Manager Application Security

Optimum•Plano, TX

About The Position

The Product Security organization helps Optimum move faster, securely. We’re a team of engineers who work to enable other teams to build products as quickly as possible while continuing to protect our customers. We support developers in shipping secure code by building security tools and services, providing security training and expertise, and advocating for best practices in authentication, authorization, and safe data handling across the company. As a Manager Application Security within our Product Security team, you will lead a team of application security engineers and define the strategy for securing Optimum’s products. You'll be a trusted partner, collaborating closely with engineering and product teams to ensure security is a cornerstone of every product. You will partner with leadership to shape product strategy, advocate for strong security controls, and influence future product iterations. By leveraging your deep industry knowledge, you'll lead the charge in implementing secure architecture and design principles, ensuring early detection and prevention of vulnerabilities. Your expertise in security assessments and software engineering will help identify and mitigate potential threats, while your mentorship and training efforts will foster a security-first culture.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, a related field, or equivalent professional experience. Master’s degree is a plus
10+ years of combined hands-on experience in software engineering and application and infrastructure security
3+ years of engineering management experience leading security teams (AppSec, DevSecOps)
Passionate about building diverse, high-performing teams and growing engineers in a fast-paced environment
Experience leading application security, platform, or infrastructure teams at scale, with clear ownership of strategy, execution, and outcomes
Deep expertise in application and product security, with a strong understanding of modern software development processes and methods, security best practices, threat modeling, and risk assessment
Experience securing complex cloud and on-premise environments (Kubernetes, Docker, AWS/GCP)
Knowledgeable in AI/ML security risks and mitigations
Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, and the ability to communicate complex security concepts to technical and non-technical audiences, including senior leadership
Proven ability to establish credibility and build trust with engineers and operational staff
Strong understanding of cryptography and key management use cases
Strong understanding of secure SDLC practices and practical experience with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps tools
Proficiency in one or more modern programming languages like NodeJS, Golang, Python, Java, and C/C++

Nice To Haves

Consulting experience in application security, penetration testing, and/or red teaming
Experience leading AI-enabled application security programs, security assessments, and penetration testing
Experience researching, recommending, and operationalizing AI security products and features
Deep knowledge of cloud security, networking security, Android or iOS security, IoT, or Wi-Fi
Security or technical conference participation, paper submissions, and public presentations
Participation in cyber security and/or open-source software communities

Responsibilities

Lead, develop, grow, and retain a team of Application Security engineers to deliver high-impact projects and experiences to our customers and internal users.
Scale the team as the organization grows, including hiring and onboarding new security talent and building future leaders.
Ensure the team has the right processes and procedures to assist with threat modeling, secure design reviews, risk acceptance and security code reviews.
Act as an industry expert in application security engineering practices and standards and guide the team to mature the Application Security program.
Identify the opportunities to automate the Application Security scanning processes and guide the team to improve efficiency and achieve scalability.
Develop security policies, standards, playbooks, secure coding training content, and a security champions program.
Create and maintain documentation for integrated security processes, controls, and incident response playbooks.
Develop and maintain a technical roadmap for security tooling and controls to stay ahead of evolving threats.
Translate technical security strategies into business-aligned objectives for product and executive leadership.
Set the multi-quarter technical and organizational strategy for product and application security, aligned with company priorities and risk posture.
Own the design, delivery, and long-term evolution of AI platform security, governance frameworks, and security team visibility.
Establish and scale product security review practices that shift security engagement earlier in the product lifecycle and are adopted broadly across engineering.
Act as a senior security partner to engineering, product, and business leadership, influencing architectural decisions and balancing security risk with business outcomes.
Stay updated on the latest security threats, vulnerabilities, and technology trends, and proactively implement improvements.