Dir Cyber Security Engineering

Optimum; Bethpage (NY); On-site; USD 156,000 - 255,000; Full time

Job summary

Optimum in New York seeks a Director of Cyber Security Engineering to set strategic vision and implement advanced security frameworks across hybrid and multi-cloud environments. You will lead a team of security professionals and partner with IT, Architecture, and engineering to protect assets and enable secure digital transformation.

The role emphasizes Zero Trust, SASE, CSPM, CWPP, NDR, AI/ML security, DevSecOps, and 24x7 operations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in CS or security fields.
• 15+ years of cybersecurity leadership experience.
• Experience with cloud security controls across AWS, Azure, GCP.
• Expertise in Zero Trust, SASE, CSPM, CWPP, NDR, AI/ML Security, WAF and Firewalls.
• Automation to drive efficiencies and cost savings.
• Strong knowledge of cryptography, auth, and security protocols.
• Proven cross-functional leadership in large teams.
• Experience in 24x7 production security operations and change management.
• Excellent stakeholder communication skills.
• Certifications such as CISSP/CCSP/CISM/AWS/Azure/GCP are a plus.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a comprehensive Cyber Security strategy.
• Oversee security controls platforms including WAF, firewalls, DDoS protection, and PKI.
• Lead Zero Trust and SASE implementations across enterprise and cloud.
• Collaborate with DevOps to embed security into CI/CD pipelines.
• Drive CSPM/CWPP tooling and Cloud security posture management.
• Manage on-call 24x7 operations and incident response.
• Automate routine security tasks and improve runbooks and playbooks.
• Coordinate vendor management and security engineering tooling.
• Ensure audit readiness for PCI, SOX, and other regulations.

Skills

Cybersecurity leadership

Cloud security

Automation

Zero Trust

SASE

DevSecOps

Stakeholder comms

Certifications

24x7 operations

WAF/Firewalls

Education

Bachelor’s or master’s degree in CS or security

Tools

AWS security controls

Azure security controls

GCP security controls

Job description

We are Optimum, a leader in the fast-paced world of connectivity, and we're seeking driven and enthusiastic professionals to join our team, empower lives, fuel businesses, and drive innovation. Connectivity is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. A career at Optimum means you'll be enabling progress and enhancing lives by providing reliable, high-speed connectivity solutions that keep the world connected. Our successes, now and in the future, are powered by our amazing product, a commitment to our people and culture, and the connections we make in our communities.

If you are resourceful, collaborative, and passionate about delivering consistent excellence, Optimum is for you!

Job Summary

As the Director of Cyber Security Engineering, you will lead the strategic vision and implementation of advanced security frameworks, leveraging automation and AI/ML to enhance threat detection, response, and secure digital transformation across hybrid and multi-cloud environments. This role requires deep expertise in Zero Trust Architecture, SASE, CSPM, AI/ML, DevSecOps practices, NDR, WAF and Firewalls.
You will oversee a team of security professionals and collaborate with IT, Architecture, engineering, and business units to ensure the protection of Optimum’s assets. The Director will be a forward-thinking leader with a passion for innovation, resilience, and secure digital transformation.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a comprehensive Cyber Security strategy aligned with business objectives.
• Oversee platform engineering for security controls: VPAM/PKI, key management/HSM, log pipelines, DDoS, WAF, remote access, and network firewalls.
• Network & ISP security: engineer and operate DDoS scrubbing/runbooks; authoritative DNSSEC and WAF hygiene for customer-facing properties; coordinate policy distribution with backbone automation/orchestration.
• Lead the adoption of Zero Trust Architecture and SASE frameworks across enterprise and cloud environments.
• Hybrid Cloud and Emerging Technology such as AI/ML security: enforce Secure by Design guardrails for all Cloud and AI workloads (data boundaries, private tenancy, model and prompt protections).
• Software supply chain security: vendor security management enforced with Zero Trust Networking concepts.
• Oversee Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) and Cloud Workload Protection (CWPP) tools.
• Collaborate with DevOps teams to embed and maintain security into CI/CD pipelines (DevSecOps) for cloud deployments.
• Incorporate AI/ML-driven practices to enhance cybersecurity posture, improve threat detection and response times, and ensure a more secure digital transformation.
• Enhance the security of corporate AI/ML initiatives, protect sensitive data, and aid the development of resilient systems that drive innovation while maintaining trust and compliance.

