VP, Cyber Defense Operations (CDO)

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Our impact is rooted in improving the communities where our employees, customers, and audiences live and work. We have a rich tradition of giving back and ensuring our employees have the opportunity to serve their communities. We champion an inclusive culture and strive to attract and develop a talented workforce to create and deliver a wide range of content reflecting our world.

Comcast NBCUniversal has announced its intent to create a new publicly traded company ('Versant') comprised of most of NBCUniversal's cable television networks, including USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel along with complementary digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow, GolfPass, and SportsEngine. The well-capitalized company will have significant scale as a pure-play set of assets anchored by leading news, sports and entertainment content. The spin-off is expected to be completed during 2025.

The Vice President, Cyber Defense Operations (CDO) will be a key senior leader within the new Versant Cyber organization. This individual is responsible for building a threat-based cyber defense program that is inclusive of Versant’s mission, lines of business, and defending its competitive advantage. This individual is a visionary, thought leader, and motivator.  They are expected to provide influence and strategic direction to the Versant Cyber mission and its goals and objectives. This individual reports directly to the Chief Information Security Officer and will interact with various key stakeholders within the Cyber organization and drive relationship management across the Versant business areas.  

Responsibilities:

Key areas of focus for the VP, CDO include establishing and maintaining a modern incident response program with advanced detection engineering and threat hunting capabilities, leading a 24/7 SOC, driving vulnerability management, running penetration testing services, and bringing strong business acumen to investigations and insider threats. The successful candidate will be responsible for the following activities: 

• Responsible for the strategic direction of the CDO organization, its transformation, and engagement/integration across Versant business areas and executive leadership.   
• Expected to provide regular status updates to Versant Cyber leadership and business area stakeholders regarding CDO organization current state, growth/advancement, and engagement requirements.  
• Promote, foster, and advocate for an environment of collaboration, diversity, and inclusion.  
• Directly responsible for defending Versant from cyber security threats to include but not limited to vulnerability management, attack surface management, network monitoring, incident response, forensics, threat intelligence, threat hunting, eDiscovery, proactive security defense, and driving tactical and strategic remediation focused on risk reduction. 
• Expected to be an advocate and key influencer to drive the Versant Cyber mission with understanding of business area challenges and methods to effectively drive collaboration and risk reduction.  
• Responsible for functional leadership of the CDO organization to include but not limited to training planning, career growth, motivation, mentoring, accountability, conflict resolution, performance evaluations, and establishing business rhythms. 
• Collaborate and drive productivity and effective integration with adjacent Versant Cyber functions and specifically the synergies required across the security stack and technology platforms. 
• Responsible for obtaining, seeking, addressing, and integrating business area feedback into daily operations and the strategic growth and maturity of the CDO organization.  
• Responsible for transformation and maintaining a Cyber Defense program designed to provide value to Versant’s various lines of business, industries it operates, and to protect Versant resources from current and emerging cyber threats.  

Basic Requirements:

• 10+ years working in a leadership position across cyber security disciplines to include but not limited to Cyber Defense, Threat Intelligence, Security Operation Centers, Vulnerability Management, and Business Engagement/Outreach.  
• Prior experience leading functions and staff defending large complex global computing enterprises and understanding strategic and tactical requirements to transform and maintain a resilient cyber defense organization.  
• Deep understanding of SIEM, SOAR, IDS/IPS, endpoint detection and response (EDR), and network forensics tools. 
• Previous experience working large scale enterprise cyber incidents with impact across multiple lines of business and/or multiple key stakeholders. 
• Ability to lead under pressure during high-severity incidents and effectively coordinate cross-functional responses. 
• Experience in forecasting and managing cybersecurity budgets and vendor relationships including outsourced staff and services. 
• Knowledge of the cyber threat landscape to include different types of adversaries, campaigns, and the motivations that drive them and the ability to translate this to defending Versant.  
• Strong and proven communication (both verbal and written) and customer intimacy skills with experience briefing corporate executives and professionals.  
• Strong leadership skills, social and business acumen, and proven results working with leaders across organizational and business lines to solve complex problems.  
• Experience providing direct support and input to business executives and taking a lead role in driving the strategic direction of the organization’s mission.  
• Bachelor’s Degree in an IT related field and/or equivalent work experience 

Desired Characteristics:

• Previous experience working in multiple large complex environments and specifically within the Cyber Defense components of those organizations.  
• Previous experience leading cyber defense and/or information security functions in the media and advanced technology industries.  
• Previous experience supporting incident response of Operational Technology (OT) Networks to include Integrated Controls Systems (ICS), SCADA, and Process Control Networks (PCN).   
• Master’s Degree in an IT related field. 

Additional Requirements:

• Fully Remote: This position has been designated as fully remote, meaning that the position is expected to contribute from a non-NBCUniversal worksite, most commonly an employee’s residence.

This position is eligible for company sponsored benefits, including medical, dental and vision insurance, 401(k), paid leave, tuition reimbursement, and a variety of other discounts and perks. Learn more about the benefits offered by NBCUniversal by visiting the Benefits page of the Careers website. Salary range: $225,000 - $275,000 (bonus and long-term incentive eligible)

We are accepting applications for this position on an ongoing basis.

As part of our selection process, external candidates may be required to attend an in-person interview with an NBCUniversal employee at one of our locations prior to a hiring decision. NBCUniversal's policy is to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender identity or expression, age, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, veteran status, membership in the uniformed services, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law.  

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Although you'll be hired as an NBCU employee, your employment and the responsibilities associated with this job likely will transition to Versant in the future. By joining at this pivotal time, you'll be a part of this exciting company as it takes shape.

For LA County and City Residents Only:  NBCUniversal will consider for employment  qualified applicants with criminal histories, or arrest or conviction records, in a manner  consistent with relevant legal requirements, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative For Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act, where applicable.