Senior Director, AI Partnerships

RBC • Toronto, ON

1d • Onsite

About The Position

RBC's AI Group is building the future of AI-powered banking, and strategic vendor partnerships are critical to accelerating our AI ambitions at scale. Reporting to the SVP & Head, RBC Borealis and Chief Science Officer, the Senior Director, AI Partnerships will own all vendor relationships and partnership strategy across the AI Group, ensuring RBC has access to the best-in-class AI technologies, platforms, and capabilities needed to deliver our $1 billion AI ambition. This is a high-impact leadership role where you'll be responsible for managing complex technology vendor relationships, negotiating enterprise agreements, and driving strategic partnerships that enable RBC's AI innovation agenda. You'll serve as the primary partnership lead for the AI Group while supporting broader partnership initiatives across the Executive Vice President, AI Innovation & Technology's organization. You'll work at the intersection of technology strategy, vendor management, and business enablement to ensure RBC maximizes value from its AI vendor ecosystem while managing risk, optimizing costs, and maintaining strong governance across all third-party relationships.

Requirements

• 10-15 years of experience in technology vendor management, strategic partnerships, or procurement roles within complex enterprise environments.
• Proven track record managing high-value, multi-million dollar vendor relationships with major technology providers.
• Deep experience negotiating complex technology contracts including SaaS agreements, platform licenses, and enterprise service agreements.
• Strong understanding of AI technologies, cloud platforms, and enterprise technology ecosystems.

Nice To Haves

• Communication
• Design Thinking
• Interpersonal Relationship Management
• Risk Management
• Teamwork
• Waterfall Model

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end vendor relationship strategy for all AI Group partnerships including foundation model providers, AI platform vendors, specialized AI tooling companies, and academic research institutions.
• Serve as the single point of accountability for all vendor relationships across the AI Group, ensuring consistency, strategic alignment, and enterprise-wide coordination.
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive AI vendor portfolio strategy that balances innovation needs, cost optimization, risk management, and scalability requirements.
• Build trusted relationships with key vendor executives and account teams to ensure RBC receives strategic prioritization and access to emerging capabilities.
• Lead high-stakes negotiations with strategic AI vendors on commercial agreements, licensing terms, service level agreements, and partnership structures.
• Partner with procurement, legal, third-party risk, and finance teams to structure agreements that optimize value while ensuring compliance with RBC policies and regulatory requirements.
• Manage contract lifecycle from initial RFP through negotiation, execution, renewal, and ongoing optimization.
• Drive vendor performance management including scorecards, quarterly business reviews, and escalation resolution.
• Monitor the AI vendor landscape and emerging technology trends to identify new partnership opportunities that could accelerate RBC's AI roadmap.
• Establish governance frameworks and metrics to track vendor performance, value delivery, and strategic alignment across the AI portfolio.
• Drive thought leadership and ecosystem engagement by representing RBC at industry conferences, vendor advisory boards, and AI community events.
• Manage AI Group vendor budgets and financial planning in collaboration with finance and business management teams.
• Ensure all vendor relationships comply with RBC's third-party risk management policies, security requirements, and regulatory standards.
• Drive cost optimization initiatives across the vendor portfolio while maintaining service quality and innovation velocity.
• Develop business cases and ROI analyses for new vendor partnerships and contract renewals.

Benefits

• Comprehensive Total Rewards Program including competitive compensation, bonuses, flexible benefits, and stock options.
• Talent development: Leaders who support your growth through coaching, mentorship, and opportunities to shape RBC's strategic direction.
• Dynamic, high-performing team: Work alongside some of the brightest minds in AI, technology, and financial services.
• Opportunities for progressively greater impact: As RBC's AI partnerships scale, so will your scope and influence.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed