Sr IT Security Specialist

Ascend Performance Materials Operations; Chennai; On-site; INR 2,500,000 - 4,500,000; Full time

Job summary

Ascend Performance Materials Operations is seeking a Sr. IT Security Specialist in Chennai, India. The role acts as a senior technical authority, bridging advanced incident handling, threat management, and cross-functional security guidance across IT, Network, and OT domains.

You will escalate complex issues, lead forensic investigations, and drive long-term remediation actions while mentoring junior team members. A mix of hands-on security work and strategic oversight is expected.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in IT security, SOC, threat management or security engineering.
• Leads complex investigations, root-cause analyses and cross-functional remediation.
• Experience across on-prem, cloud and network/OT environments.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert guidance as senior escalation point within IT Security Team.
• Lead advanced security investigations, incident response and postmortems.
• Develop and refine SIEM/EDR detection rules and incident response playbooks.
• Coordinate with Infrastructure, Network, and OT teams to secure complex environments.
• Support audits and regulatory inquiries, and drive continuous improvement.

Skills

Incident management

Forensic analysis

Security leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Risk mitigation

Education

Bachelor's in Cybersecurity/IT/CS

CISSP/GCIH/GCFA/CISM/CEH/CCSP

Tools

SIEM

EDR

NDR

Job description

Overview

The Sr. IT Security Specialist serves as a senior technical authority and key operational lead within the IT Security Team. Scaled for an experienced security practitioner (9-15 years of experience), this role bridges tactical security operations, advanced incident handling, and cross-functional security guidance.

While remaining hands-on and technical, the Sr. Specialist exercises broad independent judgment, takes ownership of enterprise risk mitigation, drives root-cause elimination, and guides junior and mid-level team members. The role works closely with Infrastructure, Network, OT, and Compliance teams to maintain resilient systems, optimize security controls, and strengthen the overall posture of the enterprise.

Targeted Outcomes (12 Months)

• Escalation & Operational Leadership: Act as the primary technical escalation point for junior and mid-level security staff, complex operational questions, and severe security events.
• Advanced Incident Management: Independently lead high-complexity security event investigations, forensic analysis, and end-to-end response coordination.
• Root-Cause Elimination: Drive deep-dive postmortems for recurring security issues and implement systemic long-term remediation actions.
• Process & Control Refinement: Lead initiatives to refine SIEM/EDR detection rules, security metrics, reporting frameworks, and incident response playbooks.
• Autonomous Project Delivery: Support major security engineering projects and infrastructure improvements with minimal supervision, strong decision-making, and high execution quality.

Primary Focus

• Advanced incident handling, forensic investigation, and escalation
• Mentorship, peer guidance, and technical leadership
• Root cause analysis, trend identification, and postmortem engineering
• Security monitoring, detection, and process optimization
• Cross-functional coordination across IT, Network, Cloud, and OT environments

Key Responsibilities

Advanced Operations & Escalation

Provide expert guidance to junior and mid-level security resources, serving as the senior point of escalation within the IT Security Team.

Perform advanced daily security telemetry analysis using modern SIEM, EDR, NDR, and threat intelligence tools, quickly isolating high-risk threats from background noise.

Respond to, resolve, or escalation complex security incidents, including high-severity events escalated by the MDR provider.

Incident Response & Forensic Analysis

Investigate enterprise security violations and lead thorough postmortem analyses to identify systemic vulnerabilities, threat trends, and remediation opportunities.

Support updates and continuous testing for Incident Response (IR) and Disaster Recovery (DR) plans.

Participate in a senior-tier on-call rotation for critical incident escalations.

Vulnerability Management & Threat Mitigation

Research emerging cyber threats and zero-day vulnerabilities, translating threat intelligence into proactive defense measures.

Review, prioritize, and execute remediation strategies for penetration test and vulnerability assessment findings.

Recommend, schedule, or apply critical security fixes, patches, and defensive controls in response to active risks or breaches.

Enterprise & Cross-Functional Collaboration

Partner with the Infrastructure Team to secure and ensure the integrity of Windows, Linux, Active Directory, and hybrid cloud environments.

Partner with the Network Team to maintain the security integrity of WAN, LAN, telephony systems, and Operational Technology (OT) networks.

Collaborate with key stakeholders to align daily security operations with the enterprise-wide risk management framework.

Governance, Compliance & Continuous Improvement

Produce executive-level monthly exception, metrics, and incident reporting to inform leadership on enterprise security posture.

Support annual IT security audits, regulatory compliance inquiries and customer security assessments.

Monitor policy adherence cross-enterprise and execute corrective action plans where non-conformities are identified.

Manage incident and change request service levels (SLAs) according to IT service management guidelines.

Develop safety coverage t( Level in ?? ) ?

Develop, standardize, and maintain technical documentation for security platforms and operational procedures.

Qualifications

Experience

7 to 13 years of hands-on experience in IT security, security operations (SOC), threat management, or security engineering.

Demonstrated track record of leading complex security investigations, root-cause analyses, and cross-functional remediation projects.

Proven experience working across diverse environments, including on-premises infrastructure, cloud workloads, and network/OT environments.

Education & Certifications

Bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity, Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience).

Advanced industry certifications preferred (e.g., CISSP, GCIH, GCFA, CISM, CEH, or CCSP).

Key Skills & Capabilities

Technical Proficiency: Deep working kno