Program Manager - AI Governance (Remote)

First American; Santa Ana (CA); Remote; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

First American is seeking an AI Governance Program Manager to lead the divisional AI governance program, leveraging MISMO FRAME as the core framework and coordinating governance across Legal, Compliance, Risk, and IT functions.

You will establish an operating model, manage the use-case lifecycle, and ensure evidence-based controls while aligning with regulatory expectations and enterprise risk appetite. This role requires extensive governance experience and strong stakeholder communication.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in a related discipline.
• 8-10 years in program governance, technology risk, or equivalent control function.
• Experience establishing governance structures, policies, risk assessments, and executive reporting in a regulated environment.
• Mortgage or financial services background is highly preferred.
• Understanding of AI, ML concepts to assess governance implications; hands‑on model development not required.
• Experience applying risk, privacy, data governance, or related frameworks preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development, implementation, and ongoing administration of the divisional AI Governance Program using MISMO FRAME as the primary framework.
• Own and maintain the AI governance operating model, including roles, decision rights, forums, approvals, escalation, and evidence.
• Establish and administer the AI use-case lifecycle from intake to retirement.
• Maintain an inventory of AI systems and use cases across internal, third‑party, and embedded solutions.
• Develop a risk‑tiering methodology considering consumer impact, regulatory exposure, and data sensitivity.
• Coordinate independent challenge by Legal, Compliance, Privacy, Information Security, Data Governance, and other control functions.
• Establish AI‑specific control requirements and ensure evidence of controls.
• Lead governance for mortgage-related third-party AI with Vendor Management, Legal, Security, and Compliance.
• Develop, analyze, and report AI governance KPIs and KRIs for senior management and governance committees.
• Monitor regulatory changes and industry best practices to adjust policies and controls.
• Maintain audit readiness by documenting decisions, approvals, risk assessments, monitoring results, and remediation activities.
• Provide SME guidance on AI governance policies, standards, and risk requirements to business and tech stakeholders.
• Collaborate with business and technology teams and escalate non‑compliant use cases.

Skills

Communication skills

Governance leadership

Regulatory knowledge

Stakeholder management

AI governance knowledge

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, risk management, information systems, technology, data science, finance, law, or related discipline

Job description

Who We Are

Join a team that puts its People First! Since 1889, First American (NYSE: FAF) has held an unwavering belief in its people. They are passionate about what they do, and we are equally passionate about fostering an environment where all feel welcome, supported, and empowered to be innovative and reach their full potential. Our inclusive, people-first culture has earned our company numerous accolades, including being named to the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For® list for eleven consecutive years. We have also earned awards as a best place to work for women, diversity and LGBTQ+ employees, and have been included on more than 50 regional best places to work lists. First American will always strive to be a great place to work, for all. For more information, please visit www.careers.firstam.com.

What We Do

The AI Governance Program Manager is responsible for developing, implementing, and administering the AI Governance Program for First American’s Lender division. The role establishes the governance structure, policies, standards, processes, controls, documentation, and oversight mechanisms necessary to manage artificial intelligence risk across the division. The position operationalizes MISMO FRAME as the division’s AI governance framework and coordinates its application across internally developed, purchased, embedded, and third-party AI capabilities. The successful candidate will possess sufficient technical knowledge of AI and machine-learning technologies to understand and challenge AI use cases and translate technical characteristics into governance and control requirements; however, the position is primarily a governance and risk-management leadership role and is not responsible for developing AI solutions.

What You’ll Do

• Lead the development, implementation, and ongoing administration of the divisional AI Governance Program, utilizing MISMO FRAME as the primary governance framework and incorporating applicable regulatory, legal, compliance, risk-management, customer, and company requirements.
• Own and maintain the AI governance operating model, including roles and responsibilities, decision rights, governance forums, approval authorities, escalation paths, exception processes, and required evidence.
• Establish and administer the AI use-case lifecycle, including intake, inventory, risk classification, assessment, review, approval, implementation, monitoring, material-change review, periodic reassessment, and retirement.
• Maintain an inventory of AI systems and use cases, including internally developed solutions, third‑party solutions, and AI functionality embedded within vendor products or existing technology platforms.
• Develop and maintain a risk‑tiering methodology that evaluates AI use cases based on factors such as consumer impact, regulatory and compliance exposure, decision influence, operational impact, data sensitivity, autonomy, explainability, and third‑party dependency.
• Coordinate required review and independent challenge by subject‑matter functions, including Legal, Compliance, Fair Lending, Privacy, Information Security, Data Governance, Enterprise Risk, Model Risk, Vendor Management, and other applicable control functions.
• Establish AI‑specific control requirements and work with control owners to ensure controls are appropriately designed, documented, implemented, evidenced, and monitored in accordance with the risk presented by each use case.
• Lead governance for mortgage related third‑party AI, partnering with Vendor Management, Legal, Security, Compliance, and business owners to establish due‑diligence requirements, contractual expectations, change‑notification requirements, ongoing oversight, and evidence standards.
• Develop, analyze, and report AI governance Key Performance Indicators and Key Risk Indicators, providing governance reporting for senior management and applicable governance committees.
• Monitor changes in regulatory expectations, industry practices, mortgage‑industry standards, and internal risk requirements affecting AI governance and recommend corresponding changes to policies, standards, procedures, and controls.
• Maintain audit, examination, and customer readiness by ensuring governance decisions, approvals, risk assessments, monitoring results, testing evidence, exceptions, and remediation activities are traceable and appropriately documented.
• Provide subject matter expertise regarding AI governance policies, standards, controls, documentation, and risk‑management requirements to business and technology stakeholders.
• Partner effectively with business and technology teams while providing independent challenge and escalating AI use cases that do not meet established governance requirements.

What You’ll Bring

Required Education, Experience, Certification/Licensure

• Bachelor’s degree in business, risk management, information systems, technology, data science, finance, law, or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• 8-10 years of program management experience with enterprise governance, technology risk, operational risk, compliance, model risk, IT governance, audit, data governance, responsible AI, or a related control function, including demonstrated experience designing or administering governance programs.
• Demonstrated experience establishing governance structures, policies, risk‑assessment methodologies, control frameworks, issue‑management processes, and executive reporting in a regulated environment.
• Experience in residential mortgage lending, mortgage servicing/subservicing, financial services, or another highly regulated consumer‑finance environment strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated understanding of artificial intelligence and machine‑learning technologies sufficient to assess governance implications and challenge business and technical stakeholders; hands‑on AI model development experience is not required.
• Experience applying AI, model‑risk, technology‑risk, data‑governance, privacy, or other relevant risk‑management frameworks preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex technical and risk concepts into clear governance requirements and executive‑level reporting.
• Strong program‑structure and operating‑model capabilities, with demonstrated ability to convert policies and frameworks into repeatable, auditable processes and controls.
• Ability to establish support and consensus with senior leaders and stakeholders across business, technology, legal, compliance, risk, security, privacy, data, vendor management, and audit functions.
• Working knowledge of generative AI, AI agents, training and inference concepts, model inputs and outputs, grounding, hallucination, explainability, human oversight, data lineage, model drift and monitoring.
• Ability to provide effective independent challenge, make