AI Security Architect – US or Green Card Only
Location: Columbia, SC
Work Arrangement: Hybrid – Onsite Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and as needed
Position Overview
We are seeking an experienced Senior AI Security Architect to support the secure adoption and implementation of artificial intelligence across a large enterprise environment. This position will translate AI security, risk, privacy, and compliance requirements into practical architecture standards, security controls, design patterns, and implementation guidance.
The AI Security Architect will partner closely with Enterprise Architecture, Information Systems delivery teams, Data Governance, Privacy, Identity & Access Management (IAM), Vendor Risk, Security Operations (CSOC), Legal, Compliance, Audit, and business stakeholders to ensure AI solutions are securely designed, reviewed, implemented, monitored, and operated.
This is a highly collaborative architecture role requiring the ability to balance emerging AI capabilities with enterprise security, privacy, compliance, and business requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Develop, maintain, and communicate enterprise AI security reference architectures, security standards, minimum control requirements, secure design patterns, and implementation guidance.
- Establish security requirements for approved AI tools, models, AI-enabled applications, integrations, connectors, and plugins.
- RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) Validation - Prompt Engineering & Regression Testing
- Conduct architecture and security reviews of proposed AI solutions before implementation.
- Evaluate data handling, access controls, encryption, logging, monitoring, retention, output handling, and integration security.
- Lead AI threat-modeling reviews for priority AI use cases, solutions, and third-party vendors.
- Assess risks including prompt injection, data leakage, unauthorized access, model misuse, insecure connectors, machine identity exposure, and AI-enabled impersonation.
- Provide architectural guidance and technical oversight for complex enterprise initiatives, ensuring solutions align with approved architecture and security principles.
- Partner with development and delivery teams to ensure solutions are properly integrated into the enterprise technical architecture.
- Evaluate architecture options based on security risk, cost, business benefit, technical feasibility, and enterprise impact.
- Serve as a senior decision-maker and escalation point for architecture and technical-design decisions.
- Develop and document frameworks, standards, and guidelines for integrating solutions across multiple platforms, operating systems, and enterprise applications.
- Evaluate technology and software solutions and provide recommendations to IT leadership.
- Review security patches, audit requirements, system changes, and customer requests to determine feasibility and potential architectural impact.
- Build strong relationships across technical, security, business, and leadership teams and clearly communicate the impact of strategic architecture decisions.
- Mentor team members and contribute to the development of technical and architectural capabilities across the organization.
Required Qualifications
- 9+ years of Information Technology experience.
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or a related field; equivalent combinations of education and job-related experience will also be considered.
- Demonstrated experience successfully working with or leading joint IT/IS and business teams through strategic and technical challenges.
- Strong experience with enterprise architecture, security architecture, systems architecture, or application architecture.
- Knowledge of current application and systems-development methodologies.
- Ability to translate technical, security, and business requirements into practical architecture and implementation guidance.
- Excellent negotiation, analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
- Demonstrated ability to develop and deliver quality technology solutions on schedule.
- Ability to build collaborative relationships throughout complex enterprise organizations.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to technical teams, non-technical stakeholders, management, and end users.
- Ability to lead multidisciplinary teams within a matrixed enterprise environment.
AI Security Focus
Successful candidates should bring relevant experience or strong knowledge across areas such as AI/GenAI security, AI risk, security architecture, threat modeling, data protection, IAM/access controls, encryption, logging and monitoring, privacy, compliance, secure integrations, AI connectors/plugins, prompt injection, data leakage, model misuse, and machine identity security.
Preferred Qualifications
- 10+ years of related technology and architecture experience.
- Experience establishing enterprise architecture standards and secure design patterns.
- Experience operating in highly regulated, security-conscious enterprise environments.
- Experience partnering with Data Governance, Privacy, IAM, Vendor Risk, Security Operations, Legal, Compliance, and Audit organizations.
- Completion of SACP and/or PMCP coursework is preferred.
Important: This is a contract-to-hire, hybrid position in Columbia, South Carolina