Director, Talent Engine – OperateCo
Job Summary
The Director, Talent Engine leads the strategy, build-out, and operations of OperateCo's talent capability for Rackspace's Data & AI business: an internal engine that identifies, trains, certifies, and deploys technical operators, beginning with delivery on Palantir Foundry and AIP engagements. This leader builds the model alongside - not in competition with - Palantir's own Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) program, learning its selection bar, training cadence, and certification discipline, and applying it to a Rackspace-owned and -funded pipeline. This leader partners closely with HR, Delivery, Engineering, and Business Unit leaders to build scalable sourcing pathways, a strong training and certification bar, and a high-performing operator workforce, with a mandate to scale the model from Data & AI into a Rackspace-wide talent engine.
Job Responsibilities
Identify - Talent Sourcing & Selection
- Build and run three merit-based pathways into the program: a high-school / early-career fellowship track, a non-graduate track, and a graduate track - mirroring the breadth of Palantir's own sourcing model.
- Define and apply a consistent merit bar across all three pathways, screening for agency, maturity, and technical aptitude rather than pedigree or tenure.
- Own sourcing volume, pipeline yield, and cost-per-hire targets; report on pathway mix and selection rates.
Train - Academy & Curriculum
- Design and operate a Rackspace academy that takes new hires from platform foundations to production-ready skills in weeks, not years.
- Use OneOS and live “Customer Zero” engagements as the training ground, converting real production work into structured learning.
- Partner with Palantir's training organization to align curriculum where possible, and build Rackspace-owned content where it is not.
Certify - Standards & Quality Bar
- Establish certification as the quality bar for deployment - not tenure, not headcount pressure.
- Drive every Rackspace Forward Deployed Engineer to Palantir Foundry/AIP certification (or the Rackspace-equivalent standard) before customer assignment.
- Own the relationship with Palantir's certification team to pursue shared standards, joint certification pathways, and reciprocal recognition.
Deploy - Workforce Planning & Operations
- Manage the bench-to-billable pipeline: forecast demand, plan cohorts, and deploy certified FDEs into private cloud, sovereign, and air-gapped customer environments.
- Track utilization, time-to-deploy, and post-deployment performance; feed results back into sourcing and curriculum design.
- Partner with delivery and account leadership so operator capacity - the binding constraint on every OperateCo deployment - scales with demand.
Program & Partnership Leadership
- Serve as the primary operating point of contact into Palantir's FDE program leadership on hiring, training, certification, and deployment practices.
- Build the business case and operating model to take the Talent Engine from a Data & AI pilot to a Rackspace-wide capability.
- Report progress, economics, and risks to the CHRO and executive sponsors; own the P&L logic that ties certification levels to billing tiers.
Required Qualifications
Education and experience:
- Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business, Organizational Development, or a related field (or equivalent experience). Advanced degree preferred.
- 8+ years in talent strategy, workforce development, or technical staffing leadership, including 3+ years building a training or certification program from scratch.
- Direct experience designing multi-pathway hiring programs (early-career, non-traditional, and graduate) at scale.
- Working knowledge of technical delivery models in cloud, data, or AI environments; ability to speak credibly with engineering and delivery leaders about what “production-ready” means.
- Experience partnering with or operating alongside a customer or partner organization on shared standards - comfortable being both a learner and a builder in the same relationship.
- Strong program and financial fluency: able to connect certification levels, deployment readiness, and billing/margin outcomes.
- Excellent stakeholder management across HR, delivery, sales, and executive leadership.
Preferred Qualifications
- Familiarity with Palantir Foundry, AIP, or the Forward Deployed Engineer model specifically.
- Experience standing up an internal “academy” or bootcamp model tied to live customer delivery.
- Background in sovereign, private cloud, or air-gapped/regulated delivery environments.
Success Metrics
- Pathway pipeline health: sourcing volume and selection rate across all three tracks.
- Time from hire to certification, and certification pass rate.
- Certified-operator utilization and time-to-deploy on live engagements.
- Progress toward extending the model from Data & AI to a Rackspace-wide talent engine.
About Rackspace Technology
We are the multicloud solutions experts. We combine our expertise with the world’s leading technologies - across applications, data and security - to deliver end-to-end solutions. We have a proven record of advising customers based on their business challenges, designing solutions that scale, building and managing those solutions, and optimizing returns into the future. Named a best place to work, year after year according to Fortune, Forbes and Glassdoor, we attract and develop world-class talent. Join us on our mission to embrace technology, empower customers and deliver the future.
More on Rackspace Technology
Though we’re all different, Rackers thrive through our connection to a central goal: to be a valued member of a winning team on an inspiring mission. We bring our whole selves to work every day. And we embrace the notion that unique perspectives fuel innovation and enable us to best serve our customers and communities around the globe. We welcome you to apply today and want you to know that we are committed to offering equal employment opportunity without regard to age, color, disability, gender reassignment or identity or expression, genetic information, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity status, military or veteran status, nationality, ethnic or national origin, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or any legally protected characteristic. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.