Chief Certification Officer

About the Role

The Chief Certification Officer is the most critical hire in our next phase of growth. This executive will serve as the ultimate authority on all certification decisions, establishing the quality standard that defines Clause5afe’s reputation in the market. You will personally conduct the first wave of AI governance certifications, build and lead the auditor team, and ensure that every certification bearing the Clause5afe name meets the highest standard of independent, third-party verification.

This is a foundational leadership role. You will be the signature on the certification credential — the person whose professional credibility gives our certifications weight with regulators, insurers, enterprise buyers, and courts.

What You’ll Do

• Lead and own the entire certification function: methodology design, audit execution, quality assurance, and final certification decisions.
• Personally conduct the first 20–30 AI governance certifications to establish the quality benchmark.
• Design and refine the certification methodology across EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001, and GDPR requirements using the Clause 5 Framework™.
• Build, hire, train, and manage a team of certification auditors as volume scales.
• Establish auditor training programs, quality standards, and professional development pathways.
• Serve as the external face of certification authority — representing Clause5afe with regulators, standards bodies, industry associations, and at conferences.
• Collaborate with the Director of Certification Operations on engagement scoping, delivery workflows, and client communications.
• Provide expert guidance on regulatory developments and their implications for certification requirements.
• Support investor relations and enterprise sales with subject matter expertise on certification credibility and methodology.

What We’re Looking For

• 15+ years of experience in compliance, auditing, risk management, or governance — ideally in regulated industries (financial services, healthcare, critical infrastructure).
• Former Big 4 audit partner/senior manager, senior compliance executive, or equivalent leadership in a recognized certification or standards body.
• Deep working knowledge of at least three of the following: EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001, GDPR, SOC 2.
• Demonstrated experience building audit/certification teams from scratch.
• Professional credibility that commands respect from Fortune 500 CISOs, Chief Compliance Officers, and General Counsel.
• Understanding of AI/ML systems and their governance challenges (you don’t need to be an engineer, but you need to understand what you’re auditing).
• Executive presence and the ability to represent Clause5afe in regulatory, media, and investor settings.

Nice to Have

• Existing relationships with EU AI Office, NIST, ISO committees, or national regulatory bodies.
• Published thought leadership on AI governance, risk management, or regulatory compliance.
• Experience with AI-specific governance frameworks (beyond traditional IT audit).
• CISA, CISSP, CRISC, or equivalent professional certifications.

Why This Role Matters

Clause5afe is building the UL for artificial intelligence — universal, independent, third-party certification infrastructure for AI systems. The CCO is the person who makes that certification trustworthy. Without this role, we’re a company with a framework. With it, we’re a certification authority. This is a once-in-a-career opportunity to define the global standard for AI governance certification from the ground up.