Data and AI Governance Leader

Helia, as Australia’s first Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) provider, with over 50 years expertise in the Australian housing market are in the process of re-inventing ourselves.

We exist to accelerate financial wellbeing through home ownership, now and for the future. Our mission  is to create innovative and tailored solutions in partnership with our customers.  We aim to do this efficiently and conveniently, leveraging state of the art technology and data solutions.

Helia, as Australia’s first Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) provider, with over 50 years expertise in the Australian housing market are in the process of re-inventing ourselves.
We exist to accelerate financial wellbeing through home ownership, now and for the future. Our mission is to create innovative and tailored solutions in partnership with our customers. We aim to do this efficiently and conveniently, leveraging state of the art technology and data solutions.

The Data & AI Governance Leader is responsible for designing, implementing, and operating governance frameworks across Data and AI at Helia. This role ensures that data is trusted, well-managed, and compliant, and that AI systems are governed effectively across their lifecycle.

Working under the direction of the Director of AI & Data, this role translates enterprise governance strategy into practical, scalable controls, processes, and standards that enable safe, compliant, and high-quality use of data and AI.

Responsibilities:

Governance frameworks & operating model

• Design and implement enterprise data governance frameworks, standards, and operating models
• Establish and maintain AI governance frameworks covering AI system lifecycle, approvals, and monitoring
• Define roles and responsibilities for data ownership, stewardship, and accountability
• Embed governance practices across business and technology teams

Data quality & stewardship

• Lead enterprise data quality initiatives, including definition of standards and metrics
• Establish processes for identifying, tracking, and remediating data quality issues
• Partner with domain owners and data stewards to uplift data quality across critical datasets
• Implement reporting and dashboards to monitor data quality performance

AI governance & model risk

• Operationalise AI governance controls, including risk screening and assessment and model validation, approval, monitoring and evaluation processes

• Establish and run model risk management practices aligned to regulatory expectations

• Ensure appropriate documentation, explainability, and auditability of AI systems

• Monitor adherence to AI governance standards and escalate risks as required

Policies, standards & compliance

• Develop and maintain data and AI policies, standards, and guidelines

• Ensure alignment with regulatory requirements, internal risk frameworks, and audit expectations

• Support internal and external audits related to data and AI governance

• Partner with Risk, Compliance, and Legal teams to ensure alignment

Governance forums & controls

• Establish and run governance forums

• Ensure governance decisions are documented, communicated, and enforced

• Track compliance with governance processes and drive remediation where needed

Stakeholder engagement & enablement

• Work closely with cross-functional teams to embed governance practices

• Provide guidance and support to data owners, stewards, and AI engineers

• Drive awareness and adoption of governance standards across the organisation

Continuous improvement

• Monitor effectiveness of governance frameworks and identify opportunities for uplift

• Stay informed of evolving regulatory and industry best practices

• Drive continuous improvement in governance processes, tooling, and reporting

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in data governance, data management, risk, or related domains
• Proven experience implementing enterprise data governance and/or AI governance frameworks
• Strong understanding of data quality, lineage, and stewardship practices
• Experience with AI governance, model risk management, or responsible AI practices
• Familiarity with regulatory environments (preferably financial services)
• Experience working cross-functionally with business, technology, and risk teams
• Demonstrated people leadership experience, including building, leading, and developing teams
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills
• Ability to translate policy into practical, operational processes

At Helia, we are building a team focused on opportunities: creating brighter futures for our people. When you come to work at Helia, you’re joining an organisation that cares about what’s important to you. Whether it’s greater work-life balance, flexible working arrangements or looking after your wellbeing, we provide access to benefits that help support you both professionally and personally.
Helia is a place where you can grow and make a difference. We provide a great learning culture, where cross collaboration, training and innovation happens to embrace and embed a customer service culture. We are based in the heart of North Sydney, with spacious offices and some of the most fantastic views in Sydney!
If you are interested in joining a company where you can realise your full potential and grow, we would love to hear from you!
We have a diverse business community: our people, our customers and communities are reflective of this and as an organisation we are committed to continually hiring a diverse workforce. We ensure our people always feel supported and we do this by our openness to flexible work options and our commitment to inclusion, regardless of career level, life-stage, or experience.

At Helia, we are building a team focused on opportunities: creating brighter futures for our people. When you come to work at Helia, you’re joining an organisation that cares about what’s important to you. Whether it’s greater work-life balance, flexible working arrangements or looking after your wellbeing, we provide access to benefits that help support you both professionally and personally.

Helia is a place where you can grow and make a difference. We provide a great learning culture, where cross collaboration, training and innovation happens to embrace and embed a customer service culture. We are based in the heart of North Sydney, with spacious offices and some of the most fantastic views in Sydney!

If you are interested in joining a company where you can realise your full potential and grow, we would love to hear from you!

We have a diverse business community: our people, our customers and communities are reflective of this and as an organisation we are committed to continually hiring a diverse workforce. We ensure our people always feel supported and we do this by our openness to flexible work options and our commitment to inclusion, regardless of career level, life-stage, or experience.