Product Innovation Engineer Jobs in Illinois (NOW HIRING)

Job Description | Principal Innovation Engineer

Job Profile Summary

Will be responsible for driving Huntington's most complex innovation initiatives by designing and building end-to-end, production-grade prototypes and reusable technology assets, including AI-enabled applications, while setting high engineering standards for solution architecture, application design, and delivery acceleration across the Technology Innovation portfolio. This role requires strong hands-on full-stack engineering skills, the mindset of a startup innovator in a large organization, experience building AI-integrated applications end-to-end, developing APIs and user experiences, and the ability to operate independently with limited supervision in a fast-paced innovation environment.

Job Description

Summary:

This high-impact role is responsible for accelerating Huntington's innovation execution by architecting and building end-to-end solutions that move from concept to working product-quality prototype. The Principal Innovation Engineer will partner closely with the team to productize innovative concepts into secure, scalable applications and services, reducing dependency on single-threaded architecture knowledge by bringing strong engineering leadership, integration capability, and delivery velocity.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Lead the design and delivery of high-impact innovation solutions aligned with the organization's business goals and technology trends in financial services
• Architect and build end-to-end prototypes and reusable assets, including AI-enabled applications, APIs, workflow automations, and integrations
• Translate AI innovation concepts (GenAI / agentic patterns) into real applications with enterprise-grade architecture patterns, security, and operational readiness
• Build solutions with a future-proof mindset, laying a solid foundation for development and preventing the need for costly redesigns
• Establish and evolve engineering standards for innovation delivery (reference architectures, reusable templates, code quality, API patterns, integration patterns)
• Partner with other technology teams to align on enterprise architecture, identity / access patterns, data access, compliance needs, and reuse opportunities
• Evaluate emerging technologies and developer tooling (Digital Assets, AI-assisted development, orchestration frameworks, app frameworks, integration approaches) and assess applicability to Huntington's environment
• Drive technical problem-solving across ambiguous domains; proactively decompose work into deliverable increments and lead execution to complete finished outcomes
• Provide technical mentorship and guidance to engineers, helping improve development velocity, quality, and confidence across the team
• Contribute to innovation reporting by summarizing progress, decisions, tradeoffs, and outcomes in a clear way for senior stakeholders
• Champion a culture of innovation and forward thinking, educating teams about new possibilities and bring an "art of the possible" mindset to problem-solving

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related technical field
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, technology architecture, and end-to-end innovative solution delivery
• Expert-level software engineering and application architecture skills with the ability to independently lead complex initiatives from concept to execution
• Demonstrated hands-on experience building applications end-to-end (backend + integration + UI), including APIs and workflow automation solutions
• Demonstrated experience building AI-enabled applications (GenAI, RAG, agentic workflows, model integration, evaluation/guardrails) in a hands-on capacity
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment while managing multiple priorities and driving workplans proactively

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience building innovative digital products in a regulated environment (financial services preferred) with strong security and risk-awareness
• Strong API design skills, integration patterns, and experience building services that can be reused across multiple use cases
• Experience with modern cloud platforms and AI services (e.g., Google Cloud / Vertex AI, Gemini, or comparable platforms)
• Experience with modern front-end frameworks and rapid prototyping approaches (e.g., React/Next.js or equivalent), plus strong backend development depth
• Strong hands-on software engineering experience using one or more modern programming languages (e.g., Java, Python, TypeScript/JavaScript, or similar), with the ability to rapidly learn and apply new technologies as needed
• Demonstrated success creating reusable accelerators (templates, libraries, reference implementations) that scale delivery across teams
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain architecture decisions, tradeoffs, and outcomes to technical and non-technical audiences
• Experience building with a product-centric mindset and ability to iteratively delivery; ability to create momentum while maintaining engineering discipline

Exempt Status: (Yes= not eligible for overtime pay) (No= eligible for overtime pay)

Workplace Type:

Our Approach to Office Workplace Type

Certain positions outside our branch network may be eligible for a flexible work arrangement. We're combining the best of both worlds: in-office and work from home. Our approach enables our teams to deepen connections, maintain a strong community, and do their best work. Remote roles will also have the opportunity to come together in our offices for moments that matter. Specific work arrangements will be provided by the hiring team.

Compensation Range:

The compensation range represents the low and high end of the base compensation range for this position. Actual compensation will vary and may be above or below the range based on various factors including but not limited to location, experience, and performance. Colleagues in this position are also eligible to participate in an applicable incentive compensation plan. In addition, Huntington provides a variety of benefits to colleagues, including health insurance coverage, wellness program, life and disability insurance, retirement savings plan, paid leave programs, paid holidays and paid time off (PTO).

Huntington is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Tobacco-Free Hiring Practice: Visit Huntington's Career Web Site for more details.

Note to Agency Recruiters: Huntington will not pay a fee for any placement resulting from the receipt of an unsolicited resume. All unsolicited resumes sent to any Huntington colleagues, directly or indirectly, will be considered Huntington property. Recruiting agencies must have a valid, written and fully executed Master Service Agreement and Statement of Work for consideration.