Strategic Security Advisor

TrendAI; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 1,500,000 - 2,100,000; Full time

Job summary

TrendAI, the AI security leader, seeks a Strategic Security Advisor to drive security outcomes for strategic customers. You will design ASPs, guide post-sales delivery, and translate credits into measurable risk-reduction value through executive engagements.

With 10+ years in security, you’ll lead reviews, threat assessments, and adoption roadmaps, while identifying expansion opportunities and coordinating across teams to ensure successful outcomes.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in security consulting, cloud security, or security leadership.
• Proven track record with enterprise accounts driving retention and value.
• Experience designing or advising on hybrid/multi-cloud security architectures.

Responsibilities

• Architect the Security Account Success Plan and burn curve with executive sponsors.
• Lead security reviews, workshops, and value conversations with customers.
• Assess posture using MITRE ATT&CK, NIST CSF, CIS Controls, and Zero Trust.
• Identify expansion opportunities and orchestrate post-sales security delivery.
• Coordinate across success, support, and engineering to align plans.

Skills

Enterprise security architecture

Security leadership

Executive communication

Post-sales security advisory

Threat & risk assessment

AI-security mindset

Education

CISSP / CISM / CCSP or equivalent

Job description

TrendAI™, the global AI security leader and enterprise business unit of Trend Micro, empowers organizations with full AI visibility and consolidated security that inspires confidence, drives innovation, and eliminates risk.

At TrendAI™, we’re always seeking exceptional talent; people who want to collaborate with the best and push boundaries together. Here, your work goes beyond building a career. You will help protect what matters and play a vital role in shaping a safer, more trustworthy AI-powered future.

AI Fearlessly.

Position Overview

The Strategic Security Advisor owns business and security outcomes, value realization, and renewal and expansion readiness for a portfolio of strategic customers. Functioning as the customer’s trusted security expert, the SSA designs and guides security posture evolution while orchestrating post‑sales delivery across SE and various post‑sales functions. The role blends security domain expertise with customer success discipline – translating purchased credits into measurable security outcomes through a Security Account Success Plan (ASP), architecture‑aligned burn curve, and executive engagement cadence.

Primary Responsibilities

Architect the Security Account Success Plan (ASP) and Burn Curve

• Build the Account Success Plan with customer executive sponsors, aligned to business objectives, threat landscape, prioritized workloads, and monthly credit burn plan
• Design target‑state security architecture mapped to the customer’s environment, risk appetite, and compliance obligations; track consumption vs. plan and trigger corrective plays when variance exceeds thresholds
• Conduct security gap analyses, technology fingerprinting, and architecture reviews; design reference architectures and deployment blueprints for workload rollouts (XDR, identity, email, cloud security, exposure management)
• Ensure rapid Time‑to‑Value (TTV) and delivery of a meaningful first security win
• Identify expansion opportunities including credit top‑ups, additional modules, and multi‑year commitments based on realized value and security maturity progression

Run Executive Cadence, Architecture Reviews, and Value Reviews

• Lead monthly value reviews, QBRs, and EBRs linking telemetry, usage, and risk scoring to measurable risk reduction, architecture maturity, and business impact
• Conduct security maturity and architecture assessments using industry frameworks (MITRE ATT&CK, NIST CSF, CIS Controls, Zero Trust Architecture) to evaluate posture and define future‑state uplift
• Design and facilitate security workshops: threat hunting, CTFs, tabletop exercises, and architecture deep‑dives
• Prepare value realization executive narratives, PR/FAQ‑style briefs, and C‑level decks tying platform outcomes to reduced business risk and ROI

Manage Risk, Renewal, and Advocacy

• Maintain renewal health (Green / Amber / Red) with actions, owners, and timelines anchored to architecture milestones; proactively build Get‑well Plans including architecture remediation paths
• Leverage telemetry‑driven risk intelligence and predictive health scoring models
• Convert successful customers into references, case studies, and technical whitepapers showcasing architecture transformation and security outcomes

Single Post‑Sales Security Authority and Coordination Point

• Serve as the trusted voice across post‑sales engagements, ensuring “one plan, one intake” across Customer Success, Support, Professional Services, and partners
• Provide Product, Engineering, and Leadership with architecture‑grounded insights on adoption challenges, integration gaps, and product roadmap input

Key Metrics

• Gross Revenue Retention (GRR)
• Net Revenue Retention (NRR)
• Platform and module attach rate
• Security Value Realization and SOC Maturity Score for customers
• Number / Size of Customer Success Qualified Leads (CSQLs)

Desired Skills

Hard Skills

• Strong understanding of enterprise security architecture principles and frameworks (NIST, MITRE ATT&CK, Zero Trust) across hybrid, multi‑cloud, and on‑premises environments
• Deep working knowledge in one or more enterprise security domains: SOC operations, SIEM/XDR, exposure and risk management, identity security, cloud security (CSPM, CWPP, CNAPP), email security
• Ability to design reference architectures, integration blueprints, and deployment patterns mapping platform capabilities to customer requirements
• Strong understanding of B2B SaaS and platform business models in cybersecurity, cloud, or infrastructure
• Ability to translate telemetry and usage data into clear, actionable architectural insights and recommendations
• Proven capability in building Success Plans, burn curves, and adoption roadmaps with an architecture‑first lens
• Strong inclination towards AI‑first approach

Soft Skills

• Executive presence engaging with CISOs, security architects, IT, and business sponsors as a trusted security advisor
• Consultative, architecture‑driven, outcome‑focused mindset – ‘why’ before ‘what’, ‘design’ before ‘deploy’
• Structured communicator who simplifies complex security architectures into clear action plans
• Strong cross‑functional collaborator; calm and resilient during escalations and security incidents

Experience and Background

• Typically 10+ years in security consulting, cloud security, security architecture, incident response, or security leadership
• Proven track record managing enterprise accounts with measurable impact on retention, expansion, and customer security outcomes
• Experience designing or advising on enterprise security architectures including hybrid/multi‑cloud environments, identity frameworks, and detection and response strategies
• Experience running QBRs/EBRs connecting security architecture decisions to risk reduction and business value
• Experience in automation and AI tool usage is strongly preferred
• Experience working with partners, MSSPs, or MSPs is a plus
• Certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CCSP, CRISC, or equivalent demonstrated experience in enterprise security architecture or advisory roles strongly preferred

TrendAI strive to build an environment of equity and inclusion, which reflects diverse points of view. We welcome, value, promote, and celebrate diversity - the very experiences and attributes that make us who we are, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender identification, sexual orientation, level of ability, age, religion, veteran status, socio‑economic status, and political philosophy.

We embrace change, empower people, and encourage innovation. Join Trend Micro and Thrive with us.