Group Head of Information Security & Cyber Operations

William Scott Consulting Ltd; Gerrards Cross; On-site; GBP 115,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

William Scott Consulting Ltd is recruiting a Group Head of Information Security & Cyber Operations to lead the security strategy and roadmap across the organisation. You will influence senior stakeholders and translate complex security topics into clear business language.

This role sits on the IT Senior Leadership Team and drives governance, risk, incident response, and cyber resilience across multi-site, cloud environments while maturing capabilities and team performance.

Qualifications

• Significant leadership in information security and cyber operations with senior stakeholder influence.
• Hands-on experience maturing security operations and delivering transformation.
• Background in a complex, regulated environment.
• Ability to balance security, compliance, operations and business needs; strategise and execute.
• Experience managing major cyber incidents and decisions under uncertainty.
• Certifications such as CISSP, CISM, or CRISC are advantageous.
• Experience with outsourced SOC/MDR/XDR, cloud security, Zero Trust, security architecture, or multi-site operations.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Group Information Security and Cyber Operations function and develop the cyber strategy and roadmap.
• Assess current tools, processes, people, vulnerabilities and maturity; define and deliver improvements.
• Oversee cyber operations, incident management, governance, compliance, resilience and business continuity.
• Oversee MDR/XDR, security monitoring, threat detection and vulnerability management; satisfy regulatory requirements.
• Lead significant cyber incident responses with calm, credibility and sound judgement.
• Build the team structure and advance maturity and performance.
• Contribute to IT leadership team, collaborating with Compliance, Risk, and other stakeholders.
• Translate complex security matters into business-friendly language for leaders.

Skills

Leadership experience

Information security

Cyber operations

Regulated environments

Stakeholder influence

Incident management

Security strategy

Risk governance and compliance

Cloud security

Security architecture

Tools

MDR/XDR environments

Cloud security tools

Job description

Salary: £115,000 - 125,000 per year

Requirements:

• Significant leadership experience in information security and cyber operations, including influencing senior stakeholders.
• Proven hands-on experience building or maturing security operations and delivering transformation.
• Background in a complex, regulated environment.
• Ability to balance security, compliance, operations, and wider business needs; strategise and execute, and lead both from a strategic perspective and hands-on when required.
• Experience managing significant cyber incidents and making decisions with incomplete information.
• Relevant certifications such as CISSP, CISM, or CRISC are advantageous.
• Experience with areas such as outsourced SOC/MDR/XDR environments, cloud security, Zero Trust, security architecture, or international and multi-site operations is advantageous.

Responsibilities:

• Lead our Group Information Security and Cyber Operations function and own the development and delivery of our cyber security strategy and roadmap.
• Assess our current tools, processes, procedures, people, vulnerabilities, capability, and maturity, then define and deliver a roadmap for improvement.
• Oversee cyber operations and incident management; security risk, governance, and compliance; cyber resilience and business continuity; security assurance; tooling and operational capability; and team development.
• Oversee MDR/XDR, security monitoring, threat detection, and vulnerability management, while addressing regulatory and contractual security requirements, including Cyber Essentials Plus.
• Lead significant cyber incident response with calmness, credibility, and sound judgement.
• Establish the appropriate team structure and progress the function towards higher levels of maturity and performance.
• Contribute to the direction of our wider IT organisation as a member of the IT Senior Leadership Team, working with Compliance, Risk, and other stakeholders.
• Translate complex security matters into clear language that business and technology leaders can use to make decisions.

Technologies:

• Cloud
• Incident Management
• Security
• Support

More:

We are recruiting a Group Head of Information Security & Cyber Operations for a role commutable from Oxford, Beaconsfield, London, Uxbridge, Wycombe, Watford, Aylesbury, Windsor, Maidenhead, Reading, and Hemel Hempstead. The package is £115,000–approximately £125,000 per year, plus benefits. We have an established information security function and existing capability, with an opportunity to lead its next stage of maturity. The role sits on our IT Senior Leadership Team alongside leaders for Architecture, Service Delivery, Software, and End User, with influence across the wider business. Our broad expectations are discovery in the first three months, defining the team structure and roadmap within three to six months, building towards Maturity Level 2 within six to twelve months, and driving towards Maturity Level 4 over twelve to twenty-four months. We offer ownership, influence, and a seat at the table, with meaningful work ahead.

last updated 40 week of 2026