Head of Security Design and Engineering

Bank Muscat; Muscat; On-site; OMR 35,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Bank Muscat is seeking an accomplished security architect/engineer to lead the design and implementation of secure architectures across on‑premises, cloud, applications and identity platforms. You will drive threat modelling, governance, and security-by-design across the lifecycle in a regulated financial services environment.

The role requires 10–15 years of experience, including leadership, with strong knowledge of NIST CSF 2.0, ISO/IEC 27001, and control lifecycle management.

Qualifications

• 10–15 years of experience including at least 5 years leading security architecture or engineering teams.
• Demonstrated experience in a regulated high-availability or financial-services environment is strongly preferred.
• Expertise translating business risk into measurable security outcomes and governing controls.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and engineering of security architectures for platforms, infrastructure, cloud, applications, and identity.
• Embed security into SDLC and DevSecOps, including threat modelling, architecture governance and evidence management.
• Maintain security governance, procedures, metrics, and management reporting; coordinate with stakeholders, auditors and regulators.

Skills

Security architecture

Cloud security

DevSecOps

Threat modelling

Architecture governance

Regulatory compliance

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree advantageous

Job description

Lead the design and engineering phase of the security-control lifecycle by translating control objectives and minimum-security standards into secure architectures engineering patterns integrated platforms and automated controls across infrastructure applications cloud and identity

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

• Core AccountabilitiesOwn security architecture principles guardrails patterns and reference architectures Direct engineering and integration of platform infrastructure cloud application and identity security capabilities Embed security into SDLC and DevSecOps including SAST DAST SCA secrets API container and Kubernetes security Maintain the security-technology inventory lifecycle ownership licensing use cases and technical roadmap Establish security-by-design threat-modelling and architecture-review services for projects and material changes Drive policy-as-code orchestration and automation to improve control consistency speed and evidence
• Governance Stakeholder and Reporting ResponsibilitiesMaintain clear operating procedures evidence service metrics and management reporting for the assigned security services Coordinate with IT operations architecture application risk compliance audit and business stakeholders to resolve control gaps and delivery dependencies Escalate material risks incidents SLA breaches and control weaknesses through the approved governance and incident-management channels Support regulatory examinations internal and external audits risk assessments and management committees by providing accurate evidence and subject-matter input

Personnel Specification

• Education and Experience10-15 years including at least 5 years leading security architecture or engineering teams Demonstrated experience in a regulated high-availability or financial-services environment is strongly preferred
• Technical Knowledge and SkillsEnterprise security architecture and control engineering Cloud infrastructure application API container network and identity security Security technology lifecycle integration architecture automation and engineering assurance Secure SDLC DevSecOps threat modelling and architecture governance Working knowledge of NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2 0 ISO IEC 27001 and the control lifecycle from design through operation and assurance Ability to translate business regulatory and risk requirements into measurable security outcomes procedures and service metrics Strong analytical written communication stakeholder-management and evidence-management skills in a regulated environment
• Operational and Behavioral SkillsSound judgement integrity and the ability to handle sensitive information and high-pressure situations appropriately Ability to prioritize risk manage competing demands and deliver clear decisions actions and escalation Strong collaboration influencing and communication skills across technical business and executive audiences Commitment to measurable service quality continuous improvement and disciplined documentation Ability to work effectively with internal teams external suppliers auditors and regulators

Desired Certifications

• CISSP preferably ISSAPSABSA Chartered Security Architect or TOGAFCCSP or recognised cloud security certificationCISM Bachelor s degree in Information Security, Cybersecurity, Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering or a related discipline; a relevant master s degree is advantageous.