The Director also leads the Cyber Security Engineering Operations team, which runs the security platforms described above in production. The operations responsibilities include:

• Own the day-to-day operation, availability, and performance of enterprise security platforms, including firewalls, WAF, DDoS protection, SASE, VPAM, PKI, HSM, and security log pipelines.
• Establish and maintain a 24x7 on-call model for security engineering, with defined escalation paths and service levels for platform incidents and customer-impacting events.
• Serve as the Tier 3 engineering escalation point for the Security Operations Center during active incidents, including emergency blocks, rule changes, and DDoS mitigation.
• Manage the security policy and rule change process for firewalls, WAF, and proxies so that every change is requested, peer reviewed, tested, and recorded through enterprise change management.
• Drive patching, upgrades, and end-of-life replacement of security infrastructure so platforms remain on supported and hardened versions.
• Oversee certificate and key lifecycle operations, including issuance, renewal, revocation, and expiration monitoring, to prevent service outages caused by expired certificates.
• Maintain configuration baselines for security platforms and monitor for drift, unauthorized changes, and unused or overly permissive rules.
• Develop and keep current the operational runbooks, standard operating procedures, and disaster recovery plans for each security platform, and test failover on a regular schedule.
• Automate routine operational work such as rule provisioning, health checks, and reporting to reduce manual effort and error.
• Track operational metrics such as platform uptime, change success rate, mean time to restore, and ticket backlog, and report them to security leadership.
• Provide audit evidence and support control testing for PCI, SOX, and other regulatory and internal requirements that depend on security platform operations.
• Manage vendor support relationships, maintenance contracts, and license renewals for security engineering tools.
• Coordinate capacity planning for security platforms with network and cloud engineering ahead of traffic growth and new service launches.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science preferred, Cybersecurity, or related field experience; Master’s preferred.
• 15+ years of cybersecurity leadership experience, including network and cloud security or related field experience.
• Experience with AWS, Azure, and GCP security controls.
• Expertise in Zero Trust, SASE, CASB, CSPM, CWPP, NDR, AI/ML Security, WAF, and Firewalls.
• Proven experience on utilizing automation best practices to drive efficiencies and cost savings.
• Strong understanding of security protocols, cryptography, authentication, and authorization.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage complex projects.
• Experience leading security engineering operations teams in a 24x7 production environment, including on-call and change management practices.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Relevant certifications a plus: CISSP, CCSP, CISM, AWS Security Specialty, Azure Security Engineer, GCP.

At Optimum, every action and interaction we take part in, is driven by our three Guiding Principles: Do What’s Right, Drive One Optimum, and Make It Happen. These aren’t just words, they help us build trust, create real community, and embrace new ways of thinking. Our employees are empowered to do the right thing for our customers and co-workers and to recognize and reward these behaviors when we see them. It’s all part of the bigger picture of “Be The Difference” where each employee knows they have the power to enact real change, share new ideas, and understand that learning never stop.

All job descriptions and required skills, qualifications and responsibilities for a particular position are subject to modification by the Company from time to time, in the Company’s discretion based on business necessity.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to recruiting, hiring and promoting qualified people of all backgrounds regardless of gender, race, color, creed, national origin, religion, age, marital status, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law.

The Company collects personal information about its applicants for employment that may include personal identifiers, professional or employment related information, photos, education information and/or protected classifications under federal and state law. This information is collected for employment purposes, including identification, work authorization, FCRA-compliant background screening, human resource administration and compliance with federal, state and local law.

Pay is competitive and based on a number of job-related factors, including skills and experience. The starting pay rate/range at time of hire for this position in New York is $155,509.00 - 255,479.00 / year. For other locations, please inquire with your recruiter. The rates/ranges provided herein are the anticipated pay at the time of hire, and do not reflect future job opportunity.
We appreciate your interest in this opportunity. Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the U.S. Please note that at this time, we do not provide visa sponsorship for employment.