The roles that matter
| Role | What they do | Indicative AU salary / cost |
|---|---|---|
| AI engineer | LLM apps, RAG, agents, evals | A$140k–A$220k base; embedded from A$18k/mo (AU) or A$6k/mo (Manila) |
| AI product manager | Scorecard, roadmap, governance | A$150k–A$210k |
| AI operations analyst | Runs workflows and agents daily | A$90k–A$130k |
| Data engineer | Pipelines, quality, access | A$130k–A$190k |
| Fractional AI lead | Strategy, vendors, governance, 2–4 days/mo | from A$4k/mo |
Salary ranges are indicative for 2026 and vary by city and seniority. Embedded staff pricing includes management, equipment and compliance.
Embedded, contract or permanent?
- Embedded — fastest start, lowest risk, convert to permanent later. Best for the first 6–12 months of an AI programme.
- Contract pod — a lead plus engineers for a defined programme, with the provider accountable for the outcome.
- Permanent — when the capability is core and ongoing. Use a search partner who can assess the work, and insist on a replacement guarantee.
How to test an AI candidate
- Give them a real, small task: build a retrieval pipeline over ten documents; automate one document workflow; run an agent through a scorecard.
- Ask for the evaluation: how do they know it works? If there is no eval set, there is no engineering.
- Ask what they would refuse to automate, and why. Governance instinct is the rarest skill.
- Check they can explain cost: tokens, calls, ceilings. Production AI is an operating cost, not a one-off.
What AI Resources does differently
Every candidate completes a practical assessment set and scored by the engineers who ship our agents and workflows. You see the scores before the interview.
Questions people ask
Can we hire from New Zealand or the Philippines?
Yes. Our Auckland branch covers NZ; our Manila Innovation Centre supplies embedded delivery roles on Australian hours.
What guarantee comes with a permanent placement?
Free replacement if the person leaves or is let go within 90 days.
Related: AI Resources & staffing · AI workflows · AI agents