Associate Director, Responsible AI Solutions

About Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is a global, grant-making philanthropy that works to disrupt inequality in all its forms. We believe in the inherent dignity of all people. But around the world, too many people are excluded from the political, economic, and social institutions that shape their lives. In addressing this reality, we are guided by a vision of social justice—a world in which all individuals, communities, and peoples work toward the protection and full expression of their human rights; are active participants in the decisions that affect them; share equitably in the knowledge, wealth, and resources of society; and are free to achieve their full potential. Across eight decades, our mission has been to reduce poverty and injustice, strengthen democratic values, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. We work in 11 regional offices around the world and support programs in more than 50 countries.

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F

fordfoundation.org

201-500 employees

Philanthropic Fundraising Services

New York, New York

1936

Nonprofit

350k LinkedIn followers

• As the Associate Director, Responsible AI Solutions, you will perform the
• AI Portfolio Management: As the focal point for all AI initiatives within the
• IT team, manage a dedicated AI portfolio and consult with the
• cross-functional IT teams on their AI projects, fostering a cohesive approach
• to AI development and implementation.
• Develop and implement ethical AI solutions: Identify and translate complex
• business challenges into AI solutions. This involves assessing organizational
• needs, recommending ethical solutions, gathering requirements, designing and
• developing AI solutions, and deploying them into production environments
• within required budget and quality standards expectations. This includes
• defining project scope, gaining insight and agreement from others, allocating
• resources, managing timelines, and mitigating risks.
• AI Strategy: Collaborate with the CITO and senior leaders from
• cross-functional teams on refining the foundation’s AI strategy to ensure
• that the foundation’s AI systems, guidelines, processes, and procedures are
• aligned to the foundation’s mission and values and are being scaled
• throughout the entire foundation.
• Governance & policy development: Monitor evolving AI regulations and data
• privacy laws. As a key member of the AI Advisory Group, draft, implement, and
• maintain clear, accessible Responsible AI guidelines, safety policies, and
• use-case criteria for the whole foundation to follow. Ensures all AI- related
• activities, all relevant stakeholders are aware of and adhering to ethical
• guidelines and protecting organizational data. Promote responsible AI
• development and deployment within the organization across departments, while
• considering potential biases, fairness, and transparency in AI systems.
• AI Model evaluation and optimization: Continuously monitor and evaluate the
• effectiveness and performance of AI models, identifying areas for improvement
• and implementing optimization strategies to reduce our carbon footprint and
• enhance accuracy, efficiency, and scalability.
• Vendor & technology assessment: Remain up-to-date with emerging  AI trends,
• technologies, and best practices. Research and recommend new AI tools and
• techniques to improve operational efficiency and drive innovation. Evaluate,
• propose and manage AI vendors and consultants to deliver strategic value
• within an approved budget.
• Education, culture & capacity building: Partner with People &  Culture and
• other departments to build organization-wide AI literacy and upskilling,
• responsible prompt engineering, and ethical awareness. Cultivate a culture of
• responsible innovation across different teams, empowering non-technical staff
• to identify potential ethical risks early.
• Communicate effectively with stakeholders: Clearly and effectively
• communicate project solutions, requirements and updates, technical details,
• and AI concepts to technical and non-technical audiences, including senior
• management, business stakeholders, and team members. Translate complex
• technical information into clear business value for non-technical
• stakeholders.

• 8+ years of related professional experience and a Bachelor’s or Master’s
• degree in Computer Science, AI, Machine Learning, or a related field (or an
• equivalent combination of education and experience).
• Proficient in Python and AI frameworks (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch), with
• expertise in machine learning, deep learning, NLP, foundational models, and
• GenAI technologies.
• Experienced in Generative AI techniques (e.g., LLMs, LangChain, RAG), Agentic
• architecture, and establishing connections using Model Context Protocol
• (MCP).
• Experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Vertex AI, and production
• deployment using Gemini Enterprise or equivalent platforms (working knowledge
• of Google’s ADK is a plus).
• Familiar with major cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), data technologies
• (SQL, Hadoop, Spark), and AI Ops principles (CI/CD pipelines,
• containerization, automated testing).
• Experienced in deploying AI models to cloud environments—optimizing for
• performance, latency, cost, and resource utilization (GPU/TPU)—and
• troubleshooting issues like performance drift.
• Strong capability in working with large datasets, extracting meaningful
• insights from unstructured data, and understanding content management
• systems, knowledge graphs, and information retrieval techniques.
• Demonstrated ability to recommend and apply practical AI solutions to
• real-world problems within content-rich domains.
• Deep conceptual understanding of how models process data, exhibit bias, and
• handle data privacy.
• Excellent project management skills with experience managing complex AI
• projects using Agile development methodologies.
• Experience managing AI vendors and the technical capability to evaluate
• vendor claims regarding model safety, data retention, and training data
• provenance.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and relationship-management skills, with
• the ability to translate complex technical concepts for executive and
• non-technical audiences.
• Ways of working and engaging that align with the Foundation’s mission,  core
• values, and commitment to creating a culture of excellence.
• This position is primarily a sedentary role. However, the person in this
• position may need to occasionally move about inside the office to liaise with
• internal staff, access files, office machinery and a copy machine/printer.
• The Ford Foundation is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and
• [talentacquisitionhr@fordfoundation.org].
• SALARY: The Ford Foundation is committed to salary transparency. The minimum
• salary for this position is $181,000 and the maximum is $202,000. It is not
• typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of this range. A
• candidate’s relevant experience and our commitment to internal equity determine
• the final offer. We review global compensation regularly to ensure market
• competitiveness and equity. The hiring range for this position has been
• carefully crafted to align with the market.
• LOCATION: This position is based in the foundation’s New York office. We operate
• in a hybrid model and require staff to be in the office three days per week.
• EMPLOYMENT TYPE:  This is a permanent position.
• colleagues the opportunity to engage in meaningful ways and the space to
• maintain a healthy work-life balance
• Professional development and ample opportunities to build your expertise and
• expand your network
• Comprehensive benefits package designed for your well-being and work-life
• needs, including medical, dental, and vision benefits effective on your first
• day
• Generous time off, including personal, vacation, sick, extended holiday time
• off, and wellness days
• Generous parental leave policy, including birth, surrogacy, adoptive, foster
• parents, and resources for backup child and elder care that support our
• colleagues’ ability to attend to family responsibilities

• contributions of up to 13%), allowing you to invest in your financial future
• with confidence
• Learn more [https://www.fordfoundation.org/about/careers/] about what it’s like
• to work at the Ford Foundation.
• Equal employment opportunity and having a diverse staff are fundamental
• principles at The Ford Foundation, where employment and promotional
• opportunities are based upon individual capabilities and qualifications without
• regard to race, color, religion, gender, pregnancy, sexual
• orientation/affectional preference, age, national origin, marital status,
• citizenship, disability, veteran status or any other protected characteristic as
• established under law. The Ford Foundation does not discriminate against
• formerly incarcerated individuals.