Matthew Royal

About Matthew Royal

Senior Data Privacy Lead at Indeed with over ten years of experience at the intersection of AI, privacy law, and data governance. Collaborated with cross-functional teams to embed Privacy by Design principles and mitigate risks associated with AI-driven initiatives, such as large language models and agentic AI tools. Spearheaded the design and execution of Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs) for key AI products, ensuring alignment with GDPR, EDPB guidance, and U.S. privacy laws. Developed frameworks to balance product innovation with regulatory compliance. In previous roles, contributed to enterprise-wide data governance strategies and automated systems that enhanced operational efficiency and data reliability. Adept at fostering data-driven cultures in complex organizational environments. Committed to building trust in technology by advancing privacy-first solutions and ethical AI practices.

Experience

1. Senior Data Privacy Lead

   Indeed

   Oct 2022 — Present · Scottsdale, AZ, US

   As a Senior Data Privacy Lead embedded in product development at Indeed, I operate at the intersection of AI, privacy law, and data governance. I partner cross-functionally with Legal, Engineering, Product, and Security to assess regulatory obligations, embed Privacy by Design, and manage risk across cutting-edge initiatives leveraging large language models (LLMs), inferred data, and agentic AI tools.DPIA Strategy & Execution: Led and authored DPIAs for flagship AI tools (Smart Sourcing, ACE, Scout) aligned with GDPR, EDPB guidance, and US privacy laws. Framed emerging risks related to automated decision-making, model fairness, and inferred PII. Designed frameworks that balanced product velocity with privacy rigor.AI Governance & Vendor Risk: Assessed third-party models (OpenAI, Meta\'s LLaMA, Microsoft Presidio) and clarified processor vs. controller roles. Delivered guidance on artifact usage, redaction pipelines, and mitigations for inferred sensitive data risks in LLM pipelines.Data Subject Rights (DSR): Identified and remediated functional gaps in employer-facing workflows related to DSR fulfillment, including candidate data access and deletion. Recommended LLM chat history export functionality and enhanced transparency for Scout and agentic AI tools interacting on behalf of employers.Privacy Incident Response: Investigated high-risk data protection incidents (DPINCs), authored incident summaries, and partnered with legal and InfoSec to assess user impact and drive remediation. Developed risk narratives tailored for senior legal and product stakeholders.Privacy Leadership: Served as the privacy lead during “Big Easy” AI product rollouts, helping cross-functional teams meet regulatory and ethical standards amidst shifting org priorities and evolving legal templates.My work enables ethical AI innovation at scale while ensuring compliance, trust, and alignment with evolving global privacy standards—particularly in the context of autonomous, agentic AI.

Education

• Hawaii Pacific University

  Certificate in Information Systems and Organizational Change

  2014 — 2017

• Fordham University

  Bachelor's degree

  2003 — 2007

• Arizona State University - W. P. Carey School of Business

  Master's degree

  2016 — 2017