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Who owns AI search? Roles, RACI and a hiring kit for AEO and GEO

A team kit for answer engine optimisation: why the work fails without an owner, four operating models and their trade-offs, a RACI matrix across seven functions, three job descriptions, a skills scorecard with interview questions, a 90-day onboarding plan, an operating cadence and the budget lines to plan for.

  • RACI matrix for seven recurring AEO tasks across seven functions
  • Three job descriptions: AEO/GEO lead, AEO analyst, content strategist for AI answers
  • Skills scorecard and interview questions with what a good answer includes
  • 90-day onboarding plan for the first AEO hire
  • Weekly, monthly and quarterly cadence with governance rules and budget lines

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The short answer

One named person should own AI search: usually an AEO or GEO lead sitting in marketing, next to SEO. They own the prompt set, the measurement and the backlog, but most changes are made by others: content, PR, web, product marketing, analytics and IT. A RACI matrix makes that split explicit, and a monthly review keeps it running.

For CMOs, heads of SEO or digital and HR partners at brands and large companies

What you will learn

  1. Chapter 1

    Why AI search needs a named owner

    • AI answers draw on sources spread across several teams, so the work tends to stall when nobody coordinates it.
    • The owner is accountable for the prompt set, measurement, the backlog, corrections and reporting, not for making every change.
    • Put the owner where they can reach both the people who change pages and the people who change the story, usually in marketing beside SEO.
    • If you cannot hire yet, name an interim owner with a written, time-boxed mandate rather than forming a committee.

  2. Chapter 2

    Choose an operating model

    • Centre of excellence, embedded, agency-led and hybrid models each trade consistency, speed and in-house knowledge differently.
    • Shared platforms and a need for comparable reporting point towards a central team; independent units point towards embedded work with a common standard.
    • When an agency leads, keep ownership of the prompt set, the raw answers and the method in-house.
    • Hold the prompt set, method and report format steady when the operating model changes, or you cannot judge the change.

  3. Chapter 3

    Split the work with a RACI matrix

    • Seven recurring tasks cover most AEO work: prompt set, measurement, content changes, PR and sources, technical access, corrections and reporting.
    • Give each task exactly one accountable function, and make the AEO lead accountable only for what no other team owns by default.
    • Crawler rules are security controls; make IT accountable for them and consult the AEO lead on every change that touches AI agents.
    • Many failures happen at hand-offs, so write a rule for each one, not just a matrix.

  4. Chapter 4

    Hire the first role

    • Decide whether to hire, reassign or contract before writing a job description; a part-time owner only works if their time is protected.
    • Hire the lead first when coordination is the gap, the analyst first when measurement is, and the content strategist first when the gaps are mostly missing pages.
    • Score every candidate on the same skills with written evidence, and use a short work sample.
    • Benchmark pay on the work the role does, using your own salary data for established neighbouring roles, rather than on a new title.

  5. Chapter 5

    The first 90 days for your first hire

    • Arrange access and introductions before day one; most delays are permissions owned by other teams.
    • Spend the first 30 days listening and building a baseline, not changing pages.
    • By day 60 the RACI, prompt set and backlog should be agreed and the first changes shipped and logged.
    • By day 90 the first monthly report and quarterly review should prove the operating model works.

  6. Chapter 6

    Run it: cadence, governance and budget

    • A weekly triage, a monthly review and a quarterly reset are enough rhythm for most organisations.
    • Change the prompt set and method only at the quarterly review, and date every version.
    • Plan the budget as lines sized from your own data; no published figure will fit your market and company.
    • Report the same measures in the same order every month so leadership learns to read them.

7 worksheets inside

The chapters explain the method. The worksheets are what you fill in to run it: print them, or copy the tables into a document of your own.

  • W1RACI matrix for AI search
  • W2Job description: AEO/GEO lead
  • W3Job description: AEO analyst
  • W4Job description: content strategist for AI answers
  • W5Skills scorecard and interview guide
  • W690-day onboarding plan for the first AEO hire
  • W7Operating cadence, governance and budget
Get the kit

Questions

Who should own AI search in a company?
One named person, usually an AEO or GEO lead in marketing beside the SEO team, reporting to the head of digital or the CMO. They own the prompt set, measurement, the backlog, corrections and reporting. Content, PR, web, product marketing, analytics and IT make most of the changes, under a RACI matrix everyone has agreed.
Is AEO the job of the SEO team?
Partly. SEO owns much of the technical and content groundwork that helps both channels. But AI answers also draw on press, reviews and third-party sources, and wrong answers need a corrections process, so AEO needs PR, product marketing and legal too. Many organisations put the AEO lead inside or beside SEO and give them a mandate across the other teams.
What does an AEO or GEO specialist do?
They track how AI assistants answer the questions buyers ask, find where the brand is missing or described wrongly, and get the fixes made: clearer pages, better third-party sources, open crawler access and corrections. They report what changed and why. The title varies; AEO specialist, GEO specialist and AI search lead often describe the same work.
What should an AEO specialist job description include?
The purpose of the role, the five accountabilities (prompt set, measurement, backlog, corrections, reporting), the teams they work with, outcomes for the first 90 days, and requirements split into must-haves and things that can be learned. Leave out years of experience in a field this new, and set pay from your benchmark for neighbouring established roles.
Should we hire an AEO lead or use an agency?
Use an agency when you need capacity quickly or have no in-house expertise, and hire when the programme is approved and several teams need coordinating. In either case keep an internal owner, and keep the prompt set, raw answers and method in-house so knowledge does not leave with the contract.
How do you structure an AEO team in a large company?
Many large organisations find a hybrid works: a central lead and analyst who own method and measurement, named people in content, web and PR who carry AEO tasks, and an agency for extra capacity. A centre of excellence suits shared platforms; embedded teams suit independent business units with a common measurement standard.
Which teams are involved in AI search optimisation?
Typically seven: SEO, content, PR and communications, web development, product marketing, analytics and IT or security, coordinated by the AEO lead. Legal or compliance should be consulted on corrections that involve price, safety or regulation.
What should the first 90 days of an AEO hire look like?
Days 1 to 30: interviews, a draft prompt set and a baseline. Days 31 to 60: an agreed RACI, a versioned prompt set, a ranked backlog and the first changes shipped. Days 61 to 90: rechecks, the first monthly report and a quarterly review that approves the next plan.
Is The AI Search Team Kit free?
Yes. Give a first name and a work email and the download starts at once. We also email you the link, and one person from the Noma team follows up a day later; reply and say so if you would rather not hear from us.
Why do you ask for a work email?
The playbooks are written for teams at companies, and a work address tells us which company is reading, so a follow-up can be about your brand rather than generic. Personal and temporary inboxes are not accepted.
What format is it?
A PDF of 42 A4 pages, laid out to print, with worksheets you can fill in by hand or copy into a document of your own.

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Updated 20 October 2026 · Written by the Noma team · All resources