Head of AI Governance

Our purpose is to give everyone real confidence to put their money to work. With a heritage dating back more than 175 years, we have a long history of innovation in savings and investments, combining asset management and insurance expertise to offer a wide range of solutions. Our two distinct operating segments, Asset Management and Life, work together to provide access to balanced, long-term investment and savings solutions.

Through telling it like it is, owning it now, and moving it forward together with care and integrity; we are creating an exceptional place to work for exceptional talent.

We will consider flexible working arrangements for any of our roles and also offer workplace accommodations to ensure you have what you need to effectively deliver in your role.

The Head of AI Governance is accountable for establishing, embedding, and continuously evolving the firm's enterprise-wide AI governance and responsible AI framework. The role ensures that all uses of artificial intelligence across both internal operations and customer-facing products are compliant with regulatory expectations, aligned with the firm's risk appetite, and deployed in a manner that is ethical, transparent, and trustworthy. Operating at the intersection of regulation, technology, and business strategy, the role provides strategic leadership, pragmatic oversight, and expert advisory support to executive stakeholders as AI adoption scales across the organisation.

• Responsibilities

• Strategy & Governance
• Regulatory & Compliance Oversight
• Risk Management & Assurance
• Operating Model & Decision Forums
• Stakeholder Engagement & Enablement
• Leadership & External Engagement

• Strategy & Governance
  • Define and own the firm's AI Governance Strategy, ensuring alignment with business objectives, enterprise risk management, and regulatory expectations.
  • Evolve and maintain the AI Governance Framework, including policies, standards, controls, decision rights, and escalation pathways.
  • Lead the evolution of AI governance from point-in-time approvals to embedded, risk-based, business-as-usual controls.
• Regulatory & Compliance Oversight
  • Ensure compliance with relevant regulations and supervisory expectations, including:
    • EU AI Act (and UK divergence where applicable)
    • FCA, PRA and ICO expectations relating to AI, data protection, model risk, and consumer outcomes
    • Cross-jurisdictional requirements for global operations
  • Act as the firm's subject-matter expert on AI regulation, advising Legal, Compliance, and senior leaders on regulatory interpretation and practical implementation.
  • Prepare executive-level and regulatory-ready artefacts, evidence, and disclosures relating to AI risk and controls.
• Risk Management & Assurance
  • Oversee the identification, assessment, and treatment of AI-related risks, including:
    • Model risk, bias, explainability, and robustness
    • Data usage, privacy, and intellectual property risks
    • Third-party and vendor AI risks
    • Consumer harm and reputational risk
  • Define governance approaches for high-risk and prohibited AI use cases, including control design, oversight requirements, and sign-off expectations.
  • Partner with Internal Audit and Risk functions to support independent assurance and continuous improvement.
• Operating Model & Decision Forums
  • Design and lead AI governance forums and decision-making bodies, ensuring:
    • Clear accountability and decision ownership
    • Proportionate oversight aligned to risk
    • Constructive enablement rather than unnecessary friction
  • Provide expert challenge, guidance, and recommendations to business and technology teams throughout the AI lifecycle.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Enablement
  • Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders across Technology, Data, Legal, Compliance, Risk, HR, and the business.
  • Enable responsible innovation by providing clear, pragmatic guidance that helps teams deploy AI safely and efficiently.
  • Lead AI literacy and awareness initiatives to ensure colleagues understand their responsibilities and obligations when using AI.
• Leadership & External Engagement
  • Build, lead, and develop a high-performing AI governance team.
  • Represent the firm in industry forums, regulatory discussions, and external working groups related to AI and responsible technology.
  • Monitor external developments in AI, regulation, and industry best practice to inform proactive governance improvements.

• Strong understanding of AI systems, their risks, and limitations from a governance and oversight perspective
• In-depth knowledge of UK and EU financial services regulation relevant to AI (e.g. EU AI Act, FCA, PRA, ICO)
• Awareness of model risk management, data governance, privacy, and third-party risk concepts
• Understanding of ethical, trustworthy, and responsible AI principles and how they translate into controls
• Familiarity with enterprise risk management frameworks and regulatory assurance expectations

• Ability to design and embed enterprise-wide governance frameworks for complex and emerging risks
• Strong executive stakeholder engagement,…