ABOUT THE ENGINE ROOM

The Engine Room works to strengthen the fight for social justice by supporting civil society to use technology and data in strategic, effective and responsible ways. We partner with human rights defenders, activists, journalists, and community organisations to conduct rigorous and ethical research that centers the needs and knowledge of communities most affected by the issues we study and at the frontlines of justice work across the Majority World.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are seeking an experienced technologist with expertise in chatbot systems to provide technical support in the design, development and/or optimization of a chatbot solution. We look for experts who hold hands-on experience with the development of conversational systems for social justice, and that have a commitment with responsible data and safety practices. In particular, we look for technologists to have experience designing systems that can engage safely and meaningfully with users situated across different contexts in the Global Majority and particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

QUALIFICATIONS

All candidates should demonstrate the following:

Demonstrated expertise in chatbot development and conversational AI, including hands-on experience building and deploying chatbot systems.
Strong background in NLP, machine learning, or AI systems, with familiarity with current LLM-based and rule-based conversational frameworks.
Experience applying responsible data and security practices to conversational systems, including privacy-by-design, encryption, secure hosting, data minimization, and incident response.
Understanding of the specific challenges of deploying chatbots and conversational systems in multilingual, low-connectivity, or high risk contexts (i.e gender-based violence, social justice).
Strong communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders

Desirable (but not essential) candidates may possess the following:

Fluency in English and Spanish.
Experience designing or advising on technology projects in the Global Majority, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Please note that The Engine Room is careful in what AI we use and by extension that of our contractors. We make decisions carefully and consciously about what AI we permit into our organization and to be used in our work. Our team does not rely on AI tools for programming, research, manuscript drafting, editing, or writing. We are careful when we hire team members or collaborate with partners or vendors who rely on AI for these functions. As part of the hiring process we will ask you to disclose what – if any – AI tools you plan to use in the course of this work with us. We do not permit any AI generated by authoritarian regimes.

SCOPE OF WORK

The consultant is expected to develop research and provide technical advice on the different stages of chatbot development, including:

Research: Assessing organizational needs, reviewing technical architecture, user flows, data collection mechanisms, and identifying priority areas for responsible data integration and security enhancements.
Strategy and design: Defining chatbot models and architectures, and developing recommendations on frameworks and data systems that apply responsible data and safety approaches.
Development and testing: Implementation pathways, including action plans for security enhancements, data protection measures, and platform improvements, such as encryption standards, secure server infrastructure recommendations, and incident response protocols.
Maintenance, documentation and sustainability, to support long-term chatbot adoption.

The consultant is expected to develop research and provide technical advice on the different stages of chatbot development, including:

Research: Assessing organizational needs, reviewing technical architecture, user flows, data collection mechanisms, and identifying priority areas for responsible data integration and security enhancements.
Strategy and design: Defining chatbot models and architectures, and developing recommendations on frameworks and data systems that apply responsible data and safety approaches.
Development and testing: Implementation pathways, including action plans for security enhancements, data protection measures, and platform improvements, such as encryption standards, secure server infrastructure recommendations, and incident response protocols.
Maintenance, documentation and sustainability, to support long-term chatbot adoption.

COMPENSATION

This is a remote consultancy role with a total engagement of 6 working days spread over a two-month period. The consultant will be compensated at a rate of $350 USD per working day. Working arrangements are flexible, with specific days to be agreed upon in coordination with the project team.

Interested candidates should submit a CV to hr@theengineroom.org. Please do not submit a cover letter.