Senior Director, Data & AI Risk Management

AstraZeneca • Gaithersburg, MD

5d • Hybrid

About The Position

We're building a connected, end-to-end Enterprise AI engine - uniting data foundations, AI technology, process reinvention, and business-facing AI to accelerate results across the whole value chain. Success depends on being exceptional connectors : you'll actively leverage existing capabilities, celebrate and promote reuse, export breakthrough ideas across geographies and functions, and obsess over scaling impact rather than building in isolation. If you thrive in high-collaboration environments where your role is to turn complex, cross-functional problems into reusable, enterprise-wide capabilities - and where the measure of success is adoption and scale, not just innovation - you'll have the platform (and sponsorship) to make it real. The Senior Director, Data & AI Risk Management provides enterprise leadership for the identification, assessment, and management of Data and AI risks. The role ensures that Data and AI are deployed at scale while remaining within agreed risk appetite, regulatory expectations, and ethical standards. This role acts as a senior risk authority and trusted partner to the business, translating policy intent into practical risk decisions, driving mitigation where needed, and enabling leaders to make confident, timely decisions on Data & AI initiatives.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Information/Data Science, Informatics, Computer Science, Economics, or related discipline – or equivalent number of years of experience.
• Significant senior experience in risk management, assurance, governance, or second-line oversight within a complex organisation.
• Demonstrated ability to build and lead a high-performing team with deep expertise in enterprise Data & AI risk management.
• Champion a culture of responsible, compliant, and value-focused use of data and AI across the organisation.
• Demonstrated project leadership skills.
• Demonstrate effective communication skills with the ability to influence others to achieve objectives.
• Proven change management, collaboration, and negotiation skills.

Nice To Haves

• Master's or PhD in Business Administration, Information/Data Science, Informatics, Computer Science, Economics, or related discipline.
• Experience in life sciences and healthcare.
• Intimate knowledge of relevant key business processes in the Pharma industry.
• Data and / or AI Governance and Data Management education and certifications.
• Familiarity with relevant data and AI regulations and compliance requirements (e.g. GxP, GDPR, EU AI Act, NIS2, etc.).
• Applied data management, data science, AI development, or AI governance skills, including experience with related tools.
• Exposure publishing relevant data and / or AI risk management topics in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, and other scientific proceedings.

Responsibilities

• Own the enterprise approach to identifying, assessing, and managing Data & AI risks across strategic, operational, ethical, and regulatory dimensions.
• Integrate Data & AI risk into broader Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) processes, ensuring alignment with enterprise risk appetite and strategic objectives.
• Ensure material Data & AI risks are surfaced, understood, and actively managed at an enterprise level.
• Improve enterprise risk posture by challenging the adequacy of mitigations, driving timely remediation of material issues, and escalating where risks exceed agreed appetite or controls are ineffective.
• Provide harmonised risk positions that support confident, timely decision-making and informed discussions related to risk appetite.
• Oversee enterprise-level risk aggregation, reporting, and insight for Data & AI, providing senior leadership and governance bodies with a clear view of systemic risk exposure, trends, and residual risk against appetite.
• Establish and lead the enterprise operating model for Data & AI Risk Management, defining clear accountabilities, decision rights, escalation paths, and governance forums, with well-defined stakeholder engagement across business units, regions, and functions.
• Drive continuous improvement of risk management processes for Data & AI to reflect stakeholder feedback and industry best practices.
• Serve as a senior advisor on complex or novel Data & AI use cases, enabling proportionate risk decisions rather than default risk avoidance.
• Partner with Business areas, Project Teams, and Data Offices to embed risk management into ways of working, delivery pipelines, and operating models.
• Build strong relationships across Legal, Compliance, AZ IT, and Privacy to ensure aligned and consistent risk approaches.
• Own and manage interactions with Group Internal Audit, including Management Action Plans, and remediation tracking related to Data & AI risk.
• Identify opportunities to safely accelerate Data Enablement and AI deployment within agreed risk appetite.
• Demonstrated ability to partner effectively with colleagues across functions and levels, actively listen, resolve conflicts constructively, and co-create solutions to achieve shared goals.
• Demonstrated ability to synthesise complex issues into concise narratives, anticipating stakeholder concerns, navigating ambiguity, and driving alignment and decisions in high-stakes forums.
• Executive presence with the ability to build credibility quickly, communicate with clarity and confidence, and influence senior executive leadership at forums such as Audit Committee, the Data Enablement Council, or SET-area Data Office (SEDO), promoting a culture of responsible and confident Data & AI use.

Benefits

• short-term incentive bonus opportunity
• equity-based long-term incentive program
• retirement contribution
• commission payment eligibility
• qualified retirement program [401(k) plan]
• paid vacation and holidays
• paid leaves
• health benefits including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior