Director, Talent Acquisition Transformation, AI Group

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.

Inclusion and Equal Opportunity Employment

RBC is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veterans status, Aboriginal/Native American status or any other legally-protected factors. Disability-related accommodations during the application process are available upon request.

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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

RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTOTorontoCanada37.5Full timeTECHNOLOGY AND OPERATIONSRegularSalaried2026-07-222026-09-25

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

Our Employment Opportunities

At RBC, we are guided by living shared values of Client First, Integrity, Collaboration, Respect and Excellence and winning together as One RBC. We believe an inclusive workplace that has diverse perspectives is core to our continued growth as one of the largest and most successful banks in the world. Maintaining a workplace where our employees feel supported to perform at their best, effectively collaborate, drive innovation, and grow professionally helps to bring our Purpose to life and create value for our clients and communities. RBC strives to deliver this through policies and programs intended to foster a workplace based on respect, belonging and opportunity for all.

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.