Athena Infonomics
Manager, AI and Digital Transformation (Rural Economy and Development)
Be an Early Applicant
Own a workstream on a national rural digital platform, from defining use cases and functional specifications through engineering delivery, field testing, rollout, training, and adoption tracking. Collaborate with government counterparts, self-help groups, community workers, and block staff to gather requirements and resolve issues. Prepare acceptance criteria, test delivered functionality, report adoption honestly, and provide actionable updates to senior leadership. One workstream focuses on member-facing applications; the other covers financial systems, bookkeeping, and credit linkage.
Position: Manager, AI and Digital Transformation (Rural Economy and Development)
Team: AI and Digital Transformation
Level and grade: L4 Manager
Position type: Full time, permanent
Location: Delhi, with regular travel to NRLM states
Reports to: Senior Manager, AI and Digital Transformation (Rural Economy and Development)
Travel: 30 to 40 percent
About Us
APLYD helps governments, multilateral institutions, development finance institutions and foundations use AI in public systems. Most public-sector AI stops at the pilot. Our work is getting it into everyday service delivery and keeping it running once we leave.
Athena Infonomics has done this work for years. In 2026 we set it up as its own company. We cover strategy and readiness, field data and last-mile reach, design and build, evaluation and audit, and scale and production.
440+ engagements · 240+ global clients · 85+ specialists · 7 countries · 5 continents
The Role
You own a workstream on a national rural digital platform used by self-help groups. Two seats are open and the responsibilities are the same; the difference is the subject matter. One seat covers the member-facing applications, meaning the tools group members and community cadre use. The other covers financial systems and credit, meaning bookkeeping, group financial records and the credit linkage that runs on top of them.
The two seats sit alongside each other on the same platform and the same counterpart relationship.
Core Job Responsibilities
- Own your workstream end to end: the use case, the specification the engineers build from, the rollout, and the adoption that follows.
- Work with the government counterpart who owns your part of the platform. Run the working sessions, record the decisions, and chase the ones that stall.
- Do the field work yourself. Sit with self-help group members, community cadre and block staff, and bring back what the system actually has to handle.
- Write the functional specifications and acceptance criteria, and test what comes back against them.
- Track adoption in your workstream and report it honestly, including where it is not working.
- Prepare training and reference material for the people who will operate what you build.
- Write the notes and updates the Senior Manager and the counterpart act on.
Qualifications and Competencies
- Four or more years in rural development, financial inclusion, digital products or public-sector programme delivery.
- You have specified or managed a digital product or module that went into use, and you can explain what you got wrong the first time.
- Direct field experience with self-help groups, community institutions or block-level government staff.
- You can hold your own with engineers on what is feasible and with officials on what is needed.
- Hindi, and willingness to travel 30 to 40 percent.
- For the financial systems seat, a working understanding of group bookkeeping, community-based financial records or credit linkage.
Also useful, though we will not screen on it
- Experience of DAY-NRLM, state rural livelihoods missions or JEEViKA.
- Digital financial services or business correspondent models.
- One other Indian language.
- Comfort with data: you can open a dataset and describe it accurately.
Additional Requirements
- This position requires successful completion of a reference check and employment verification.
- The successful candidate must not be subject to employment restrictions from a former employer, such as a non-compete, that would prevent performance of the responsibilities described.
- Candidates must declare any current or recent engagement with a government, multilateral or development finance institution that could present a conflict of interest.
APLYD’s Work Culture
At APLYD, we function in an outcomes-based work environment with flexible hours and a high level of autonomy. Professional development and thought leadership are key elements of our business model: we support our team members’ professional growth through on-the-job training, and we encourage the cultivation of our colleagues’ personal brands through participation in panels, events, publications, and other thought-leadership opportunities. We embrace a transparent, open work environment with meaningful leadership pathways for those with inventive ideas and initiatives.
APLYD is an Equal Opportunities Employer
APLYD, part of the Athena Infonomics group, is an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran status, or disability status.
AI Proficiency and Responsible Use
Proficiency in the responsible and sophisticated use of AI is a mandatory requirement for all roles, across all levels and functions at APLYD and Athena Infonomics.
Similar Jobs
12 Days Ago
Professional Services • Social Impact • Analytics • Consulting
Leads rural digital infrastructure products and programs from use-case definition through adoption. Responsibilities include writing engineering specifications, managing government counterpart relationships, tracking user adoption, coordinating measurement and reporting, conducting field research and training, and producing reports for funders and government stakeholders. The role manages two programs and build teams, requires rural development or public-sector delivery experience, direct engagement with rural institutions and staff, Hindi proficiency, technical-program translation skills, and 30–40% travel in India.
Top Skills:
AIData ProductsDigital InfrastructureDigital Transformation
Fintech • Legal Tech • Software • Financial Services • Cybersecurity • Data Privacy
Coordinates client orders and processes legal and corporate documents across multiple jurisdictions. Responsibilities include responding to client inquiries, maintaining customer records, managing portfolios, navigating databases, fulfilling orders, reviewing filings, communicating project progress, and resolving documentation issues. The role requires strong customer service, attention to detail, organization, problem-solving, communication, and the ability to work accurately in a fast-paced, high-volume environment.
Top Skills:
MS OfficeSalesforce
Fintech • Legal Tech • Software • Financial Services • Cybersecurity • Data Privacy
Processes client orders and legal documents, responds to internal and external inquiries, updates customer records, manages portfolios, fulfills orders across jurisdictions, coordinates project progress, navigates multiple databases, and resolves documentation issues while maintaining accuracy and strong customer service.
Top Skills:
MS OfficeSalesforce
What you need to know about the Delhi Tech Scene
Delhi, India's capital city, is a place where tradition and progress co-exist. While Old Delhi is known for its rich history and bustling markets, New Delhi is defined by its modern architecture. It's clear the region places a strong emphasis on preserving its cultural heritage while embracing technological advancements, particularly in artificial intelligence, which plays a central role in shaping the city's tech landscape, fueled by investments in research and development.
