Director, Authentication Engineering

USAA Life Insurance Company; San Antonio (TX); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

USAA is seeking a Director of Authentication Engineering to lead the engineering organization responsible for authentication platforms, infrastructure and services powering Workforce IAM. You will own the strategy, architecture, modernization, resiliency and lifecycle of enterprise authentication, including Microsoft Entra ID, Okta and ForgeRock.

This hybrid role is based in San Antonio or Plano, TX with relocation assistance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Information Security or related field.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Authentication Engineering organization and establish the engineering strategy and multi-year technology roadmap for enterprise authentication platforms, infrastructure, protocols, integrations, and services that enable secure workforce access across USAA.
• Ensure the security, reliability, resiliency, availability, scalability, and recoverability of critical authentication services by establishing engineering standards, platform health metrics, lifecycle management, capacity planning, disaster recovery, and operational readiness expectations.
• Partner across Workforce IAM, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Cloud, and application engineering teams to translate authentication requirements into scalable engineering capabilities, enabling secure and consistent access to enterprise applications and infrastructure while advancing modern authentication patterns.
• Lead the modernization and evolution of enterprise authentication, including the transition from legacy authentication platforms and protocols toward modern identity services, phishing-resistant authentication, passwordless capabilities, stronger conditional access, automation, and cloud-integrated authentication architectures.
• Responsible for strategic ownership of critical security domains or capabilities, develops multi-year roadmaps and/or a leader of Manager Seniors.
• Establishes and ensures compliant execution of their information security domain's short- and long-term strategic vision, strategy, goals, and metrics and governs the overall policies, standards, and procedures for their assigned information security domain.
• Directs and ensures effective operation of an enterprise information security domain including capacity, resilience and dependability capabilities and how changes in conditions, operations, or the environment will affect the system's operation.
• Develops, reviews and communicates information security risk management policies and procedures in partnership with the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and other senior leaders to ensure appropriateness and adequacy versus industry best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Interfaces with external regulators to represent USAA in discussions regarding their specific information security domain.
• Oversees the continuous monitoring of cybersecurity activities and alerts senior management to potential risks, compliance issues, and operational inefficiencies.
• Develops, designs, and delivers a sustainable governance and assurance model across multiple domains and the Enterprise.
• Identifies, monitors and evaluates operational solutions to reduce information security risk, meet compliance requirements and increase enterprise workforce efficiency, business agility and workforce scalability.
• Promotes information security awareness across the enterprise and with the external security community.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Information Security

Job description

Why USAA?

At USAA, our mission is to empower our members to achieve financial security through highly competitive products, exceptional service and trusted advice. We seek to be the #1 choice for the military community and their families.

Embrace a fulfilling career at USAA, where our core values - honesty, integrity, loyalty and service - define how we treat each other and our members. Be part of what truly makes us special and impactful.

We are proud to support active-duty military spouses. USAA roles may offer remote or hybrid flexibility for active-duty military spouses consistent with applicable policy and business needs.

The Opportunity

As a dedicated Director, Authentication Engineering, you will lead the engineering organization responsible for the critical authentication platforms, infrastructure, and services that enable USAA's Workforce Identity and Access Management capabilities. You will be accountable for the strategy, architecture, engineering, modernization, resiliency, and lifecycle of enterprise authentication services, including Microsoft Entra ID, Okta, ForgeRock, OIDC, and SAML-based capabilities , ensuring secure, highly available, scalable, and seamless access while advancing USAA's evolving identity strategy.

We offer a flexible work environment that requires an individual to be in the office 4 days per week. This position can be based in one of the following locations: San Antonio, TX, or Plano, TX. Relocation assistance is available for this position.

What you'll do:

• Lead the Authentication Engineering organization and establish the engineering strategy and multi-year technology roadmap for enterprise authentication platforms, infrastructure, protocols, integrations, and services that enable secure workforce access across USAA.
• Ensure the security, reliability, resiliency, availability, scalability, and recoverability of critical authentication services by establishing engineering standards, platform health metrics, lifecycle management, capacity planning, disaster recovery, and operational readiness expectations.
• Partner across Workforce IAM, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Cloud, and application engineering teams to translate authentication requirements into scalable engineering capabilities, enabling secure and consistent access to enterprise applications and infrastructure while advancing modern authentication patterns.
• Lead the modernization and evolution of enterprise authentication, including the transition from legacy authentication platforms and protocols toward modern identity services, phishing-resistant authentication, passwordless capabilities, stronger conditional access, automation, and cloud-integrated authentication architectures.
• Responsible for strategic ownership of critical security domains or capabilities, develops multi-year roadmaps and/or a leader of Manager Seniors.
• Establishes and ensures compliant execution of their information security domain's short- and long-term strategic vision, strategy, goals, and metrics and governs the overall policies, standards, and procedures for their assigned information security domain.
• Directs and ensures effective operation of an enterprise information security domain including capacity, resilience and dependability capabilities and how changes in conditions, operations, or the environment will affect the system's operation.
• Develops, reviews and communicates information security risk management policies and procedures in partnership with the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and other senior leaders to ensure appropriateness and adequacy versus industry best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Interfaces with external regulators to represent USAA in discussions regarding their specific information security domain.
• Oversees the continuous monitoring of cybersecurity activities and alerts senior management to potential risks, compliance issues, and operational inefficiencies.
• Develops, designs, and delivers a sustainable governance and assurance model across multiple domains and the Enterprise.
• Identifies, monitors and evaluates operational solutions to reduce information security risk, meet compliance requirements and increase enterprise workforce efficiency, business agility and workforce scalability.
• Promotes information security awareness across the enterprise and with the external security community.
• Serves as financial steward for the organization and manages manpower and budgets to ensure they cost-effectively meet the needs of the organization.
• Builds and oversees a team of employees for assigned functional area through ongoing execution of recruiting, development, retention, coaching and support, performance management, and managerial activities.
• Ensures risks associated with business activities are effectively identified, measured, monitored, and controlled in accordance with risk and compliance policies and procedures.

What you have:

• Bachelor's degree in Information Security, Information Techn