Job Description Director,Innovation

Engineering BuildingRBC''sFuture: AStrategic

Technology

Investment

Role What

Makes

This

Role

Different? Thisisnotatraditional

Directorof

Engineeringrolefocusedonmaintainingexistingapplicationsordelivering predictableBAUwork.

Thisisastrategictechnologyinvestmentpositionaccountablefor: Building enterprise-wide platforms and capabilities that don''t yet existnot running existing systems De-risking emerging technologies (quantum, quantum-hybrid solutions, GenAI, ML platforms) and making them production-ready before product teams need them Operating as RBC''s internal innovation catalystbridging the gap between startup agility and enterprise scale Creating reusable assets that accelerate delivery across all lines of business, multiplying engineering productivity bank-wide Successinthisroleismeasureddifferently: Time-to-marketaccelerationacrosstheenterprise,platformadoptionrates, costavoidancethroughreusablecapabilities,andspeedofinnovation-to-productionnotapplicationuptimeorfeature velocity.

What

Isthe

Prospect? RBCismakingadeliberateinvestmentininnovationinfrastructurethefoundationalcapabilitiesthatallowthebankto experimentfaster,scalesmarter,andcompetewithdigital-nativefintechs.

The

Directorof

Engineering,InnovationleadsRBC''senterprise

Innovation

Engineeringfunctionwithin

Technologyand Operations.

Thisrolerequiresstartupthinkingatenterprisescaletheabilitytomovefast,experiment,failforward, andpivot,whileensuringeverythingyoubuildmeetsthebank''srigorousstandardsforsecurity,compliance,and resilience.

What

Will

YouDo? Strategic

Platform

Leadership Define and execute the enterprise Innovation Engineering strategy and multi-year roadmap, converting business opportunities into scalable platforms, services, and capabilities Stand up net-new, reusable capabilities (e.g., quantum-hybrid solution frameworks, GenAI guardrails, developer experience tooling, experimentation sandboxes, MCP/event-streaming platforms) that accelerate delivery for product teams bank-wide Establish the discovery-to-delivery pipeline with clear stage gates: ideation proof of concept pilot production rollout adoption & scaling; define success metrics and benefit realization frameworks Cross-Enterprise

Orchestration Partner with all Lines of Business, Enterprise Architecture, Global Security, Risk, AI Group, and Digital channels to surface demand, prioritize innovation investments, and ensure alignment to target-state architecture Act as RBC''s innovation brokertranslating emerging tech trends (GenAI, distributed ledger technology, open banking, quantum) into concrete opportunities and socializing new capabilities across the bank to drive adoption Technology

Evaluation&Partnerships; Evaluate cutting-edge technologies from startups, vendors, and academic institutions; assess technical feasibility, security implications, and build-vs-buy trade-offs Stay ahead of the curveattend conferences, engage with open-source communities, and identify emerging trends early Engineering

Excellence&Risk; Embed engineering excellence into every innovation: SDLC compliance, architecture patterns, privacy-by-design, responsible AI, and security-first development Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, model risk frameworks,



and information security controls; manage audits, remediation, and control attestation Team

Building&Culture; Build, coach, and inspire a high-performing, diverse team of senior engineers and architects who think like founders but operate at enterprise scale Attract top talent from startups, scale-ups, and leading tech companiespeople who have built 0-to-1 products and want to apply that mindset in a bank Foster a culture of experimentation, learning, and intelligent failurewhere teams ship fast, measure, iterate, and aren''t afraid to kill ideas that don''t work Measurement&Accountability; Establish OKRs and KPIs specific to innovation: time-to-first-value, platform adoption/reuse rates, experimentation velocity, cost efficiency, reliability, and downstream productivity gains Report progress to senior leadership with a portfolio governance lenstracking investments, ROI, and strategic alignment Oversee budgets and program execution to deliver outcomes on time, on scope, and on budget What

DoYou

Needto

Succeed? Must-Have Startupor0-to-1Product

Experience You''vebuiltsomethingnewfromthegroundupideallyinastartup,scale-up,orhigh-growthenvironmentwhereyou woremultiplehats,movedfast,andshippedproductscustomersloved.

