and outside the organization. Internally, it directly leads our Tools & Ops Manager and Elections Program and, contingent on funding, will oversee a new AI Studio — built and scaled over time, led day-to-day by a director you hire. It sets org-wide technical standards, serves as the clear owner and decision-maker on cross-cutting technical and AI questions, and raises USDR's collective capacity and fluency. Externally, it sharpens USDR's technology and AI point of view, lends credible technical weight to fundraising efforts, and earns the trust of government partners — including the IT-skeptical ones, where it helps to have someone who can speak peer-to-peer with a partner's CIO/CTO. 

This is not a traditional CTO role running a large in-house engineering org; it is a hands-on technology and people leader who also serves as a trusted partner to the CEO and Executive Team to help deliver on USDR’s mission of modernizing government service delivery. 

Glossary

• Government partner / partner = what we call the governments we work with (may be any kind of department at state, county, or city level, or a public entity)
• Volunteer = we are primarily a volunteer-based organization. We have a pool of 12,000+ professional-level volunteer technologists who are the primary contributors to projects and enable us to deliver at scale.
• Programs = USDR's two program areas focus on improving service delivery where any failure can meaningfully erode trust in government. These programs are Digital Delivery (which includes the Benefits Response Team) and Elections. USDR program staff work alongside our government partners to help them modernize how agencies work and bring a product operating model to their work.
• Focus areas = Our five focus areas seek to increase governments' digital capacity through building the foundational capacities needed to deliver human-centered digital services. These focus areas are Generative AI, Language Access, Procurement, Talent, and User Experience. In these focus areas, USDR staff bring government and tech experience to understand problems, scope out engagements for our expert volunteers to deliver, and manage their delivery.

You are excited about this opportunity because you will be responsible for...

Providing product and technical leadership across USDR’s programs to help governments deliver (30%)

• Lead go-to-market strategy for USDR’s shared tooling, partnering with product managers across the organization to grow our reach and deepen our impact with government partners.
• Shape how we expand and evolve our offerings, including USDR’s Elections Administration Platform and AI tooling
• Bring technical and product judgment to how we position, package, and scale what we build so that it reaches and serves the government partners who need it in a sustainable way.
• Strengthen org-wide service delivery and impact measurement, partner on efforts like how we measure our impact so we can demonstrate the value of what we deliver.
• Serve as an effective bridge between technical and non-technical worlds, representing technology in plain terms.

Leading responsible AI integration and impact with government partners (30%)

• Define how USDR adopts and deploys AI responsibly, both inside our own operations and in the tools and prototypes we build for and with government, to determine where USDR can have the greatest impact.
• Contingent on funding: develop, hire, and lead USDR’s new partner-facing AI team, an effort you will begin early to test hypotheses.
• Put in place the AI-related policies, tooling, and guardrails that let us move quickly while staying credible and trustworthy as a partner to our partners.
• Build USDR’s internal AI fluency - developing the policies, tooling, and overall learning culture for adopting and integrating new technology responsibly.
• Partner with our Volunteers Team and programs to determine what opportunities AI presents for recruiting and engaging volunteers on technical engagements.

Setting USDR’s long-term technology infrastructure direction (20%)

• Lead strategic decision making on technology policy, principles, and operations to deliver reliable, secure, and sustainable infrastructure.
• Manage and partner with our Tools & Ops Lead to guide how we deliver, driving internal adoption of tools that streamline how we work across the organization.
• Partner with Volunteers Team and programs to set the platform and infrastructure approach that we need to support our partners. 
• Build org-wide technical fluency through documentation, training, and clear standards, so teams can make sound day-to-day technology decisions on their own.

Owning and delivering on org-wide priorities as part of an Executive Team of doers, not advisors (20%) 

• Lead and enable teams across the organization to deliver for our government partners by helping set the strategic direction of USDR and guide how that strategy is implemented.
• Shape USDR’s long-term strategic direction around platforms and infrastructure,  helping the organization assess emerging technologies, decide what to build, what to maintain, and where to invest for durable impact.
• Play a key role in managing organizational change initiatives, ensuring they are implemented smoothly, with clear change management that builds alignment and trust with our incredible team.
• Participate in fundraising and development conversations to provide technical credibility and a clear articulation of your take on USDR’s unique value.
• Travel 1-2x/quarter for internal meetings and in support of fundraising.

