Built for an approved vacancy, not a sales process
Recruiters filling senior AI contract roles have a specific problem. Many people now describe themselves as AI engineers; fewer have taken LLM, agent or retrieval systems into production. Clients have learned to test for that, and a weak submission costs you credibility with the hiring manager. You need to know quickly whether a candidate genuinely fits, whether they can start when the client needs, and what they will cost, before you put your name to a submission.
This page is a direct route for exactly that. If you have an approved contract role, you do not need to go through an enablement workshop, a discovery call or a consulting proposal. Send the role, get a written answer.
How the arrangement works
Who contracts. Your agency contracts with the client under your terms with them. I contract with your agency for the assignment. Payment flows the same way: client to agency, agency to me, on the terms we agree before submission.
Who delivers. I do, personally, as on every contract role on this site. The CV you submit is the engineer who joins the client’s team, under the client’s manager. I do not supply associates or other engineers under my name. If the client later wants a specialist alongside me, that is disclosed to the client and to you, and only goes ahead with the client’s approval.
Who owns the relationship. For that role, you do. I will not contract around you for the same assignment, and I respect the restrictions in your standard terms.
Who decides status. The client makes the IR35 or equivalent determination. I describe the actual working practices accurately when asked, and give no tax advice.
What you get
- A quick yes or no on fit, with reasons. I would rather decline a role I am wrong for than be submitted and waste your client relationship.
- A checked availability window, dated, for the client’s start window and working pattern. It is valid for a stated period and I tell you straight away if it changes.
- A current CV and capability pack mapped to the role: dates, roles and what I personally did in each, a short requirements summary, and links to work the client can inspect.
- Interview availability for client technical conversations once you have submitted.
The role-intake checklist
The faster you can answer these, the faster you get an answer. Illustrative example of a completed intake:
| Item | Example answer |
|---|---|
| Role and remit | Contract LLM engineer: own evaluation and structured output for a customer-support assistant |
| Client context | Mid-size SaaS company, existing platform team of six |
| Reports to | Head of engineering |
| Start window and duration | Within six weeks; three months, extendable |
| Working pattern | Four days a week, UK hours, two on-site days a month |
| Contract basis | Via agency; status determination pending from client |
| Rate range | Within the client’s approved budget |
| Approval status | Vacancy approved, hiring manager interviewing this month |
Illustrative example showing the format, not a real vacancy.
Conflicts and duplicate submissions
Duplicate submissions damage everyone, so the rule is simple: one agency per role, and nothing is submitted without my explicit consent for that specific role. Before you submit, share the client name. If another agency has already submitted me for the same role, or the client approached me directly first, I tell you before you submit, not after. Client-first contacts are disclosed rather than quietly routed around you.
Which roles fit
The contract role pages describe what I take on: LLM engineer, AI agent engineer, RAG engineer, AI enablement engineer, forward-deployed engineer, AI solutions architect, AI platform engineer, Python and ML engineer, part-time capacity and interim bridge. Each lists responsibilities, stack fit, onboarding needs and reporting, which you can use to check a vacancy before sending it. For supplier onboarding documents, see procurement information.
When this is the wrong route
If you are an agency or consultancy looking for a co-delivery partner on a client project, rather than placing a contractor, use the agencies and consultancies route. If the client needs a whole team, I am not the right submission, and I will say so.