Principal Enterprise AI Architect

Role Summary:

GMS Advisors Inc. has a client who is a Major Asset Manager, where the mission of the Enterprise Architecture (EA) function is to empower the firm to achieve its strategic objectives through the optimal use of technology. The EA function will align technology with business capabilities to enable effective strategy execution and business transformation. By monitoring and adopting emerging technologies, EA will drive technology enabled innovation and keep the firm ahead of industry disruption.

They are at an inflection point. Artificial intelligence is reshaping every dimension of asset management — from investment research and portfolio management to client engagement, and operational efficiency.

As a Principal Enterprise AI Architect, you will be at the forefront of firm-wide AI activation, as part of the Enterprise Architecture team and reporting directly with the Chief Architect, to define, govern, and accelerate AI adoption across a complex, global institution. You will translate ambitious enterprise strategy into concrete architectural blueprints, ensuring that AI initiatives are coherent, scalable, secure, and aligned with our fiduciary obligations.

This is a rare opportunity to shape the architectural foundations of an AI-forward firm from the ground up.

Work Flexibility

This role is eligible for hybrid work, with up to three days per week from home and 2 days from the Union Square (Manhattan) office.

Why This Role Matters:

The Enterprise Architecture team serves as the connective tissue between technology capability and business strategy execution. With AI emerging as the defining technology of this era, the team requires a dedicated architect who brings both the depth to evaluate frontier AI systems and the breadth to integrate them into our global enterprise technology and data estate.

You will operate across three horizons simultaneously:

• Now — Guiding and accelerating in-flight AI initiatives, establishing guardrails and patterns for responsible deployment.
• Next — Designing the target-state AI architecture that integrates with our cloud enabled app and data stack, and our evolving digital workplace solutions.
• Beyond — Scanning the frontier, evaluating emerging capabilities (agentic AI, MCP-based orchestration, multimodal reasoning, quantum-AI convergence), and identifying strategic bets for the firm.

Responsibilities

AI Architecture & Strategy:

• Define and maintain the firm’s Enterprise AI Architecture, spanning model infrastructure, data pipelines, orchestration layers, integration patterns, and governance controls.
• Develop reference architecture for agentic AI systems and multi-agent workflows, establishing standards for orchestration frameworks, tool use, and model-context protocols (MCP) across business domains.
• Develop AI reference architectures for accelerating priority investment front-to-back office use cases.
• Drive integration of AI capabilities with core data platform and content platform, leveraging retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), MCP, etc. to unlock the firm’s proprietary data assets.

Governance & Risk:

• Design and operationalize the AI governance framework, covering model risk management, explain-ability standards, bias monitoring, data lineage, and regulatory compliance (existing and emerging AI-specific regulation).
• Establish, evolve model evaluation and selection criteria for frontier and open-weight models, balancing capability, performance, cost, latency, etc.
• Partner with Legal, Compliance, and Risk to embed AI risk controls into architecture review processes.
• Define data privacy and security patterns for AI workloads, including prompt injection defenses, PII handling, and sovereign data requirements.

Enterprise Alignment & Stakeholder Leadership:

• Translate business strategies from investment management, distribution, finance, and operations into AI architecture requirements and roadmaps.
• Guide Architecture Review Board (ARB) evaluations for AI-related proposals, ensuring alignment with enterprise standards, principles, and strategic direction.
• Produce executive-grade artifacts — technology radars, strategic assessments, vendor evaluations, and architectural decision records (ADRs.)
• Serve as an AI thought leader and trusted advisor, building AI literacy and architectural confidence across technology and business leadership.

Technology Scanning & Innovation:

• Operate a continuous technol…