We're excited about you because...

• You believe that governments can deliver for communities big and small. You believe in our vision of a future where communities trust governments to deliver, and you can build trust and credibility with public sector partners across the political spectrum.
• You've built, shipped, and brought technology to market. You've led engineering, product, or digital service teams directly - not just advised - and you've led go-to-market for products, ideally with governments as the customer. You bring enough technical depth to quickly contribute discerning, helpful input on architecture and go-to-market approach for a portfolio of projects at various stages of development, and you're comfortable rolling up your sleeves to draft a scope of work and/or publish code (if you have an engineering background) in a small, hands-on organization. 
• You’ve built and led multidisciplinary teams. You have a strong track record of managing across distinct functions and you’ve built and scaled at least one team from the ground up, including recruiting and developing talent. You’re energized by making the people around you more effective, and you can lead and influence in a structure where you manage some teams directly and partner with other leaders across the rest.
• You’ve led responsible AI adoption. You’ve driven AI deployment in real settings with constraints, including hands-on work on AI strategy, responsible deployment, and/or AI governance - and you understand both its transformative potential, limitations, and risks.
• You set standards and build capability. You’re excited by the unglamorous, high-leverage work of security and quality standards, technical documentation, escalation, and raising an organization’s overall technical fluency. You can stand up the norms and guardrails a growing organization needs.
• You bridge technical and non-technical worlds. You can represent technology decisions to program leaders, government partners, and funders in plain terms, and you partner well in a matrixed structure where others own execution in their domains.
• You effortlessly role model the values in our USDR Community Oath. 
• Or any combination of education, experience, and measurable performance that demonstrates the capability to perform the duties of the position.

Skills and experience are necessary, but we hire on value alignment first, so if you feel you would be a good fit with us, still consider applying.

What we offer you:

• A competitive salary, consistent with similar roles in other tech non-profits in major U.S. metropolitan cities. The annual salary range for this role is $250,000 - $277,500, depending on experience and expertise. New hires who signal full proficiency toward the job requirements will likely be offered the mid-point of our salary range. 
• Full health, dental and vision benefits (USDR pays 100% of the cost for our employees and 80% of the cost for their dependents on most plans)
• 401K with a matching contribution of $1 for each dollar you contribute up to 3% of your salary, and $.50 for each dollar you contribute on 3-5% of your salary. 
• Full paid parental leave for up to 4 months for new parents regardless of gender, caregiver status, or family structure.
• An equipment reimbursement for the purchase of a computer and peripheral devices of up to $2,000, along with a Work from Home allowance of $100 each month, to support employees as they navigate working from home.
• A discretionary budget of $400 per year per employee for work-related learning and development. 
• A supportive community where everyone can thrive and find a balance between working hard to make a difference and taking care of themselves. This means that we are committed to a fully remote work environment (for US-based employees) along with flexible schedules and time off policies that work with your life.

At USDR, we aspire to be an organization where our employees not only sustain, but thrive. We compensate every employee based on the belief that they are fully performing in their role – meaning they demonstrate our values, perform the responsibilities, and meet the expectations of their individual role.

Each job at USDR is leveled based on the business need for the role, and the salary band is determined based on market data for similar roles in the tech industry. New hires who signal full proficiency toward the job requirements will likely be offered the mid-point of our salary range. 

Work Authorization

All USDR staff members work remotely in support of flexibility, wellness, and work-life balance. At this time, USDR is only hiring candidates who reside in the United States, and who have and maintain active U.S. Work Authorization. 

USDR uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all new employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.DHS.gov/E-Verify.

Equal Employment Opportunity

U.S. Digital Response is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer fully dedicated to achieving a diverse staff. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and expression, and sexual orientation), disability status, protected veteran status, political party affiliation, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Please note that the EEO questionnaire included in our job application is dictated by federal government regulations, and does not reflect USDR’s position on gender inclusivity. 

We encourage and welcome all interested potential applicants, regardless of background or prior experience volunteering with U.S. Digital Response, to apply.