Senior Principal Cybersecurity Architect

Mercer University; Warner Robins (GA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Tuition reimbursement

Paid vacation and sick leave

Retirement contributions

Technology discounts

Job summary

Mercer Engineering Research Center (MERC) at Mercer University seeks a Senior Principal Cybersecurity Specialist to lead operations across enterprise, platform IT, and software development projects. You will oversee audits, risk management, and innovative cyber techniques while guiding teams and ensuring regulatory compliance.

The role emphasizes mentorship of junior staff, collaboration with program managers, and maintaining secure lab environments for testing and validation.

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Ability to obtain/maintain DoD Security Clearance.
• PhD or Master/Undergraduate with extensive cybersecurity experience.
• Nine years leading cybersecurity projects/personnel.
• Expert in three areas, proficient in others: software security, sys admin, security testing, information assurance, design, implementation, validation, and compliance.
• CompTIA Security+ C.

Responsibilities

• Directs and conducts cybersecurity operations for enterprise IT, platform IT, and software development programs.
• Provides senior-level technical oversight to protect confidentiality, integrity, and availability of mission-critical systems.
• Leads multidisciplinary cybersecurity teams, projects, and initiatives to meet objectives.
• Performs compliance audits, vulnerability assessments, and security evaluations to mitigate risks.
• Establishes program control processes to ensure adherence to DoD, federal, state, and local regulations and MERC policy.
• Develops and maintains risk management frameworks to meet accreditation and certification standards.
• Researches and implements new cybersecurity techniques, tools, and capabilities.
• Advises leadership on emerging threats and best practices for proactive defense.
• Leads design, validation, and improvement of secure systems and software.
• Partners with program managers, engineers, and stakeholders to integrate cybersecurity across lifecycle.
• Mentors junior cybersecurity professionals.
• Represents MERC in audits and technical exchanges.
• Oversees dedicated cybersecurity laboratories and ensures DoD/federal security compliance.

Skills

Cybersecurity leadership

Vulnerability assessments

Compliance

DoD regulations

Threat modeling

Education

PhD in Cybersecurity/related field

Master's degree in Cybersecurity

ABET-accredited degree requirement

Tools

CompTIA Security+

Job description

Mercer Engineering Research Center (MERC) at Mercer University seeks a Senior Principal Cybersecurity Specialist to lead operations across enterprise, platform IT, and software development projects. You will oversee audits, risk management, and innovative cyber techniques while guiding teams and ensuring regulatory compliance.

The role emphasizes mentorship of junior staff, collaboration with program managers, and maintaining secure lab environments for testing and validation.