Head of AI Risk Approvals and Portfolio Oversight

This is a critical senior leadership role at the forefront of Citi’s strategic evolution, accountable for providing independent oversight and authoritative approval for all AI use cases across the enterprise. This role is the firm's key second-line leader responsible for the risk posture of a vast and complex portfolio, ensuring that our adoption of AI is both ambitious and safe.

This position is central to navigating the risks and opportunities of AI across 90+ countries, hundreds of products, and core enterprise processes. The individual in this role will set the standard for responsible AI adoption, balancing innovation with a strong commitment to risk management in a dynamic and often unregulated global landscape.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Strategic Risk Leadership & Vision

• Act as the primary 2LOD approval authority for all AI use cases firm-wide, owning the aggregate risk posture of the AI portfolio.
• Set the strategic vision for AI risk management within the portfolio, ensuring frameworks are effectively implemented and aligned with Citi’s risk appetite.
• Champion an AI-first mindset by challenging existing processes and driving the re-engineering of workflows to unlock efficiency and simplicity.

2. Independent Oversight & Credible Challenge

• Provide decisive, independent challenge on all AI initiatives, from strategy and design through execution and post-production monitoring, grounded in deep technical expertise.
• Leverage deep subject matter expertise in critical AI risk areas, including model fairness and bias, explainability, data privacy, AI security, LLMs, and Agentic AI, to assess and mitigate novel risks, ensuring all use cases are robust and compliant.
• Conduct thematic reviews to identify emerging risk trends and ensure the control environment remains effective as AI technology evolves.

3. Governance, Execution & Continuous Improvement

• Drive the execution and continuous refinement of the AI Risk Management Framework, adapting processes to meet evolving technological and regulatory demands.
• Define, monitor, and report on Key Performance and Risk Indicators (KPIs/KRIs) to govern progress and ensure the realization of committed business value.
• Ensure governance frameworks are applied consistently across all teams and that changes to AI use cases are rigorously reviewed and approved throughout their lifecycle.

4. Senior Stakeholder Engagement & Influence

• Serve as the primary AI risk advisor to senior leaders and business/function heads, articulating complex risk exposures to influence strategic decisions.
• Lead a high-performing team of senior risk professionals, fostering a culture of proactive partnership, expertise, and credible challenge.
• Represent Citi's AI risk posture in key regulatory discussions and industry forums, contributing to thought leadership on responsible AI.

Qualifications & Experience:

• 15+ years of experience in a large, complex financial institution, regulatory body, or related field.
• A minimum of 10 years in a senior leadership role within risk management, audit, model governance, or technology risk, with direct experience in AI deployment and oversight.
• Demonstrated deep subject matter expertise in Artificial Intelligence, including current and emerging technologies and their specific risk implications within a financial services context.
• Proven track record of scaling large, complex AI or technology initiatives from concept through to production and continuous improvement.
• Proven ability to provide decisive, independent challenge to senior leadership and influence strategic outcomes in a principles-based manner.
• Demonstrated success leading high-performing, multi-disciplinary teams and driving change in a complex, global organization.
• A track record of operating effectively in high-pressure, fast-paced environments, demonstrating resilience and sound judgment under ambiguity.
• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree preferred.

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Job Family Group:

Risk Management

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Job Family:

Risk Reporting and Exposure Monitoring

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Time Type:

Full time

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Primary Location Full Time Salary Range:

$350,000.00 - $625,000.00

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Most Relevant Skills

Analytical Thinking, Constructive Debate, Data Analysis, Escalation Management, Management Reporting, Policy and Procedure, Policy and Regulation, Programming, Risk Controls and Monitors, Risk Identification and Assessment.

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Other Relevant Skills

For complementary skills, please see above and/or contact the recruiter.

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Automated Processing and AI

We use automated processing, including artificial intelligence, for our legitimate business interests (or our reasonable and appropriate business purposes) to identify and align the candidate's skills and abilities with a specific job opening. Additionally, if you so choose, or consent, we can match your skills and abilities to other suitable roles at Citi.

Importantly, all our hiring processes and decisions, including determining your suitability for a role, are conducted, checked, and decided by individuals. Our automated processing and AI do not involve relying on automatic or autonomous decision-making. Please refer to any Jurisdictional Considerations, with specific provisions for your country (where relevant) for further details.

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Citi is an equal opportunity employer, and qualified candidates will receive consideration without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other characteristic protected by law.

 

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