Youunderstandwhatittakestogofromideato productionquicklywhilemanaginguncertainty.

Enterprise-Scale

Production

Engineering You''vetakeninnovationsfrom

PoCtoproductionatscaleincomplex,regulated,orhigh-stakesenvironments (financial services,healthcare,criticalinfrastructure).

Youknowhowtobalancespeedwithhighavailability,performance,security, observability,andcompliance.

Deep

Technical

Fluency Cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/GCP), Kubernetes, microservices, APIs, MCPs, event streaming Data & AI platforms: ML Ops, feature stores, model governance, LLM/GenAI deployment and guardrails Modern SDLC: CI/CD, Git

Ops, SRE, platform engineering, developer experience tooling An interest in new technologies and the initiative to try new frameworks out for yourself e.g., early quantum software, or building MCP tooling Strategic&Financial;

Acumen You think like a Chief Technology Strategistbalancing experimentation with risk, cost, and value.

You can build roadmaps, prioritize a portfolio of bets, and articulate ROI to executives.

Cross-Functional

Leadership Youve led across silospartnering with product, architecture, security, risk, data science, and business stakeholders.

Youre equally comfortable presenting to a CTO and pair-programming with an engineer.

People

Leadership 7+yearsofprogressiveleadershipinsoftware/platformengineeringwith5+yearsmanagingseniorengineersand architects.

You''vebuiltteamsfromscratch,attractedtoptalent,anddevelopedfutureleaders.

Education Bachelor''sdegreein

Computer

Science,Engineering,orequivalent.

Nice-to-Have Graduate degree in a related field (Computer Science, Engineering, Business) Financial services experience in large-scale,



global organizations; familiarity with regulatory frameworks (OSFI, model risk, SOX, privacy laws) Startup ecosystem exposure: worked at or with startups, VCs, accelerators; understand how to evaluate early-stage tech and de-risk partnerships Open-source contributions, patents, or publicationsevidence of thought leadership and technical depth Design Thinking / human-centered design expertise; product management exposure Track record of platform adoption: you''ve built tools or platforms that were voluntarily adopted by hundreds of engineers What''s in it for you? We thrive on the challenge to be our best, progressive thinking to keep growing, and working together to deliver trusted advice to help our clients thrive and communities prosper.

We care about each other, reaching our potential, making a difference to our communities, and achieving success that is mutual. A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including bonuses and flexible benefits, competitive compensation, commissions, and stock where applicable Leaders who support your development through coaching and managing opportunities Ability to make a difference and lasting impact Work in a dynamic, collaborative, progressive, and high-performing team A world-class training program in financial services Opportunities to do challenging work. #LI-Post #TechPJ Job Skills Application Development, Application Maintenance, Applications Architecture, Commercial Acumen, Enterprise Application Delivery, Information Technology Management, Information Technology Trends, Programming Languages, System Applications Additional Job Details Address: RBC WATERPARK PLACE, 88 QUEENS QUAY W:TORONTO City: Toronto Country: Canada Work hours/week: 37.5 Employment Type: Full time Platform: HUMAN RESOURCES & BMCC Job Type: Regular Pay Type: Salaried Posted Date: 2026-07-20 Application Deadline: 2026-08-21 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.

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Expand your limits and create a new future together at RBC.

Find out how we use our passion and drive to enhance the well-being of our clients and communities at jobs.rbc.com. RBC is presently inviting candidates to apply for this existing vacancy.

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Qualified applicants may be contacted to review their resume in more detail.

📌 Director, Engineering and Innovation (Toronto)
🏢 0000050007 Royal Bank of Canada
📍 Toronto