EMEA Assurance Lead

Scale AI; United Arab Emirates; On-site; AED 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Scale AI is seeking a veteran compliance expert to lead EMEA-specific cybersecurity assurance programs. In this role, you will be responsible for aligning with global standards while ensuring compliance across various jurisdictions including the UK and GCC.

The ideal candidate will have 7+ years in cybersecurity compliance with a strong understanding of ISO27001 and public sector assurance. Skills in managing cloud environments and strong communication abilities are also essential.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in cybersecurity compliance, GRC, public sector assurance, or related roles.
• Experience executing government assurance programs in the UK, EU, or GCC.
• Familiarity with ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Design and maintain EMEA-specific controls within global assurance framework.
• Lead assurance programs across the GCC and UK.
• Manage relationships with external auditors and certification bodies.

Skills

Cybersecurity compliance

Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)

Public sector assurance

IT audit

Cloud security

Education

7+ years in relevant roles

Tools

AWS

Azure

GCP

Job description

Scale is powering the generative AI wave by providing the data and infrastructure for companies to build large-scale foundation models. Scale is growing to meet the rapid demand across global markets, including accelerating public sector business across EMEA.

Responsibilities

• Design and own EMEA‑specific controls within Scale's global assurance framework while staying tightly aligned with the global controls library and reporting cadences.
• Work with the global GRC team across Public Sector, Enterprise, Security, Engineering, Product, and Legal to deliver region‑specific authorizations, certifications, and customer assurance outcomes across EMEA, with a focus on the GCC, UK, and EU markets.
• Lead region‑specific assurance programs across the GCC and UK, including Qatar NCSA/NIA, KSA NCA/ECC, UAE DESC/ISR, UK Cyber Essentials Plus/DCC, and NCSC Secure by Design.
• Own controls mapping, evidence collection, gap analysis, certification timelines, and submission management for each assessment, working with accredited external assessors where required.
• Maintain and renew Scale's existing certifications and obtain new ones (SOC2, ISO27001, ISO42001, ISO9001), and extend them to EMEA and international operations, including NATO‑aligned defence tenders.
• Design and maintain EMEA‑specific controls adapting Scale's global framework to sovereign regulatory and customer requirements, including data residency and sector‑specific requirements such as health sector.
• Set priorities and operating cadences for EMEA assurance workflows, including intake, evidence collection, control owner follow‑up, remediation tracking, deadline management, and reporting progress through Scale's global assurance dashboards.
• Support EMEA public sector customer assurance activities, including security questionnaires, compliance due diligence responses, customer‑facing assurance discussions, and compliance input to bid and capture processes where assurance readiness is a procurement gate.
• Partner with Legal on EMEA contract‑driven assurance obligations, data protection and AI governance compliance intersections (e.g., GDPR, Qatar PDPPL, EU AI Act), and sensitive escalations involving sovereign regulators.
• Manage relationships with EMEA‑based external auditors, assessors, certification bodies, and regulatory counterparts.
• Support internal and external audits across EMEA and report to the Head of Global Assurance on program health, key risks, certification timelines, and regional regulatory developments.

Experience & Qualifications

• 7+ years in cybersecurity compliance, GRC, public sector assurance, IT audit, cloud security, or related roles with meaningful exposure to EMEA markets.
• Experience executing government or public sector assurance programs in the UK, EU, or GCC, working with external certification bodies, government assessors, or authorizing officials.
• Deep familiarity with UK Cyber Essentials/Cyber Essentials+, ISO27001, ISO9001, ISO42001, SOC2 or equivalent frameworks, and with sovereign security regimes in the GCC (Qatar NCSA/NIA, KSA SCCC/NCA, UAE DESC/NESA).
• Familiarity with relevant EMEA data protection and AI governance requirements (GDPR, Qatar PDPPL, EU AI Act) and how they translate into technical and organisational controls.
• Experience managing controls mapping, evidence collection, remediation tracking, and audit coordination across distributed engineering and infrastructure teams.
• Experience with cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP) and the ability to assess cloud architecture against compliance requirements.
• Strong communication skills, sound judgment on escalation, and the ability to operate autonomously in a region while maintaining alignment with a global program.

Nice to Have

• Relevant certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CISA, ISO27001 Lead Auditor, ISO42001 Internal Auditor, or CCSP.
• Experience with NATO information assurance standards or defence procurement prerequisites.
• Familiarity with EMEA health‑sector or medical‑device regulatory requirements, particularly in the GCC and the UK.
• Working knowledge of Arabic.
• UK SC or DV clearance, or eligibility for equivalent EMEA government security clearances.
• Experience at a Big4 firm or in a high‑growth technology company.