Senior Director, Global Head of GRC

Proofpoint • Sunnyvale, CA

18h • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Director, Global Head of GRC owns Proofpoint’s global trust strategy—defining how the company manages risk, achieves regulatory compliance, and enables secure growth across commercial, public sector, and defense markets. Reporting to the CISO, this role is accountable for building and scaling a modern, business-aligned GRC function that transforms compliance into a strategic advantage—accelerating market access, strengthening customer trust, and supporting Proofpoint’s expansion into highly regulated environments. As the global leader for GRC, you will drive enterprise-wide visibility into risk and compliance posture, aligning security, engineering, legal, and go-to-market teams around a unified framework that supports innovation in cloud, data security, and AI-driven products.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Cybersecurity, Risk Management, Business, or related field.
• 12+ years in security, risk, or compliance, with 5–7+ years in senior leadership roles.
• Proven experience leading global GRC functions in SaaS, cloud, or highly regulated environments.
• Deep expertise across major frameworks (ISO, SOC, FedRAMP, PCI) and U.S. public sector / defense compliance (CMMC).
• Demonstrated success using compliance programs to enable business growth and market expansion.
• Strong background in enterprise risk management, control frameworks, and audit execution.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., CISSP, CISM, CRISC, CISA) preferred.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in cybersecurity or SaaS industry.
• Executive presence with the ability to translate regulatory complexity into business strategy.
• Strategic, risk-based mindset focused on enablement—not just control enforcement.
• Proven ability to operate in complex, fast-scaling, and highly matrixed environments.
• Track record of building and leading high-performing global teams.
• Passion for strengthening customer trust while enabling innovation and growth.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute Proofpoint’s global GRC and trust strategy, aligned with business growth, product innovation, and market expansion.
• Serve as the global functional head of GRC, with end-to-end accountability for governance, risk management, compliance, and security assurance.
• Position compliance as a business enabler, directly supporting revenue growth, customer acquisition, and entry into regulated markets.
• Establish a unified control framework that scales across products, cloud platforms, and geographies while reducing audit friction and duplication.
• Lead compliance strategy supporting expansion into U.S. public sector and defense markets, including FedRAMP (Moderate/High) and CMMC Level 2.
• Enable international growth through alignment with regional frameworks (e.g., IRAP, ISMAP, ENS, BSI C5, TISAX, ACN).
• Partner with go-to-market teams to leverage certifications and regulatory posture as a competitive differentiator in customer engagements.
• Act as a strategic advisor on regulatory requirements impacting product strategy, cloud deployments, and data residency.
• Own end-to-end delivery of global audits, certifications, and regulatory engagements.
• Ensure successful execution and continuous maturity across key frameworks: ISO 27001 / ISO 42001, SOC 2 Type II, FedRAMP (Moderate/High), CMMC Level 2, PCI DSS, Regional frameworks (IRAP, ISMAP, ENS, BSI C5, TISAX, ACN, etc.).
• Drive continuous compliance through automation, control optimization, and integration into engineering and operational workflows.
• Embed compliance requirements into product and cloud architecture in partnership with Engineering and Product teams.
• Own and mature enterprise risk management (ERM), including risk identification, quantification, prioritization, and executive reporting.
• Establish governance structures that provide clear accountability and real-time visibility into enterprise risk posture.
• Align risk appetite with business objectives in partnership with executive leadership.
• Oversee third-party risk management and supply chain security programs.
• Define KPIs and metrics to measure GRC program effectiveness, control maturity, and business impact.
• Drive audit readiness, control effectiveness, and enterprise-wide remediation programs.
• Enhance GRC tooling, automation, and data visibility to support scalable, efficient compliance operations.
• Deliver clear, actionable reporting to executive leadership and the Board on risk and compliance posture.
• Lead Proofpoint’s approach to AI governance (ISO 42001) and emerging regulatory requirements for AI and agentic systems.
• Stay ahead of global regulatory trends, translating complexity into actionable strategies and competitive advantage.
• Advance modern GRC practices, including continuous controls monitoring and integrated risk platforms.
• Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing global GRC organization.
• Serve as an executive-facing leader, engaging with senior leadership, customers, auditors, and regulators.
• Represent Proofpoint’s trust, risk, and compliance posture in strategic customer and partner engagements.
• Champion a culture of accountability, transparency, and business-aligned risk management across the company.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• Comprehensive benefits
• Career success on your terms
• Flexible work environment
• Annual wellness and community outreach days
• Always on recognition for your contributions
• Global collaboration and networking opportunities
• flexible time off
• a comprehensive well-being program with two paid Wellbeing Days and two paid Volunteer Days per year
• a three-week Work from Anywhere option

What This Job Offers

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