[Hiring] Director, Cybersecurity @Ascend Partner Services

Role Description

Ascend is seeking a Director of Cybersecurity to build and run the enterprise cybersecurity program that protects sensitive client financial data across Ascend and its growing network of tax, audit, and client advisory services (CAS) partner firms. This individual will own security strategy, operations, and incident response; governance, risk, and compliance (NIST CSF 2.0, SOC 2 Type II, PCI DSS); identity and Zero Trust; AI governance and agentic security; and the security workstream of every acquisition — building a program designed to scale with the pace of acquisition without slowing the business down.

The Director of Cybersecurity will report to the Vice President, Technology Infrastructure & Cybersecurity.

Key Responsibilities

• Cybersecurity Strategy, Program & Budget Leadership:
  • Own the enterprise cybersecurity strategy and multi-year roadmap.
  • Define, track, and report a concise set of security metrics and program-maturity indicators.
  • Develop and manage the cybersecurity budget for tooling, MSSP/vendor contracts, and headcount.
  • Manage relationships and contracts with managed security service providers and security vendors.
• Security Operations & Incident Response:
  • Own endpoint detection and response, security monitoring and log management, vulnerability management, and email security.
  • Serve as incident commander for cybersecurity incidents.
  • Establish detection coverage, alert triage, and escalation standards.
  • Define vulnerability and patch SLAs by asset criticality.
• Governance, Risk & Compliance:
  • Own the governance, risk, and compliance program.
  • Own the full SOC 2 Type II audit lifecycle.
  • Respond to client security questionnaires and due-diligence requests.
  • Manage PCI DSS compliance for payment acceptance.
• Identity, Zero Trust & AI Governance:
  • Define and enforce identity and access management standards.
  • Advance the Zero Trust architecture.
  • Establish and own the AI governance program.
  • Define and enforce security controls for agentic AI.
• Acquisition Security, Team & Culture:
  • Lead cybersecurity due diligence for acquisitions.
  • Build, manage, and develop a team of security engineers and analysts.
  • Own the security awareness training and phishing simulation program.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in information security, with 5+ years leading security teams or programs.
• Experience securing professional services, financial services, or other regulated environments.
• Deep working knowledge of NIST CSF 2.0, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI DSS.
• Familiarity with AI security and governance.
• Hands-on depth across EDR, SIEM, identity and access management, email security, and Zero Trust/SSE platforms.
• Demonstrated incident response leadership.
• Strong vendor management and budget ownership experience.
• CISSP, CISM, or equivalent certification preferred; Azure security certifications a plus.

Company Description