AI Program Director
The Michael J. Fox Foundation · United States · $165,000–$185,000 (stated in the posting)
Job Title: AI Program Director
Position Summary:
The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research ("the Foundation") is seeking top talent for its AI Program Director role. This position at The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (“the Foundation”) is responsible for defining, advancing, and scaling the Foundation’s enterprise AI strategy. This role will guide the Foundation from experimentation to coordinated, responsible, and measurable adoption of AI, enabling greater organizational effectiveness, accelerating mission impact, and proactively managing risk.
Working in close partnership with organizational leaders and cross-functional teams, this position establishes the strategy, governance, operating model, performance metrics, investment priorities, budget, roadmap, and execution cadence required to embed AI thoughtfully and sustainably across the Foundation.
The role will identify and prioritize high-value use cases, drive adoption and change management, and ensure AI initiatives align with organizational goals, responsible-use principles, and regulatory/ethical expectations. By connecting strategy with execution, this position will help the Foundation build a scalable AI ecosystem that strengthens decision-making, improves staff experience, and expands the organization’s ability to advance its mission.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategy, Prioritization & Program Maturity
- Maintain an enterprise-wide view of AI initiatives, pilots, investments, and dependencies across the Foundation
- Partner with organizational leaders to identify and prioritize high-impact opportunities aligned with mission, strategic, and operational goals
- Develop and manage a sequenced, enterprise AI roadmap that balances near-term value, organizational readiness, risk, and long-term capability building
- Define program objectives, performance indicators, maturity benchmarks, and reporting mechanisms to measure outcomes and inform investment decisions
- Establish prioritization criteria and resource-allocation recommendations for AI initiatives, platforms, and enabling capabilities
- Manage the AI program budget, track performance against plan, and recommend adjustments based on results and evolving priorities
Incubation, Adoption & Knowledge Sharing
- Design and operationalize a repeatable incubation model that moves opportunities from intake and prototyping through evaluation, scaling, or retirement
- Guide teams in testing, refining, and validating AI solutions before broader implementation
- Build adoption plans that address workflow integration, training, communications, change management, and ongoing support
- Facilitate knowledge-sharing forums and cultivate a cross-functional AI community of practice
- Develop and maintain reusable resources, including prompt libraries, implementation playbooks, evaluation tools, and leading practices
- Capture and share lessons learned to improve future initiatives and accelerate responsible adoption across the Foundation
Program Execution & Technical Enablement
- Lead cross-functional AI initiatives from initial concept and business case through design, launch, measurement, iteration, and enterprise rollout
- Translate business needs into clear requirements, success criteria, review processes, and acceptance standards for AI-enabled workflows and solutions
- Coordinate internal and external partners to ensure initiatives are delivered on time, within scope, and against defined outcomes
- Identify technical, data, process, and organizational dependencies that could affect implementation and proactively drive resolution
- Partner with technology and business teams to assess platforms, tools, architectures, and reusable capabilities that support the AI roadmap
Governance, Responsible Use & Risk Management
- Develop, maintain, and operationalize guidelines and standards for AI, including acceptable use, privacy, security, transparency, and ethical safeguards
- Define practical controls and review processes proportionate to the risk and impact of each AI use case
- Monitor evolving regulations, sector practices, technology risks, and ethical considerations, translating them into actionable guidance for a nonprofit research organization
- Coordinate Legal and Cybersecurity, stakeholder reviews of new AI capabilities, vendors, and use cases
- Promote accountability and responsible decision-making by ensuring appropriate human oversight, documentation, and escalation pathways
Qualifications & Skills:
- Proven experience leading technology, digital transformation, data, innovation, or enterprise change initiatives, with increasing responsibility for strategy, execution, and organizational outcomes
- Demonstrated success building and scaling new programs, including defining objectives, success measures, and reporting that demonstrate value and inform investment decisions
- Proven experience developing strategic roadmaps, investment priorities, performance measures, and execution plans for complex, cross-functional initiatives
- Proven ability to lead organizational change, drive adoption, build alignment, and influence senior leaders, technical teams, and business partners
- Working knowledge of AI technologies, including generative AI, machine learning, and intelligent automation, and the ability to translate technical capabilities into practical, responsible, and high-value solutions
- Experience designing and operationalizing governance frameworks, decision rights, policies, controls, and risk management practices for technology-enabled programs
- Ability to identify and manage dependencies across data, technology, business processes, workforce readiness, privacy, cybersecurity, legal, and change management
- Strong strategic, analytical, and systems-thinking skills, with the ability to connect mission priorities, organizational readiness, data maturity, technology investments, and adoption
- Exceptional communication, facilitation, and relationship management skills, with the ability to explain complex technical and risk considerations to diverse audiences
- Experience implementing or scaling AI, data, digital transformation, or emerging technology programs in a complex organization is strongly preferred
- Experience in nonprofit, healthcare, biomedical research, philanthropy, or another mission-driven environment is preferred
Compensation & Benefits
Individual compensation for this role is dependent on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, qualifications, skillsets, and applicable laws. In addition to salary, the Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package, including:
- 15+ options for medical insurance (with the Foundation paying 90 percent of the premiums)
- Competitive dental and vision plans
- 401(k) plan with 6 percent employer contribution
- Flexible spending accounts
- Employer paid life and disability insurance
- 18 Vacation Days; 12 Well-Being (Sick) Days; 2 Personal Days; summer Fridays (office closure at 2pm) and a summer holiday week over July 4
- Flexible work environment. We trust all employees to work closely with their manager and colleagues to determine when, where and how programs and projects get done.
Employees are also eligible for a discretionary bonus on an annual basis. The Foundation provides staff and leadership cultivation through regular training courses and events.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates should submit a resume and thoughtful cover letter describing through examples, their specific qualifications and interest in the position. If you think that your skills are transferable and can add value to this role, please apply. Applicants who best match the position’s needs will be contacted.
About Us:
The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research was founded in 2000 with one clear objective: accelerating meaningful therapeutic advances and, ultimately, a cure for Parkinson’s disease (PD). The Foundation applies extraordinary scientific, business and media assets to this singular focus—thus creating a unique and dynamic organization. Since inception, MJFF has quickly grown into the largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson’s disease research, having funded over $2 billion in research projects in both academic and industry labs worldwide.
Visit www.michaeljfox.org for more information.
Research has shown that people from marginalized communities apply to roles only when they meet 100% of the job requirements. If you think that your skills are transferable and can add value to this role, and you are someone who will contribute to our efforts to build and support a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce, we strongly encourage you to apply.