Senior Security Engineer

Kodiak Sciences; Palo Alto (CA); Sur place; USD 180 000 - 240 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

Kodiak Sciences seeks a highly technical Senior Security Engineer to own the design, implementation, and operation of our security program across identity, endpoint, cloud/SaaS, network, and AI systems. You will execute security-critical IT projects end-to-end, turning business objectives into well-documented outcomes while leveraging AI heavily.

This role requires hands-on security engineering depth, project management acumen, and strong communication.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in hands-on information security engineering with depth across IT infrastructure.
• Experience with identity security, endpoint security, cloud security, network security or SIEM/detection engineering.
• Strong scripting and AI-assisted development ability for automation and detections.

Responsabilités

• Lead end-to-end IT and security projects with clear scope, plan, risks and delivery.
• Develop and tune detections and automate triage; coordinate with vendors and MSSP.
• Handle incident response and vulnerability management; communicate with stakeholders.
• Present outcomes to executive leadership and mentor junior staff.

Connaissances

Security engineering

AI security

Scripting (Python, PowerShell)

Project management

Strong English communication

Formation

Bachelor's degree in CS or related field

Master's or PhD preferred

Outils

Okta/Entra ID

Microsoft Defender Suite

OSQuery

SIEM tooling

Description du poste

Kodiak Sciences is seeking a highly technical, hands-on Senior Security Engineer to own the design, implementation, and operation of our security program across identity, endpoint, cloud/SaaS, network, and AI systems, and to execute the security-critical IT projects that depend on it. Reporting to the Associate Director, IT, you will take prioritized initiatives from the business, IT & Security roadmap and deliver them end-to-end: planning through operations, turning business decisions and objectives into shipped, well-documented outcomes, often several at a time. Security engineering depth is the primary requirement; project management and communication skills are essential complements. We value demonstrated, verifiable work - public code, published research, disclosed vulnerabilities, conference talks - over titles alone. You will be using AI heavily in this role. While security is the core focus, this role frequently extends beyond the scope of this description into fun, collaborative work across the company.

Key Responsibilities

Project Management & Delivery

• Run multiple concurrent IT and security projects end-to-end: define scope and success criteria, build the plan, track dependencies and risks, and implement
• Maintain a transparent project portfolio in Jira/Confluence with clear owners, dates, and status; identify/escalate blockers early with recommended options.
• Coordinate with vendors, MSP/MSSP partners, and consultants on assigned projects; track deliverables against statements of work and hold partners accountable.
• Produce clean, reusable project artifacts: requirements, designs, test evidence, runbooks, and handoff documentation.

Technical Implementation

• Automate repetitive work with AI, scripting (PowerShell, Python), and APIs; document what's built. Work on AI safety and security, since we're adopting AI at a fearsome rate.
• Work on identity and access controls on AWS, Microsoft Entra ID: SSO/MFA rollouts, SCIM provisioning, conditional access policies, and access-review cycles.
• Deploy and maintain endpoint management and security for macOS, Linux, and Windows: MDM enrollment, EDR (e.g. Microsoft Defender Suite, OSQuery, etc.), hardening baselines, and patch/vulnerability remediation.
• Execute cloud/SaaS workstreams in Microsoft 365, Azure/AWS, and Google Workspace: security configuration, DLP/information protection, backup, and integrations.
• Support network and site infrastructure projects (LAN/WLAN, firewalls, VPN/ZTNA) for the Palo Alto, Switzerland, and future campuses.

Security Engineering & Operations

• Triage and investigate security alerts from SIEM/EDR; execute incident response procedures and document findings; coordinate with the MSSP as directed.
• Develop automated triage/escalation system around current and future security tools.
• Run vuln remediation cycle: track findings, drive owners to closure, and report progress.
• Complete vendor security assessments and customer/partner security questionnaires.
• Perform threat modeling and security architecture reviews for new systems, integrations, and AI/LLM deployments; define and enforce secure-by-default baselines.
• Build and tune detections (SIEM rules, EDR policies, cloud audit-log alerting) and measure their effectiveness; reduce false positives and mean time to detect/respond.
• Communicate clearly and proactively with stakeholders across the business including Quality, Digital Health, R&D, Clinical, Finance, and HR; translate technical details into plain language for non-technical audiences.
• Present project status and results to leadership, including executive and C-level.
• Provide escalated (Tier 3) support and mentor IT support staff and contractors.

Qualifications & Evidence of Expertise

• 7+ years of hands-on information security engineering experience (with supporting IT infrastructure depth), including a record of delivering multiple security projects concurrently and on time.
• Hands-on experience in at least three of: identity security (Okta/Entra ID), endpoint security/EDR, cloud security (Microsoft 365/Azure or AWS), network security, detection engineering/SIEM, incident response, vulnerability management, application/AI security.
• Working knowledge of IAM concepts (SSO, MFA, SAML/OIDC, SCIM, conditional access).
• Verifiable evidence of security expertise. Candidates should be able to point to at least two of the following: public code repositories or open-source contributions (e.g., GitHub/GitLab) showing security tooling, detections, or automation; published or submitted papers, whitepapers, or technical write-ups; responsibly disclosed vulnerabilities, CVE credits, or bug-bounty acknowledgments; conference or meetup talks (e.g., BSides, DEF CON villages, SANS, local security groups); CTF rankings or published challenge write-ups; a technical blog or detection/IR case studies (anonymized as needed). Please include links with your application.
• Strong scripting and AI-assisted development ability (Python, PowerShell, or similar) for security automation, detection logic, and API integration — ideally demonstrable in a public or shareable repository.
• Strong project management fundamentals: planning, task tracking, vendor coordination, risk/issue management, and structured status reporting (Jira/Confluence or equivalent).
• Exceptional written and verbal English communication skills; comfortable presenting to executive and C-level leadership.
• Organized, detail-oriented, comfortable with ambiguity; strong bias for action and follow-through.
• Ability to work on-site in Palo Alto, CA, 40 hours per week, with occasional after-hours availability for maintenance windows and incidents.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's, Master's or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Information Systems, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Experience at a clinical-stage or emerging biotech with a lean IT team.
• Computerized System Validation experience in a GxP-regulated biotech, pharmaceutical, or medical device environment (21 CFR Part 11, EU Annex 11, GAMP 5).
• Certifications (verifiable via credential link): OSCP/OSCE, GIAC (GCIH, GCIA, GCFA, GCDA), CISSP, Microsoft SC-100/SC-200/SC-300, AWS Security Specialty, or equivalent; PMP/CAPM and ISPE GAMP training are a plus.
• A track record of public contribution to the security community: maintained open-source security tools, Sigma/YARA/KQL detection content, published research, standards or working-group participation, or peer-reviewed/preprint publications.
• Experience securing AI/LLM systems: prompt-injection and data-exfiltration defenses, model/agent access controls, AI usage governance, and evaluation of AI vendor security posture.
• Familiarity with security frameworks (NIST CSF 2.0, NIST 800-53/800-171, SOC 2, CIS Controls, MITRE ATT&CK, OWASP Top 10 / OWASP LLM Top 10) and with SASE/ZTNA platforms (Zscaler, Cloudflare).
• Experience with DocuSign, Veeva, or other common GxP SaaS platforms and with e-signature/Part 11 configurations.