Royal Bank of Canada

Director, Talent Acquisition Transformation, AI Group

Royal Bank of Canada$125K — $150K *
Business Services
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 8+ years of experience in transformation, consulting, strategy, talent acquisition, or related field.
  • Experience leading large-scale transformation initiatives from concept to execution.
  • Proven ability to manage complex cross-functional projects with multiple stakeholders.
  • Exceptional relationship-building and executive communication skills.
  • Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving capabilities.
  • Experience developing executive presentations and decision-making materials.
  • Strong program and project management skills in governance and execution.
  • Analytical skills with experience in using data to inform decisions.

Responsibilities

  • Lead the transformation of recruitment processes from planning to offer acceptance.
  • Establish standardized hiring processes, governance mechanisms, and decision rights.
  • Create scalable frameworks that enhance speed, quality, and candidate experience.
  • Implement proactive workforce planning and pipeline-based hiring practices.
  • Monitor internal talent for upskilling and initiate relevant initiatives.
  • Design a world-class candidate experience reflecting the AI Group's goals.
  • Partner with executives to align hiring priorities and execution plans.
  • Lead strategic recruitment events to attract top talent.
  • Collaborate with educational institutions to develop early talent pipelines.

Benefits

  • Opportunity to lead transformational change at an enterprise scale.
  • Role in shaping the future work culture and capability of RBC's AI Group.
  • Comprehensive Total Rewards Program including flexible benefits and stock options when applicable.
  • Supportive leadership that encourages development through coaching.
  • Chance to make a significant impact across local and global scales.
Full Job Description
Job Description

What is the opportunity?

RBC AI Group is rethinking how we attract, hire, and engage world-class AI talent.

We are seeking a Director of Talent Acquisition Transformation, to redesign and lead the end-to-end recruitment operating model for the AI Group. This role will transform a hiring process that is currently ad hoc and manager-dependent into a standardized, scalable, and data-driven talent acquisition system capable of supporting aggressive growth targets while delivering an exceptional candidate experience.

Working closely with AI Group leaders, people managers, recruiters, and other HR partners, you will define the future-state recruitment journey, establish governance and accountability, implement performance measurement, and drive adoption across the group.

This is a highly visible transformation and program management role for someone who enjoys solving complex organizational challenges, influencing senior stakeholders, and building systems that scale.

Your responsibilities will include:

Design and Implement the Future-State Recruitment Operating Model
  • Lead the transformation of AI Group recruitment from requisition planning through offer acceptance.
  • Establish standardized hiring processes, service levels, decision rights, and governance mechanisms.
  • Create scalable frameworks that balance speed, quality, and candidate experience, including role-family approaches, interview standards, and recruitment playbooks.
  • Introduce proactive workforce planning and pipeline-based hiring practices.
  • Monitor internal pipeline for upskilling and reskilling opportunities and execute initiatives with relevant partners.

Elevate Candidate Experience
  • Design a world-class candidate journey that reflects the AI Group's ambition to compete for top technical talent.
  • Establish communication standards, engagement practices, and service expectations.
  • Partner with recruiters and hiring leaders to ensure consistency across all touchpoints and improve satisfaction.

Drive Cross-Functional Execution
  • Partner with executives, hiring managers, recruiters, and HR Business Partners to align priorities and execution plans.
  • Lead large-scale initiatives with multiple stakeholders, facilitating decision-making and removing obstacles without direct authority.
  • Build strong relationships to accelerate adoption and sustain change.

Consolidate and Prioritize Workforce Needs Across the AI Group
  • Partner with AI Group leaders to consolidate hiring requests and establish a transparent prioritization framework balancing strategic importance, impact, urgency, and capacity.
  • Lead workforce planning discussions, make trade-off recommendations, and facilitate consensus among leaders.
  • Activate talent acquisition initiatives aligned to priorities and track progress.

Establish Recruitment Analytics, Reporting, and Data Governance
  • Develop a comprehensive measurement framework with clear KPIs, targets, and an authoritative central data source.
  • Build dashboards providing real-time visibility into hiring performance, pipeline health, and trends.
  • Analyze data to recommend improvements and lead regular reviews with leadership.
  • Establish governance routines including weekly progress meetings and bi-weekly steering committee meetings.

Lead Strategic Programs
  • As talent acquisition transformation reaches steady-state, manage complex, enterprise-scale initiatives requiring cross-team coordination.
  • Create implementation roadmaps, change management strategies, and governance routines to ensure on-time delivery.
  • Continuously evaluate and refine processes based on performance data and feedback.

Lead Talent Attraction and Recruitment Event Strategy
  • Design and manage recruitment events (networking, campus recruiting, conferences, hackathons) supporting the AI Group's talent acquisition and location strategy.
  • Partner across functions to deliver experiences that strengthen employer brand and attract top talent to strategic markets.
  • Measure effectiveness and iterate based on conversion data and feedback.

Develop & Maintain Early Talent, Academic, and Research Partnerships
  • Partner with AI Group leaders to identify workforce needs, focusing on emerging technical skills and hard-to-fill capabilities.
  • Collaborate with universities, technical colleges, bootcamps, and industry organizations to co-design sustainable early talent pipeline initiatives.
  • Work with other Partnership Directors to establish strategic partnerships providing access to diverse, high-potential early career talent.
  • Collaborate with Director, Early Talent to ensure programs create pathways into the AI Group.
  • Track partnership effectiveness through conversion metrics, ROI, and retention rates.


