IT/OT Cybersecurity Lead

Freese and Nichols • Orlando, FL

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

Freese and Nichols is seeking an IT/OT Cybersecurity Lead for a company-wide leadership role. The position is responsible for the strategic direction, growth, and technical quality of the firm’s IT and OT cybersecurity consulting services. Candidates may be based in any Freese and Nichols location. The role works with firm and market leadership to expand service capabilities and deliver practical cybersecurity solutions for clients’ enterprise networks, control systems, and field infrastructure.

The lead develops client relationships and grows business by identifying, shaping, and winning new pursuits. The role builds and develops a cybersecurity team, provides senior technical leadership on complex client engagements, establishes firm-wide technical direction and quality standards, and promotes cybersecurity integration into design work. It also advises firm leadership on contractual, liability, and risk issues related to cybersecurity services.

The position serves water, wastewater, and other critical infrastructure clients. Work may involve client sites, treatment facilities, pump stations, control rooms, and other industrial environments. The role requires travel to those locations as project assignments require. The work environment is hybrid, with up to 40% remote work.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity, information technology, computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, information systems, or a closely related discipline.
• 20 or more years of cybersecurity experience, including significant experience in both IT and OT or industrial control system environments.
• Current CISSP, CISM, or CISA credential.
• Proven track record of winning and growing work with utility or critical infrastructure clients, including serving as primary client contact and leading scopes, fees, proposals, and interviews.
• Experience leading complex, high-visibility cybersecurity engagements from pursuit through delivery.
• Experience building or growing a cybersecurity service offering, including defining services, staffing, and market positioning.
• Experience building and leading teams, including hiring staff and developing them into project leads and technical leads.
• Experience applying cybersecurity frameworks and regulatory requirements to assessments, policies, plans, and roadmaps.
• Experience serving water, wastewater, or other critical infrastructure utilities, including AWIA risk and resilience assessments and water-sector cybersecurity guidance.
• Ability to travel to client sites, treatment facilities, pump stations, control rooms, and industrial environments as project assignments require.
• Deep knowledge of IT and OT cybersecurity and how security strategies support business objectives, operational reliability, and risk management.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity consulting business development, service positioning, client relationship development, pursuit strategy, scope and fee development, and project financials.
• Knowledge of technical team development, including workforce planning, competency assessment, mentoring, knowledge transfer, and leadership development.
• Advanced knowledge of OT and industrial control system environments, including SCADA, PLC, RTU, HMI, and historian architectures, and related operational constraints.
• Understanding of enterprise IT security domains, including identity and access management, endpoint protection, vulnerability management, logging and monitoring, and security operations, and their application across interconnected IT and OT environments.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity frameworks, standards, and regulatory drivers relevant to client environments, including NIST, ISA/IEC 62443, CIS Controls, and AWIA.
• Ability to make recommendations that balance security with operational availability, safety, legacy equipment, cost, staffing, budgets, and uptime constraints.
• Ability to engage credibly with client IT and operations staff in detailed design discussions and executive briefings.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in cybersecurity, information systems, engineering, or a related field.
• Consulting experience leading client-facing assessments, gap analyses, roadmaps, and advisory engagements.
• Existing relationships with water and wastewater utilities or other critical infrastructure clients in Freese and Nichols markets.
• Working knowledge of industrial protocols such as Modbus, DNP3, OPC UA, and EtherNet/IP, and ability to explain their security limitations to clients.
• Experience selecting and specifying OT security technologies, including OT monitoring and asset discovery, segmentation, secure remote access, firewalls, and SIEM platforms.
• Experience securing cloud and hybrid environments, including cloud-connected SCADA, edge computing, and IoT data pipelines.
• Experience leading incident response planning, tabletop exercises, post-incident reviews, and recovery planning for operational environments.
• Experience using approved AI tools responsibly to improve the quality and efficiency of deliverables.
• Leadership roles in professional organizations such as AWWA, WEF, ISA, ISACA, (ISC)2, InfraGard, or WaterISAC, including committee work, presentations, or publications.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain relationships with water, wastewater, and critical infrastructure clients, serving as a trusted cybersecurity advisor at executive, IT, and operations levels.
• Shape the cybersecurity services growth strategy, including target clients, offerings, pricing approach, and annual goals, in coordination with firm leadership.
• Lead pursuits from opportunity identification through award, including capture planning, win strategy, scopes, fees, proposals, and interviews.
• Partner with client service leaders and project managers across offices to incorporate cybersecurity into larger pursuits.
• Track regulatory and funding drivers and develop corresponding client service offerings.
• Build firm visibility through conference presentations, technical papers, webinars, and professional organization leadership.
• Define cybersecurity staffing needs, participate in hiring, and shape the team’s skills mix.
• Mentor staff, provide stretch assignments and technical review, and support certification planning and career development.
• Delegate project delivery while overseeing quality and client outcomes; establish career paths and succession plans for cybersecurity roles.
• Provide internal training to improve cybersecurity capability across I&C, SCADA, and electrical teams and integrate security into design work.
• Set technical direction, methodologies, and quality standards for cybersecurity services across the firm.
• Lead complex, high-visibility engagements and provide senior review on other work.
• Develop repeatable assessment methods, templates, and tools to support consistent, scalable delivery.
• Provide senior direction on secure IT/OT architecture and technology selection, considering OT availability, safety, and legacy constraints.
• Advise firm leadership on cybersecurity-related contractual, liability, and risk issues and help shape contract language and service terms.
• Translate cybersecurity assessments into prioritized investment plans and practical implementation roadmaps.
• Ensure security requirements are incorporated into drawings, specifications, testing, and commissioning on design and construction projects.
• Communicate cyber risk to utility leadership, operations staff, and technical teams and build support for decisions and funding.
• Maintain current knowledge of threats, vulnerabilities, regulatory changes, and technology developments and their implications for clients and service offerings.

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefits package.
• Paid overtime for salaried employees.
• Annual bonus.
• Access to company cabins in Red River, New Mexico, and Banner Elk, North Carolina.
• Hybrid work environment with up to 40% remote work.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior