AI Security and Governance Lead

Job Description

Company: BDO USA

Location: McLean, US

## AI Security and Governance Lead

At BDO you will lead the work to establish and advance secure, compliant, and responsible use of AI across our enterprise platforms and client environments. The role designs and leads governance frameworks, security controls, and risk management practices for AI and agent-based systems deployed on Azure AI and Azure AI Foundry. You will partner with architecture, engineering, product, legal, privacy, and compliance stakeholders to embed security, resilience, and ethical AI principles across the full AI lifecycle — from design and development through deployment, monitoring, and incident response.

You will:

– Design and implement enterprise AI governance frameworks that promote secure, ethical, and compliant use of AI across products, platforms, and client deployments.

– Lead secure architecture for Azure AI and Azure AI Foundry environments, including identity, access control, private networking, encryption, monitoring, and operational safeguards.

– Develop and enforce AI security standards, policies, and control requirements aligned to frameworks such as NIST AI RMF, ISO 42001, ISO 27001, OWASP, SANS, and cloud security benchmarks.

– Conduct AI risk assessments, threat modeling, model and agent security reviews, and red team exercises for generative AI, predictive AI, and autonomous agent workflows.

– Establish governance processes for the AI lifecycle, including LLM/traditional model onboarding, evaluation, approval, deployment, continuous monitoring, and retirement.

– Secure AI agents and orchestration workflows by defining guardrails, safety baselines, identity boundaries, data access controls, and runtime monitoring expectations.

– Partner with product, engineering, legal, privacy, risk, and compliance teams to ensure responsible AI principles and regulatory obligations are embedded from design through production operations.

– Support AI security incident response, investigations, corrective actions, and remediation planning for AI systems, data exposures, model misuse, or policy violations.

– Define governance reporting, audit readiness, and evidence collection processes to support internal oversight, client requirements, and external reviews.

– Advise stakeholders on responsible AI adoption, security best practices, privacy considerations, and secure deployment patterns for Azure-hosted AI solutions.

– Perform other duties as required.

You will also mentor team members and contribute to reusable standards, playbooks, and training materials for AI governance and security. The role includes monitoring the work of onshore and offshore developers (employees and contractors).

Educational and experience expectations are clear: a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Information Technology, or Data Science is required; an advanced degree in those fields is preferred. A minimum seven (7) years of experience in enterprise architecture, information security, technology governance, or AI engineering is required. Experience designing and implementing AI governance programs, risk management strategies, or compliance controls for emerging technologies is required, as is a strong understanding of the AI/ML lifecycle management, including model evaluation, deployment, monitoring, incident response, and change management.

Preferred experience includes conducting threat modeling, security assessments, or red teaming for AI systems, LLM applications, or agent-based workflows, and collaborating with auditors, regulators, legal, privacy, or compliance teams to satisfy governance and assurance requirements.

Relevant certifications are preferred but not strictly required; examples include: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, Azure Security Engineer Associate, CISSP, CISM, CCSP, or equivalent. Certifications or formal training related to AI governance, responsible AI, privacy, or risk management are preferred, as are project or program governance certifications.

You should have demonstrated experience leading security and governance initiatives for enterprise-grade cloud platforms with a strong emphasis on Microsoft Azure. Hands-on experience with Azure AI, Azure Open. AI, and Azure AI Foundry, including secure deployment patterns, governance controls, and monitoring practices, is required. Advanced knowledge of cloud-native AI/ML platforms and services is required; advanced knowledge of Azure AI, Azure Open. AI, and Azure AI Foundry is preferred. Experience with LLMs, generative AI, agent-based systems, evaluation frameworks, model monitoring, and orchestration tools (Lang. Chain / Semantic Kernal) is preferred.

A deep understanding of AI security, responsible AI, privacy, and governance principles is expected, along with strong knowledge of cloud architecture, distributed systems, identity and access management, network isolation, encryption, logging, and monitoring controls. You must be able to translate regulatory, compliance, and security requirements into practical engineering and operational controls for AI systems, and be familiar with industry frameworks and standards such as NIST AI RMF, ISO 42001, ISO 27001, CIS Controls, OWASP guidance for LLM applications, and Microsoft cloud security guidance.

Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills are important. The ability to work independently in a fast-paced environment while fostering collaboration, sound judgment, and creative problem-solving is essential. There is an expectation of leadership capability to mentor team members and drive cross-functional alignment on secure AI adoption. Candidates must have the ability to travel and work in a BDO office up to 20%.

Individual salaries that are offered to a candidate are determined after consideration of numerous factors including but not limited to the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and geography.

National Range: $150,500 – $192,750
Maryland Range: $150,500 – $192,750
NYC/Long Island/Westchester Range: $150,500 – $192,750

Join us at BDO, where you will find more than a career — you’ll find a place where your work is impactful, and you are valued for your individuality. We offer flexibility and opportunities for advancement. Our culture is centered around making meaningful connections, approaching interactions with curiosity, and being true to yourself, all while making a positive difference in the world.

BDO is proud to be an ESOP company and the ESOP stands as a compelling addition to our comprehensive compensation and Total Rewards benefits offerings. Benefits may be subject to eligibility requirements. Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/vets.

Source: Bandana.com