Director of AI Strategy and Governance

The Director of AI Strategy and Governance establishes the company's enterprise artificial intelligence strategy, governance framework, and center of excellence. This position sets the direction, standards, and guardrails for how AI is adopted across warehousing, fulfillment, logistics, and corporate functions, and ensures every initiative is explainable, secure, and tied to measurable business value.

Reporting to the Vice President of Business Excellence, the Director chairs the enterprise AI Steering Committee and serves as the company's primary voice on responsible AI use. The Director partners closely with IT and Operations and Analytics Excellence (OAX), who own technical architecture and hands on automation delivery, so that this role stays focused on strategy, prioritization, governance, and value realization rather than day to day build work.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Develops and maintains the company's enterprise AI strategy and multiyear roadmap, aligned with growth, operational excellence, customer service, and risk goals.
• Establishes an enterprise process for submitting, evaluating, prioritizing, and approving AI opportunities, and develops investment recommendations and business cases for executive approval.
• Establishes and leads an enterprise AI Center of Excellence, setting operating standards, governance requirements, and performance expectations for teams building AI or automation solutions.
• Creates a centralized inventory of AI use cases, tools, models, vendors, and deployed solutions, and develops an AI champion network across departments and operating locations.
• Establishes and administers the company's responsible AI governance framework and chairs the enterprise AI Steering Committee.
• Develops policies governing acceptable AI use by employees, contractors, and vendors, and sets approval requirements based on the risk of each use case.
• Defines when human review, legal approval, security review, or executive authorization is required, and ensures AI recommendations are explainable and documented.
• Partners with Legal, HR, Finance, and IT to keep AI use compliant with applicable law, contracts, and company policy.
• Sets evaluation criteria for third party AI vendors and platform partnerships, and reviews proposed solutions against company standards for security, data use, and business value.
• Partners with OAX and Operations to prioritize where AI can most improve receiving, putaway, slotting, picking, packing, shipping, and inventory control, without owning day to day solution build.
• Partners with IT and OAX to define the standard for moving a successful pilot into a secure, supported production environment.
• Owns the enterprise portfolio of AI initiatives, prioritizing investment based on strategic value, financial impact, and risk.
• Develops the annual AI budget and a standardized method for calculating investment, savings, and return on investment, validated with Finance.
• Develops executive dashboards on portfolio status, investment, benefits, and risk, and recommends stopping or redesigning initiatives that are not delivering value.
• Recruits and develops a small strategy, governance, and program management team as the function matures.
• Partners with HR and Training on role based AI education, communication, and adoption strategy across the company.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in business, supply chain, information technology, data analytics, or a related discipline.
• 8+ years of progressive experience in technology strategy, AI, analytics, or operational excellence, including experience shaping strategy for a cross functional program.
• 5+ years of leadership experience, including responsibility for enterprise programs or cross functional teams.
• Demonstrated success developing business cases and governance frameworks that produced measurable results.
• Strong executive presentation and communication experience, with comfort leading through influence rather than direct technical ownership.
• Strong financial analysis and business case development capability.
• Strong judgment regarding data privacy, responsible AI, and business risk.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree in business, supply chain, analytics, or a related discipline.
• Experience establishing or leading an AI or digital transformation center of excellence or governance function.
• Experience in warehousing, fulfillment, transportation, or third party logistics.
• Knowledge of AI risk, privacy, and regulatory frameworks.

Physical Demands:

• Ability to work in office and, periodically, warehouse and distribution center environments.
• Ability to walk operational areas to observe processes relevant to AI initiatives.

Work Environment:

• Primarily office based, with periodic time in warehouse and distribution center environments.
• Mix of executive, cross functional, and committee meetings across corporate and operating locations.

Travel Requirements:

• Travel to company facilities and vendor sites, approximately 15–20% of the time, depending on program activity.

Equipment Used:

• Standard office and presentation equipment (computer, projector, phone).
• Business intelligence, portfolio management, and collaboration platforms.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Builds and leads a strategy, governance, and program management team as the function grows.

Why You'll Love Working with Us:

• Health Coverage That Starts Fast – Medical, Dental & Vision kicks in the first of the month after just 30 days.
• Smile on Us – We're covering your dental premiums for all of 2026!
• Security You Can Count On – Paid Life Insurance + 401(k) with company match.
• Time Off from Day One – PTO, holidays, and 2 floating holidays for flexibility.
• Weekly Paychecks – Because waiting is overrated.
• Invest in YOU – Full tuition grants & tuition reimbursement.
• Celebrate Success – Quarterly performance bonuses.

Hayes Company/Knight Swift Supply Chain is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants for employment regardless of race, gender identity, gender expression, age, color, religion, disability, veteran's status, sexual orientation, or any other protected factor.