Cyber Security Architecture & Controls Lead

Security Architecture and Controls Lead vacancy at the University of Birmingham
Permanent Role
Hybrid - Birmingham
Up to £87,000 per annum plus benefits with potential for salary supplement for exceptional candidates

Hays Technology and The University of Birmingham are working in partnership to recruit a Security Architecture and Controls Lead on a permanent basis.

About the University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a global, research-intensive university and founding member of the Russell Group. Its technology environment supports tens of thousands of students and staff, alongside internationally significant research, sensitive data, research computing and a growing use of cloud services and AI.
The Cyber Security function is undertaking a 24-month transformation programme, building upon its existing capability. This role sits within the Protective Controls pillar and will act as its primary technical specialist.
About the role
Reporting to the CISO, the Security Architecture and Controls Lead will act as the University's authority for security architecture and protective controls, providing evidence-based assurance that security controls are operating effectively and identifying where improvements are required.
A major focus will be establishing and running a programme of continuous control validation, assessing whether controls are deployed, configured correctly and effective against relevant threats. Alongside this, you'll lead security design reviews, protective control standards, project security assurance and penetration testing, while shaping security architecture across areas including AI, zero trust identity and multi-cloud environments.
What you'll be doing

• Developing and running a continuous security control validation programme across endpoint, identity, email, network, cloud, data and backup environments.
• Using techniques including breach and attack simulation, purple teaming, posture monitoring, attack surface management and detection testing to assess whether controls are deployed, configured correctly and operating effectively.
• Defining security control metrics and risk indicators, using evidence from control validation to identify weaknesses and drive prioritised improvements.
• Owning and maintaining protective security control standards and configuration baselines across endpoint, email, identity, network, cloud and other key security technologies.
• Providing governance over security control configuration, monitoring for control drift and ensuring that weaknesses, exceptions and deviations from agreed standards are appropriately identified, assessed and managed.
• Overseeing the control exceptions process, ensuring exceptions are risk-assessed, documented, subject to appropriate approval and regularly reviewed.
• Working with technology and service teams to drive remediation of control weaknesses and vulnerabilities, monitoring progress against agreed priorities and timescales.
• Maintaining appropriate evidence of control effectiveness to support assurance activity and demonstrate alignment with security standards and frameworks.
• Acting as a security architecture design authority, embedding secure-by-design principles and threat modelling into major technology change.
• Shaping security architecture across AI and agentic technologies, zero trust and identity, Azure, AWS and GCP, DevSecOps and data security.
• Overseeing penetration testing and offensive assurance activity, working with CHECK or Crest-accredited providers and incorporating red and purple team activity into the wider assurance programme.
• Supporting security assurance against frameworks and standards including the NCSC Cyber Assessment Framework, ISO 27001, NIST CSF 2.0 and Cyber Essentials Plus.
• Communicating technical risk and control weaknesses clearly to senior stakeholders, balancing security improvement against cost, resilience and operational requirements.

What we're looking for

• You'll be an experienced security architecture, controls or assurance specialist who can operate as a senior technical authority within a large and complex technology environment.
• Strong experience within security architecture, security assurance or a related technical security discipline.
• Experience designing or operating continuous control validation or assurance, such as breach and attack simulation, purple teaming, control monitoring or security posture management.
• Strong security architecture knowledge, including practical experience of security design reviews and threat modelling.
• Good working knowledge of MITRE ATT&CK, alongside the ability to map security controls against real-world attacker techniques.
• Strong experience governing protective security controls, including defining security standards and configuration baselines, monitoring control effectiveness and drift, managing exceptions and driving remediation of identified weaknesses.
• Knowledge of the NCSC CAF and at least one of ISO 27001 or NIST CSF 2.0.
• Experience of zero trust and identity architecture, including conditional access and adaptive authentication.
• Experience scoping, commissioning or managing penetration testing.
• The ability to translate complex technical security issues and trade-offs for both technical and senior non-technical audiences.
• A relevant security qualification such as CISSP, SABSA, CCSP or TOGAF with a security specialism, or demonstrable equivalent experience.
• Experience within higher education, research-intensive or similarly complex environments would be advantageous. Exposure to AI security, multi-cloud security, DevSecOps, data protection engineering or Microsoft security technologies including Defender XDR, Sentinel, Intune, Entra ID and Purview would also be beneficial.
  

What you'll get in return

• A salary of up to £87,000 per annum
• Salary supplement for exceptional candidates - enquire for details
• A hybrid arrangement of 3 days in office and 2 days per week from home
• Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) pension of 22% (9% personal, 13% UofB contribution)
• 25 days annual leave, 7 University Closure Days, 8 Bank Holidays
• Volunteering leave
• Occupational sick pay
• Access to three subsidised nurseries
• Access to the Birmingham Professional programme

Closing Date: 15th November
Hays Technology have been retained by the University of Birmingham to manage the recruitment of this role. For all enquiries, please contact James Dilks at Hays Technology.
If you have the relevant experience and would like to apply, please submit your CV.

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