Principal Analyst I - Generative AI Analyst

Western Alliance Bank•Phoenix, AZ

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The AI Analyst (Generative AI) is the operational backbone of the bank's AI Governance function within the AI and Automation team, blending the roles of coordinator, analyst, documentarian, and communicator. You are central to keeping the AI Governance Program moving efficiently and effectively, ensuring that business and technology stakeholders stay informed and engaged in the decisions that shape how Generative AI is adopted, monitored, and controlled across the bank. This role is grounded in the governance aspects defined by the bank's Generative AI policy, standards, and procedures, and is ideal for someone who pairs strong communication and relationship-building skills with a meticulous eye for the standards, procedures, and controls that keep the program transparent and audit-ready. You will partner closely with program leadership, risk committees, business stakeholders and Enterprise Architecture Governance to administer the day-to-day operations of the governance framework. Working alongside AI Council members, control and process owners, and business and technology partners, the AI Analyst will maintain and continuously improve the Generative AI policy, standards, and procedures, keeping documentation current, accessible, and aligned to the federated and endorsed controls in force across the bank; author and maintain the procedural documents that operationalize the AI policy and satisfy federated and endorsed controls, partnering with control and process owners to keep them accurate and enforceable; track, measure, and articulate program progress through KPIs and KRIs, turning governance activity into clear metrics, status reports, and executive-ready narratives; and serve as a connective point across the AI program, coordinating working groups, capturing decisions and issues, and keeping stakeholders engaged throughout the governance process. This role requires strong communication and collaboration skills to build relationships across the organization and to articulate program progress, challenges, and improvement opportunities in a way that makes clear when and how governance value is delivered. It equally demands a high attention to detail to keep standards, procedures, and control documentation accurate, version-controlled, and ready to withstand internal and external scrutiny. The position offers meaningful growth potential and the chance to leave a lasting mark on how the bank governs and scales generative AI responsibly.

Requirements

8+ years of related experience.
Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Information Systems, Information Technology, Computer Science, Risk Management, Finance, or a related field required.
Experience running projects or programs using standard methodologies, with a track record of tracking progress and telling the story of program advancement through KPIs and KRIs.
Experience authoring and maintaining policies, standards, and procedures, and facilitating updates through document and process owners.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with strong executive presence and the ability to develop relationships and influence across business and technology teams.
High attention to detail in governance, control, and procedural documentation, with the discipline to keep artifacts accurate, version-controlled, and current.
Experience or exposure to interactions at the executive-management level, including preparing material for committees and senior leaders.
Familiarity with governance, risk, and control (GRC) practices; exposure to AI governance, model risk management, or responsible-AI frameworks is a plus.
Working knowledge of generative AI concepts and tools such as M365 Copilot and Copilot Studio, with the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical audiences.
Experience in metrics reporting and data visualization, such as with Power BI.
Experience delivering and operating in the banking or financial services industry.
Advanced knowledge of applicable regulatory and legal compliance obligations, rules and regulations, industry standards and practices.
Advanced to expert in process and data analysis within one or two domains or functional areas with deep critical thinking skills.
Experience working as a SME across one or two domains or functional areas.

Nice To Haves

Exposure to AI governance, model risk management, or responsible-AI frameworks is a plus.

Responsibilities

Partner with AI program leadership to coordinate governance activities and provide support for stakeholder care, program effectiveness, and alignment of the AI governance framework.
Document, maintain, and version the AI policy, principles, standards, processes, and procedures, and author new procedural documents required to satisfy federated and endorsed controls across the bank.
Maintain governance program records, including meeting minutes, decision logs, issue and action-item tracking, control mappings, and program metrics.
Develop monthly status reports and KPI/KRI dashboards and contribute material for AI Council and executive quarterly readouts.
Perform analysis of governance metrics, control performance, and issues management, and produce clear visualizations that tell the story of program progress.
Facilitate and coordinate AI governance working-group sessions, capturing outcomes and driving follow-up items to closure.
Organize and maintain governance content in SharePoint and Confluence so that standards, procedures, and artifacts are easy to find and use.
Work with control and process owners to keep procedural documentation accurate and to support internal audits, external examinations, and regulatory reviews.

Benefits

Competitive salaries
An ownership stake in the company
Medical and dental insurance
Time off
A great 401k matching program
Tuition assistance program
An employee volunteer program
A wellness program
Opportunity to bolster business knowledge
Learning the ins and outs of how successful companies operate and manage their finances
Invaluable hands-on experience to help grow your career