Security Engineer

Objective Partners; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Objective Partners is seeking a hands-on Security Engineer in Chicago or NYC to drive end-to-end security initiatives across our technology stack. You will operate with autonomy, evaluate risks, design robust defenses, and implement scalable controls in a fast-paced engineering environment.

You will partner with software engineers and IT teams to harden security posture, build automated tooling, and translate complex security concepts into production-ready solutions, owning projects end-to-end.

Qualifications

• Multi-year track record in security engineering, systems security, or infrastructure protection.
• Strong technical acumen to navigate and analyze complex engineering environments.
• Proven history of leading security projects throughout their full lifecycle.
• Engineering-focused security approach, not purely theoretical.
• Ability to uncover unconventional security flaws and failure modes.
• Strong collaboration with developers and cross-functional partners.
• High degree of self-direction and independent decision-making.

Responsibilities

• Direct and execute technical security projects across systems, networks, and internal computing environments.
• Proactively identify system vulnerabilities, architectural gaps, and non-traditional attack vectors prior to exploitation.
• Partner directly with software engineers, system administrators, and technical leadership to harden overall security posture.
• Conceptualize, build, and deploy custom security controls, automated tooling, and operational processes.
• Research emerging threat vectors, assessing their practical impact on complex technical infrastructure.
• Monitor advancements in AI/ML tech and evaluate new security risks introduced by emerging AI tools.
• Translate abstract security concepts into practical, production-ready engineering solutions.
• Help set and refine organizational security standards and operational best practices.
• Take full ownership of complex security initiatives, independently driving them from initial concept to completion.

Skills

Security engineering

Systems security

Infrastructure protection

Technical project leadership

Threat modeling

Collaboration

Self-direction

Job description

Job Title: Security Engineer

Location: Chicago or NYC

About the Opportunity:

We are seeking a hands-on, proactive Security Engineer to drive end-to-end security initiatives across our high-performance technology ecosystem. In this individual contributor role, you will hold broad autonomy to evaluate operational risks, design robust defense strategies, and build scalable security controls. This is an exceptional opportunity for a technical practitioner who thrives in fast-paced engineering environments and wants to shape security practices from the ground up.

Responsibilities:

• Direct and execute technical security projects across systems, networks, and internal computing environments.
• Proactively identify system vulnerabilities, architectural gaps, and non-traditional attack vectors prior to exploitation.
• Partner directly with software engineers, system administrators, and technical leadership to harden overall security posture.
• Conceptualize, build, and deploy custom security controls, automated tooling, and operational processes.
• Research emerging threat vectors, assessing their practical impact on complex technical infrastructure.
• Monitor advancements in AI/ML tech and evaluate new security risks introduced by emerging artificial intelligence tools.
• Translate abstract security concepts into practical, production-ready engineering solutions.
• Help set and refine organizational security standards and operational best practices.
• Take full ownership of complex security initiatives, independently driving them from initial concept to completion.

Requirements (Must-Have):

• Multi-year track record in security engineering, systems security, or infrastructure protection.
• Strong technical acumen with the ability to navigate and analyze complex engineering environments.
• Proven history of leading technical security projects throughout their full lifecycle.
• Practical, engineering-focused approach to security rather than a purely theoretical or academic background.
• Demonstrated ability to uncover unconventional security flaws, system failure modes, and broken architectural assumptions.
• Strong collaborative skills to work effectively alongside software developers and cross-functional partners.
• High degree of self-direction, sound technical decision-making, and comfort operating with minimal oversight.

Preferred Qualifications (Nice-to-Have):

• Active curiosity regarding emerging security technologies, novel threat landscapes, and AI-driven security challenges.
• Experience implementing pragmatic security defenses within high-throughput, low-latency, or performance-critical computing environments.