Senior Manager, Operations & Delivery – Cybersecurity, Digital Trust & AI

CNS Middle East; Dubai; On-site; AED 450,000 - 750,000; Full time

Job summary

CNS Middle East is expanding its cybersecurity footprint in the UAE. The role leads the new cybersecurity organization, shaping operating models and formal delivery standards across cybersecurity, AI engagements and data governance.

You will direct service delivery, capacity planning and customer onboarding while collaborating with CNS/Ghobash Sales, Pre-Sales, IT, Finance, HR and Procurement to ensure profitable, high-quality outcomes.

Qualifications

• 15+ years in technology, cybersecurity, managed services or enterprise service delivery.
• Significant senior leadership experience and proven ability to transform service organisations.
• UAE/GCC experience; ability to manage complex enterprise environments with multi-vendor programmes.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement the operating model for the new cybersecurity organization.
• Lead the operational establishment of SOC/MDR capability (IT/OT).
• Manage delivery across cybersecurity, data governance and AI engagements; ensure SLAs, quality and margin.
• Develop workforce and capacity planning for the division; translate pipeline into resourcing needs.

Skills

Leadership

Cybersecurity operations

Program management

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's in IT/Engineering

MBA or PM certifications (PMP/PRINCE2/ITIL)

Tools

SIEM/XDR/SOAR

ITIL

Job description

CNS is a technology company that powers the future by providing digital solutions essential to support all enterprise and human development. While growing and managing a robust pool of supplier-partners for the benefit of our clients has always been a priority, we are constantly re-inventing ourselves.

Founded in 1987 with more than 30 years of experience, CNS employs over 320 employees including more than 250 certified engineers. We offer in-depth expertise and a range of best-in-class products that support the digital transformation of all major industries. With offices in three countries, we have an extensive reach into, and regional knowledge of the Middle East markets.

A shift into levering our many years of experience to develop pioneering software in-house will add yet another dimension to our highly innovative solutions-portfolio.

Job Description

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Operating Model & Organizational Build

• Design and implement the operating model for the new cybersecurity organization.
• Define roles, responsibilities, governance, escalation paths and decision authorities.
• Establish how the new division interfaces with CNS/Ghobash Sales, Pre-Sales, IT, Finance, HR, Procurement and existing managed-services teams.
• Establish standard operating procedures, service handover and customer onboarding processes.
• Translate strategic plans into executable operating plans.

Service Delivery Leadership:

• Take executive ownership of delivery performance across cybersecurity, data governance and AI engagements.
• Ensure projects and managed services are delivered against agreed scope, timelines, SLAs, quality and margin.
• Act as the senior escalation point for major delivery or customer issues.

AI-SOC / MDR & Managed Services:

• Lead the operational establishment of the new SOC/MDR capability (IT/OT).
• Define the phased AI-SOC operating model, initially covering co-managed services and progressing toward 24×7 capability.
• Establish the SOC's incident management, escalation, shift and capacity model, together with customer onboarding and service-assurance processes.
• Define SLAs and KPIs for managed security services.
• Work with technical leads to embed automation, AI-assisted investigation and detection engineering.
• Ensure SOC growth is aligned with contracted customer demand and sustainable unit economics.

Resource & Capacity Management:

• Develop the workforce plan for the division.
• Translate commercial pipeline into resource demand and recruitment priorities.
• Manage utilisation, capacity and resource allocation.
• Balance permanent staff, shared CNS capability, contractors, partners and acquired resources.
• Establish delivery pods aligned to capability and customer demand.

Commercial & Financial Management (working with the Head of Cyber Security):

• Support development and management of the divisional P&L.
• Establish cost models and delivery economics across services.
• Track key financial and delivery metrics against plan, including revenue, margin, utilisation and profitability.
• Ensure services sold by Sales and Pre-Sales can be delivered profitably.
• Identify opportunities to improve delivery leverage and margin.
• Support annual budget and investment planning.

Customer Experience & Service Management:

• Establish customer-service management standards.
• Implement monthly and quarterly service reviews for strategic customers.
• Ensure customer issues are tracked through resolution.
• Establish executive reporting on service performance, risk and security posture.
• Build customer satisfaction and retention into delivery KPIs.
• Support renewal and expansion of managed-service customers.

Quality, Risk & Governance:

• Establish a formal delivery quality framework.
• Introduce project and service assurance reviews.
• Maintain operational and delivery risk registers.
• Ensure adherence to contractual, regulatory and internal governance requirements.
• Establish corrective-action processes following delivery issues.
• Support required certifications and compliance programmes.

Service Industrialisation:

• Work with each practice lead to industrialise services — defined scope, delivery methodology, pricing and SLA/KPI framework — turning bespoke delivery into repeatable, reusable IP.

Pre-Sales & Bid Governance:

• Support major bids and strategic proposals, validating resource, delivery and risk assumptions before contractual commitment.
• Participate in customer presentations where operational capability is important.
• Support development of Statements of Work and service descriptions, ensuring proposals have realistic mobilisation timelines.

Leadership & People Development:

• Build a high-performance delivery culture.
• Mentor delivery managers and technical leads.
• Establish performance expectations and accountability.
• Support succession planning.
• Create structured career and capability-development plans.
• Drive collaboration across the different practice areas.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Business, Engineering or a related field
• Master's degree / MBA, or project and service-management certifications (e.g. PMP, PRINCE2, ITIL) is Desired

Experience

• 15+ years in technology, cybersecurity, managed services or enterprise service delivery,
• including significant senior leadership experience and proven experience building or
• transforming service organisations.
• UAE/GCC experience; experience managing complex enterprise customer environments and large-scale, multi-vendor programmes; strong commercial and P&A understanding is Desired

Additional Information

Skills & Abilities

• Strong operational leadership, delivery excellence and commercial judgement
• Resource, capacity and organisational-design experience
• Governance, risk management and problem resolution
• Strong executive stakeholder and customer engagement
• Working knowledge across AI-SOC/MDR, SIEM/XDR/SOAR, incident response, cloud security, offensive security, GRC, data governance and AI assurance
• ITIL/service-management and programme/project-governance certifications

Compliance with policies and procedures based on the ISO standards adopted by CNS.