SOC Director

TENEX.AI; Kansas City (MO); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Career growth opportunities

In-person collaboration

Job summary

TENEX.AI is seeking a SOC Director to lead the SOC team, maintain the health of the detection and response engine, and stay hands-on with complex investigations. You will coach managers, define performance metrics, and drive improvements across the operation.

This leadership role emphasizes collaboration with engineering, product, and customer success, and requires advancing an automation-first, AI-native MDR environment. Strong technical roots and people leadership are essential.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in security operations, with 3+ years leading SOC teams (including managers or leads).
• Hands-on in detection engineering, incident response, and modern SOC tooling (SIEM/SOAR, EDR, cloud).
• Proven track record owning SOC performance metrics and driving improvement.

Responsibilities

• Lead the SOC Managers and develop a high-performing team.
• Own SOC health and performance metrics and drive continuous improvement.
• Remain hands-on in escalations, investigations, and detection decisions.

Skills

Security operations

SOC leadership

Hands-on detection

Cloud security

Metrics driven

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Cybersecurity/Engineering

Cert CISSP / GCIH / GCDA / AWS/GCP

Tools

SIEM/SOAR

EDR

Cloud platforms

Job description

Company Overview:

TENEX is an AI-native, automation-first, built-for-scale Managed Detection and Response (MDR) provider. We are a force multiplier for defenders, helping organizations enhance their cybersecurity posture through advanced threat detection, rapid response, and continuous protection. Our team is composed of industry experts with deep experience in cybersecurity, automation and AI-driven solutions. Backed by leading investors, we are rapidly growing and seeking top talent to join our mission of revolutionizing the AI-Native MDR landscape.

We’re a fast growing startup backed by industry experts and top tier investors led by Crosspoint Capital Partners and also backed by Shield Capital, DTCP (formerly Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners), Deepwork Capital, and the Florida Opportunity Fund. Seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). As an early employee, you’ll play a meaningful role in defining and building our culture. Get in on the ground floor. We’re a small but well-funded team that just raised a substantial round – joining now comes with limited risk and unlimited upside.

Culture is one of the most important things at TENEX.AI—explore our culture deck at culture.tenex.ai to witness how we embody it, prioritizing the irreplaceable collaboration and community of in-person work.

About the Opportunity:

As SOC Director, you’ll lead the team that keeps TENEX’s detection and response engine running around the clock. You’ll manage a group of SOC Managers, own the overall health and performance of the SOC, and stay hands-on enough to jump into hard technical problems alongside your analysts and engineers. This is a player-coach leadership role: you set direction and standards while remaining close to the work that protects our customers.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead the SOC Managers. Manage, coach, and develop a team of SOC Managers responsible for analyst and engineering shifts.

• Own SOC health and performance. Define and track the metrics that measure detection quality, response speed, and customer outcomes, and drive continuous improvement against them.

• Stay technical. Remain hands-on in escalations, complex investigations, and detection engineering decisions rather than managing purely from a distance.

• Support customer outcomes. Serve as a senior escalation point for customer security operations and ensure the SOC delivers consistent, high-quality protection.

• Scale the operation. Build the processes, staffing plans, and playbooks needed to expand SOC coverage and capacity as customer volume increases.

• Partner cross-functionally. Work with Detection Engineering, Product, and Customer Success to close gaps and improve the overall service.

What You Bring:

• 8+ years in security operations, with 3+ years leading SOC teams (including managing managers or team leads).

• Strong hands-on technical foundation in detection, incident response, and modern SOC tooling (SIEM/SOAR, EDR, cloud).

• Proven track record owning SOC performance metrics and driving measurable improvement.

• Track record of building and retaining high-performing security operations teams.

Bonus Points:

• Experience in a customer-facing MDR/MSSP environment.

• Experience scaling a SOC in a high-growth startup.

• Hands-on cloud security experience (AWS/GCP/Azure).

• Background building automation-first detection and response operations.

Education & Certifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent experience).

• Relevant certifications such as CISSP, GCIH, GCDA, or AWS/GCP certifications are a plus.

Why Join Us?

• Opportunity to lead and scale the SOC at the center of an AI-native MDR company, shaping how an entire team protects customers.

• Collaborate with a talented and innovative team focused on continuously improving security operations.

• Competitive salary and benefits package.

• A culture of growth and development, with opportunities to expand your knowledge in AI, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies.