Danielle Laing-Waliyaya ’17 Is on the Front Line of Digital Compliance

At Google’s scale, risk and compliance require clear frameworks and powerful tooling. Danielle Laing-Waliyaya ’17, a Technical Program Manager with Google’s Technical Risk Management department is shaping how teams manage risk and meet requirements across a global footprint. 

“I decided to study mathematics at Montclair because I was good at math, not because I knew what kind of job it could lead to,” Laing-Waliyaya says with a laugh. “But the degree served me well, teaching me to think methodically and logically and grounding my understanding of data.”  

As part of the inaugural class of interns at the PSEG Institute for Sustainability Studies at Montclair, Laing-Waliyaya was engaged in transdisciplinary research and community projects well before launching her career. This, along with her involvement in Alpha Kappa Alpha, helped her develop leadership and communication skills that have also been crucial to her success.  

“The PSEG program put me in contact with executives from multinational corporations and organizations,” she says. “In the sorority, I served as Treasurer and later as President. By the time I graduated, I knew how to manage a budget and plan events, and I was prepared to communicate complex ideas to diverse audiences.” 

Laing-Waliyaya also interned at PulsePoint and UPS before joining Meta, first as a Business Integrity Associate and then as a Data Analytics Associate. She joined Google’s Technical Risk Management team as a Technical Program Manager in 2021. “At Meta my role was primarily focused on data analytics and content moderation,” she says. “At Google, I am at the intersection of risk and compliance and tooling. I understand the importance of getting people aligned behind a mission.”  

“Technology is evolving very quickly,” Laing-Waliyaya continues. “Developments like AI present amazing opportunities with many potential benefits to society. With so many new technologies emerging in the market, regulatory scrutiny over technology is at an all time high. My team ensures we’re able to meet these new obligations in a timely and scalable manner.”  

For Laing-Waliyaya, she’s had the opportunity to build and scale risk and compliance measures across Google’s many products, from Search and Advertising to Cloud services and YouTube, and works on meeting regulatory requirements around the world. “We run Google’s entire transparency and regulatory program,” she explains. “We are asked to present our content moderation decisions to create a more transparent online environment. Equally important to us is maintaining the public’s trust in Google platforms.” 

Laing-Waliyaya’s leadership skills have extended to a variety of community-building activities, including co-leading several employee resource groups while at Meta and having served as a Board Member of Ladders for Leaders, a career exploration program for high school students and LifeWorks Austin, an organization that is helping more than 4,000 youth and families find a path to self-sufficiency. 

Since 2023, Laing-Waliyaya has been reconnecting with her alma mater to contribute her expertise to the PSEG Institute for Sustainability Studies Advisory Board. This past spring, she served as an alumni panelist for the Institute’s Green Teams final presentation event.  

“It is an honor to serve on the advisory board,” she says, noting that she was amazed at how much the program has grown. “The program has really scaled. At first, it was just for Montclair students. Now, students from other institutions are participating. I felt proud to have been through the program and am excited to be part of it going forward.”  

Laing-Waliyaya encourages her fellow Montclair alumni to find ways to get involved on campus. “Find something that relates to what initially drew you to Montclair,” she suggests. “For me, that meant reflecting on the great internship experience I had with the PSEG Institute for Sustainability Studies. As an advisory board member, I get to give back to that program by providing the Institute with perspective on tech, risk compliance and analytics to help ensure that the curriculum prepares students for success.”