AI Operations & Governance Lead

Cengage; Massachusetts; Hybrid; USD 117,000 - 187,000; Full time

Job summary

Cengage is seeking a Program Manager, AI Operations, to lead delivery and governance of our AI initiatives. You will coordinate cross-functional teams—Legal, Privacy, Security, Procurement, Product, and Engineering—to ensure timely execution and scalable AI enablement.

With 5+ years in program management and a background in business or information systems, you will communicate with executives and drive status reporting and governance artifacts.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business, information systems, PM, technology, or related field.
• 5+ years in program management, operations, governance, or cross-functional tech delivery.
• Experience in enterprise programs or cross-functional initiatives.
• Knowledge of FERPA, GDPR, CCPA, and privacy regulations.
• Experience coordinating contracts, DPAs, MSAs, or vendor governance.
• Strong attention to detail and operational rigor.
• Excellent collaboration with Legal, Procurement, Security, Product, Engineering, and Business teams.
• Ability to move quickly without sacrificing rigor.
• Strong executive written and verbal communication.

Responsibilities

• Manage the operational cadence for enterprise AI initiatives, pilots, vendor onboarding, and governance activities.
• Conduct and coordinate vendor risk assessments for AI tools, platforms, and integrations.
• Coordinate the third-party AI intake process including security, privacy, and contract review.
• Build and maintain the criteria matrix for AI vendor approvals and connector decisions.
• Partner with Procurement on AI contracts, DPAs, and commercial terms.
• Maintain the approved AI vendor list and periodic reassessment cadence.
• Establish and maintain program governance artifacts including intake workflows, decision logs, action tracking, status reporting, and executive updates.
• Coordinate collaborators across AI Enablement, Legal, Privacy, Security, Procurement, Product, Engineering, and Operations teams.
• Track program achievements, dependencies, risks, and operational readiness across AI initiatives.
• Support operational scaling of AI enablement activities including onboarding, documentation, communications, and process standardization.

Skills

Program management

Operations

Governance

Compliance

Privacy regulations

Vendor governance

Executive communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Status reporting

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Cengage is seeking a Program Manager, AI Operations, to lead delivery and governance of our AI initiatives. You will coordinate cross-functional teams—Legal, Privacy, Security, Procurement, Product, and Engineering—to ensure timely execution and scalable AI enablement.

With 5+ years in program management and a background in business or information systems, you will communicate with executives and drive status reporting and governance artifacts.