Program Manager - AI Engineering

Program Manager – AI Engineering

Charlotte, NC

This role serves as a strategic partner to the Head of AI Engineering, operating

as an extension of senior leadership across a rapidly growing portfolio of AI,

GenAI, and Agentic AI initiatives.

The successful candidate will combine strong program management capabilities

with executive-level strategic support, helping drive organizational priorities,

portfolio execution, executive communications, governance, workforce planning,

and cross-functional alignment.

This individual will operate with significant autonomy, representing AI

Engineering leadership in senior stakeholder forums, driving critical

initiatives to completion, and ensuring leadership priorities are effectively

translated into measurable business outcomes.

The ideal candidate has demonstrated success as a trusted partner to senior

technology leaders and is comfortable operating as a strategic extension of

executive leadership. They combine strong program management discipline with

executive communication skills, organizational influence, and the ability to

independently drive complex initiatives to completion.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Executive Enablement
• * Serve as a trusted partner and extension of AI Engineering leadership,
• helping drive strategic priorities across the organization.
• * Operate with a high degree of autonomy, translating leadership direction into
• actionable plans and measurable outcomes.
• * Represent leadership in meetings and stakeholder forums when needed.
• * Develop executive communications, business reviews, and leadership
• presentations.
• * Identify risks, dependencies, and opportunities, and proactively drive
• resolution.
• AI Engineering Portfolio Delivery & Governance
• * Lead a portfolio of AI, GenAI, and Agentic AI initiatives from ideation
• through production and optimization.
• * Provide executive-level reporting on delivery status, risks, dependencies,
• and business outcomes.
• * Establish and maintain governance practices supporting AI lifecycle
• management, risk controls, and regulatory requirements.
• * Ensure programs align with enterprise standards and achieve target adoption,
• performance, and stability outcomes.
• Financial, Vendor & Workforce Management
• * Manage portfolio budgets, forecasts, funding allocations, and financial
• reporting.
• * Oversee vendor relationships, including SOWs, contract governance, invoicing,
• and performance management.
• * Develop workforce strategies including capacity planning, staffing
• optimization, resiliency, and critical skill development.
• * Partner with leadership to build scalable operating models that support
• growing AI Engineering demand.
• Program Leadership & Stakeholder Engagement
• * Provide oversight of strategic initiatives, ensuring alignment between
• business objectives, engineering delivery, and investment priorities.
• * Apply Agile and modern software delivery practices to improve execution and
• time-to-market.
• * Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders across AI Engineering, Finance,
• Risk, Compliance, Sourcing, and business teams.
• * Drive alignment, decision-making, and accountability across complex
• cross-functional initiatives.
• Business Impact
• Success in this role will drive:
• * Greater transparency into AI Engineering investments, priorities, risks, and
• outcomes.
• * Strong financial stewardship and optimized portfolio investments.
• * Scalable vendor and workforce models supporting AI growth.
• * Reliable, well-governed, production-grade AI and GenAI solutions.
• * Faster delivery of AI capabilities and business value.
• * Stronger operational resilience, governance, and risk management.
• * Increased effectiveness of AI Engineering leadership through proactive
• execution and strategic support.

Qualifications

• * Experience:
• * 8+ years in program/portfolio management within technology organizations
• (banking preferred)
• * Experience managing AI/ML, GenAI portfolios
• * Technical Expertise:
• * Understanding of:
• * AI/ML lifecycle (data, training, deployment, monitoring)
• * GenAI and LLM-based solutions
• * Agentic frameworks and orchestration patterns
• * MLOps / AIOps practices
• * Familiarity with:
• * Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• * Data engineering and big data ecosystems
• * DevOps and CI/CD pipelines
• * Financial & Operational Skills:
• * Strong experience in:
• * Portfolio budgeting and forecasting
• * Cost optimization strategies for cloud and AI workloads
• * Vendor contract and SOW management
• * Leadership & Execution:
• * Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional portfolios
• * Strong executive communication and reporting skills
• * Proven ability to drive delivery stability and operational excellence at
• scale
• * Regulatory & Risk Awareness:
• * Understanding of model risk management, governance, and compliance within
• financial services
• * Executive Partnership & Influence
• Demonstrated experience:
• * Supporting senior executives, business leaders, or technology leaders
• * Representing leadership priorities across large organizations
• * Influencing without direct authority
• * Preparing executive-level presentations and communications
• * Engaging confidently with senior stakeholders
• Preferred Experience:
• * Chief of Staff, Business Operations, Strategic Initiatives, Portfolio
• Operations, or Executive Program Management experience
• * Experience serving as a strategic advisor or operational extension to senior
• technology leaders
• * Experience supporting board, executive committee, or senior leadership
• reviews
• Hours & Work Schedule
• * Hours per Week: 40
• * Work Schedule: Monday-Friday
• * Location: Charlotte, NC
• [https://jobs.citizensbank.com/digital-office-charlotte]
• Pay Transparency
• The salary range for this position is $146,000-$155,000 per year, plus an
• opportunity to earn an annual discretionary bonus. Actual pay is based on
• various factors including but not limited to the budget, work location, and
• relevant skills and experience. We offer competitive pay, comprehensive medical,
• dental and vision coverage, retirement benefits, maternity/paternity leave,
• flexible work
• arrangements, education reimbursement, wellness programs and more. Note,
• Citizens’ paid time off policy exceeds the mandatory, paid sick or
• paid time-away policy of every local and state jurisdiction in the United
• States. For an overview of our benefits, visit
• https://jobs.citizensbank.com/benefits [https://jobs.citizensbank.com/benefits]
• #LinkedIn-Citizens1

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Citizens, its parent, subsidiaries, and related companies (Citizens) provide

equal employment and advancement opportunities to all colleagues and applicants

for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, citizenship, physical or

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background check, which may include initial credit, motor vehicle record, public

record, prior employment verification, and criminal background checks. Results

of the background check are individually reviewed based upon legal requirements

imposed by our regulators and with consideration of the nature and gravity of

the background history and the job offered. Any offer of employment will include

further information.