Senior Manager, Security Operations & Engineering

UL Standards & Engagement; Evanston (IL); On-site; USD 144,304 - 198,419; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) matching

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance

Flexible working arrangements

Paid time off including vacation and holidays

Job summary

UL Standards & Engagement in Evanston, Illinois, is looking for a seasoned Sr Manager Security Operations & Engineering. The ideal candidate will lead security operations, ensuring effective response and recovery from cyber threats and aligning strategies with business goals.

With 7+ years of cybersecurity experience, strong leadership skills, and familiarity with security tooling, you'll play a critical role in advancing UL's mission of safety science research.

Comprehensive benefits include health insurance, 401(k) matching, and flexible working arrangements.

Qualifications

• 7 years of progressive experience in cybersecurity with 3 in leadership.
• Knowledge of Azure and AWS security settings.
• Hands-on experience with security technologies.

Responsibilities

• Drive long-term strategy, roadmap, and execution of Security Operations.
• Lead enterprise security operations including incident response and threat detection.
• Implement and optimize security tooling and operational maturity.

Skills

Risk mitigation planning

Leadership and team management

Analytical and problem-solving skills

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Information Security or related field

Master’s degree (preferred)

Tools

SIEM

EDR

MDR

Cloud security platforms

Job description

Job Description

We have an exciting opportunity for a Sr Manager Security Operations & Engineering at UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement, based in our Evanston, Illinois, office.

The Senior Manager of Security Operations & Engineering leads and strengthens UL Research Institutes (ULRI) and UL Standards & Engagement (ULSE) security operations, ensuring effective prevention, detection, response, and recovery from cyber threats.

This role provides strategic and operational oversight across incident response, threat detection, vulnerability management, and security tooling, while aligning efforts with enterprise risk and business goals.

A key partner to IT, Legal, and business teams, this position embeds security into core processes, translates strategy into measurable outcomes, and drives continuous improvement to maintain resilient, audit‑ready, and business‑aligned security operations.

What You’ll Learn and Achieve

• Drive the long‑term strategy, roadmap, and operational execution of Security Operations & Engineering in alignment with ULRI and ULSE goals, objectives, enterprise risk priorities, and resilience commitments.
• Lead and manage enterprise security operations, including incident response, threat detection, security monitoring, vulnerability management, and operational security engineering.
• Own the end‑to‑end security incident lifecycle, ensuring timely detection, triage, containment, remediation, post‑incident reviews, lessons learned, and executive reporting.
• Lead the advancement of AI security monitoring, governance, and controls to protect enterprise data, secure internal and external AI use cases, and mitigate emerging AI‑driven risks.
• Oversee the enterprise vulnerability and exposure management program, including scanning, risk‑based prioritization, remediation coordination, metrics, and executive‑level reporting.
• Drive the implementation, optimization, integration, and operational maturity of security tooling, including SIEM, EDR, MDR, CSPM, DSPM, CNAPP, vulnerability scanners, cloud security platforms, and related security technologies.
• Establish and mature security operations processes, playbooks, runbooks, standard operating procedures, and repeatable workflows to improve operational consistency, response effectiveness, and measurable outcomes.
• Partner with Identity, Infrastructure, Application, Cloud, and Architecture teams to improve security telemetry, embed security controls into enterprise environments, and strengthen visibility across systems, applications, and data.
• Continue to mature Microsoft Purview capabilities, including eDiscovery, Insider Risk Management, Data Loss Prevention, Information Protection, and related data protection controls.
• Oversee third‑party MSSP security functions, vendor relationships, service provider performance, operational budgets, and annual forecasting for security operations.
• Provide executive‑level visibility, briefings, metrics, KPIs, dashboards, and risk‑based insights to the CISO and senior leadership, including progress against NIST CSF v2 audit findings, compliance requirements, control validation, and enterprise risk reduction objectives.

What you’ll experience working at UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement

• People: You’ll work with a diverse team of experts respected for their independence and transparency and build a network, because our approach is collaborative. We collaborate across disciplines, organizations, and geographies to build the global scientific response that today’s global challenges require.
• Interesting work: Every day is different for us here. We see what’s on the horizon and use our expertise to build the foundations of a safer future. You’ll have the opportunity to push the boundaries of human understanding as part of a team working to advance the public good.
• Grow and achieve: We learn, work, and grow together through targeted development, reward, and recognition programs.
• Values: Four core values guide our work: collaboration, respect, integrity, and beneficence. By living our values, we inspire the trust essential to fulfilling our mission and foster the partnerships that enable us to pursue a beneficent future in which we all can thrive.
• Total Rewards: All employees at UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement are eligible for bonus compensation based on the position level. We offer comprehensive medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans and a generous 401(k) matching structure of up to 5% of eligible pay. Moreover, we invest an additional 4% into your retirement savings fund after your first year of continuous employment. Depending on your role, you may be able to discuss flexible working arrangements with your manager. We also provide paid time off, including vacation, holiday, sick, and volunteer days.

What Makes You a Great Fit

• Ability to conduct comprehensive gap analysis across various business functions and IT systems. Skilled in identifying potential risks and vulnerabilities and developing effective risk mitigation plans and controls.
• Strong leadership and people‑management skills with the ability to build, mentor, and scale security operations teams.
• Demonstrated ability to translate technical security events into clear, risk‑based business impacts for executive audiences.
• Deep understanding of security operations & engineering concepts, including incident response, threat intelligence, vulnerability management, and monitoring.
• Proven experience driving operational maturity using recognized cybersecurity frameworks and best practices.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with a data‑driven approach to decision‑making.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including executive and board‑level reporting.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast‑paced, evolving environment.
• High degree of integrity, accountability, and professionalism.

Professional Education And Experience Requirements For The Role

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Security, Computer Science, Information Technology, etc. Master’s degree is preferred.
• 7 years of progressive experience in cybersecurity, with at least 3 years in a security operations leadership role.
• Knowledge and experience working in Azure and AWS security settings.
• Experience working on Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) and NIST SP800‑171 v2 preferred but not required.
• Hands‑on experience with security technologies such as SIEM, EDR, MDR, vulnerability management, and cloud security platforms.
• Demonstrated experience leading incident response and vulnerability management programs in an enterprise environment.
• Experience working in regulated or audit‑driven environments is strongly preferred.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., CISSP, CISM, GIAC, or similar) preferred but not required.

UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement are nonprofit organizations dedicated to advancing safety science research through discovery and application of scientific knowledge. We conduct rigorous independent research, analyze safety data, convene experts worldwide to address risks, share knowledge through safety education and public outreach initiatives, and develop standards to guide safe commercialization of evolving technologies. We foster communities of safety, from grassroots initiatives for neighborhoods to summits of world leaders.

To learn more, visit our websites UL.org and ULSE.org.

Salary Range: $144,304.94-$198,419.29

Pay Type: Salary