You're our ideal candidate if you:
  • 8+ years of experience in transformation, consulting, strategy, talent acquisition, workforce planning, operations, organizational effectiveness, program management, or a related field.
  • Experience leading large-scale transformation initiatives that redesign processes, operating models, or ways of working from concept to execution.
  • Proven ability to lead complex cross-functional initiatives involving multiple stakeholders, competing priorities, and significant organizational change.
  • Exceptional stakeholder management, relationship-building, and executive communication skills, with the ability to influence without direct authority.
  • Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate vision into practical, scalable solutions.
  • Experience developing executive presentations, recommendations, business cases, and decision-making materials for senior leaders.
  • Strong program and project management skills, including governance, planning, risk management, and execution.
  • Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in ambiguous, fast-paced, and rapidly evolving environments.
  • Strong analytical skills and experience leveraging data, metrics, and dashboards to identify trends, measure performance and inform decisions.
  • Proven track record of driving adoption, accountability, and results across teams through collaboration, trust, and influence.


What's in it for you:
  • Lead transformational change at enterprise scale: Drive cross-functional initiatives spanning recruitment operations, workforce planning, and talent partnerships that will define how one of Canada's premier financial institutions competes for elite AI and technical talent.
  • Shape culture and capability for the future of work: Establish the processes, metrics, partnerships, and candidate experiences that position RBC's AI Group as the employer of choice for technologists, while building scalable frameworks that balance speed, quality, and innovation.
  • A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including bonuses and flexible benefits, competitive compensation, commissions, and stock options where applicable
  • Leaders who support your development through coaching and managing opportunities
  • Ability to make a difference and lasting impact from a local-to-global scale


About the AI Group:

RBC's AI Group is the AI accelerator for RBC, with a focus on driving the shift from early-stage AI projects to scaled, client outcomes that amplify the impact of RBC's people. In addition to helping scale the biggest AI opportunities at RBC, the AI Group is responsible for advancing research into emerging use cases across generative and agentic AI, while maintaining expertise in security, responsible AI and regulatory expectations.

Job Skills
Adaptability, Budgeting, Cross-Team Collaboration, Decision Making, Information Technology (IT) Projects, Long Term Planning, Program Management, Resource Management, Team Management, Vision Alignment

Additional Job Details

Address:

RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTO

City:

Toronto

Country:

Canada

Work hours/week:

37.5

Employment Type:

Full time

Platform:

TECHNOLOGY AND OPERATIONS

Job Type:

Regular

Pay Type:

Salaried

Posted Date:

2026-07-22

Application Deadline:

2026-09-25
Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the application deadline date above

RBC is presently inviting candidates to apply for this existing vacancy. Applying to this posting allows you to express your interest in this current career opportunity at RBC. Qualified applicants may be contacted to review their resume in more detail.

About Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada Careers

Join the dynamic team at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), a global leader in financial services and a company committed to excellence and innovation. At RBC, we offer a wide range of job opportunities that empower professionals to shape their career paths with leadership, diversity training, and continuous growth.

Work You’ll Do

At Royal Bank of Canada, we are not just hiring; we are building a culture of innovation and leadership. Our team members are at the forefront of the financial industry, driving transformation and delivering targeted solutions that meet the evolving needs of our clients and communities.

Explore Job Opportunities and Employment at RBC

Whether you are starting your career or looking to take it to the next level, RBC offers positions that challenge your skills and fuel your ambition. From entry-level positions to leadership roles, our job opportunities span across various functions and regions. Join us and be part of a team that values professional growth and diversity.

Internship and Professional Development

Kickstart your career with an internship at Royal Bank of Canada. Our internships provide invaluable hands-on experience, networking opportunities, and insights into the financial services industry. Interns at RBC gain the skills necessary to excel and are often considered for full-time positions within the company.

Benefits and Culture

At RBC, we prioritize the well-being and satisfaction of our employees. Our benefits package is designed to support our team members at every stage of their life and career. RBC’s culture is built on a foundation of respect, integrity, and responsibility, fostering an environment where everyone can thrive.

Career Growth and Innovation

We believe in nurturing the potential of our employees through continuous learning and career development programs. At RBC, you will find endless opportunities to grow professionally through on-the-job experiences, formal training programs, and leadership development initiatives. Our commitment to innovation means we are constantly seeking out new ideas and perspectives, making RBC a perfect place for those who aim to lead and innovate.

Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity is our strength. At Royal Bank of Canada, we are committed to building an inclusive workplace where every employee feels valued and respected. Our diversity training programs are designed to educate and inspire, creating a more inclusive and equitable workplace.

Join Our Team

Search open positions that match your skills and interests. We look for passionate, curious, creative, and solution-driven team players. Start your journey with RBC today and be part of a world-class team known for its commitment to client service, community involvement, and innovation.

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Learn more about Royal Bank of Canada
Size
86,007 employees
Market Cap
$130.3 billion
Industry
5 Year Trend
+8.7%
NASDAQ

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