[Hiring] Research Vice President, AI Security and Trust @International Data Group

Role Description

IDC is seeking a Research Vice President, AI Security and Trust to serve as a senior market-facing leader in one of the most dynamic areas of the security market. This role will shape IDC’s global point of view on how organizations secure AI models, data, agents, applications, and infrastructure.

The Research Vice President will define and lead a forward-looking research agenda spanning:

• AI runtime security
• AI trust and governance
• AI data security
• Agentic identity management
• AI-enabled security operations
• AI factory / AI infrastructure security

This individual will engage regularly with senior vendor executives, enterprise buyers, investors, media, and industry stakeholders to assess market requirements, technology adoption patterns, investment priorities, and competitive dynamics.

The successful candidate will help establish IDC as a leading voice in AI security and trust, while supporting syndicated research growth, custom research opportunities, and strategic client engagement.

What You’ll Do

• Lead IDC’s research agenda for the emerging AI security and trust market.
• Shape IDC’s market taxonomy, research priorities, and point of view on AI security evolution.
• Develop and publish differentiated research, including market analysis, vendor assessments, forecasts, buyer guidance, thought leadership, and executive-level advisory content.
• Conduct and oversee market sizing, forecasting, competitive analysis, and trend analysis for emerging AI security segments.
• Track vendor strategies, startup activity, funding trends, partnerships, product innovation, regulatory developments, and emerging buyer requirements.
• Engage senior technology vendor executives through various interactions.
• Engage enterprise security, AI, cloud, infrastructure, and data leaders to understand adoption priorities and challenges.
• Represent IDC externally through presentations, webinars, conferences, and media engagement.
• Partner with IDC analysts across various domains to build integrated research perspectives.
• Mentor and collaborate with analysts and research colleagues.
• Support and help grow syndicated subscriptions, custom research, consulting opportunities, and strategic account engagement.

Preferred Coverage Areas

• AI Runtime Security: Protection against LLM attacks, prompt injection, misuse, model manipulation.
• AI Trust and Governance: Governance frameworks, policy controls, compliance, assurance, model oversight.
• AI Data Security: Discovery, classification, protection, and governance of AI-ready data.
• Agentic Identity Management: Identity, authentication, authorization, and privilege control for nonhuman identities.
• AI-Enabled SOC / Agentic SOC: Use of AI in security operations and next-generation SOC tooling.
• AI Infrastructure Security: Security requirements for AI factories, accelerated infrastructure, and model hosting environments.

What You Bring

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 12–15+ years of relevant experience in technology research, advisory, consulting, product strategy, cybersecurity, AI, cloud, or related markets.
• Deep understanding of cybersecurity markets, vendors, buyer priorities, and emerging technology adoption patterns.
• Strong knowledge of AI, cloud, data, software, and infrastructure trends.
• Demonstrated ability to define research agendas and produce clear market insights.
• Proven executive presence and ability to engage with senior leadership audiences.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience engaging with technology vendors, enterprise buyers, investors, media, and industry influencers.
• Strong commercial instincts and ability to support research growth and client engagement.
• Ability to work independently while collaborating effectively across a global organization.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools, especially PowerPoint and Excel.
• Willingness to travel for client meetings, industry events, and team collaboration.

What We Offer

• 15 vacation days (prorated based on start date)
• 12 company-paid holidays
• 6 paid sick days (prorated based on start date; may vary by state)
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• 2 floating holidays (prorated based on start date)
• 1 volunteer day
• 401(k) company match (IDC matches 3% on the first 6% of employee contributions)
• Company-paid short-term disability
• Company-paid life insurance
• Company-paid parental leave

Compensation Transparency

At IDC, we are committed to fair and equitable pay practices. The expected total annual compensation, depending on location and experience, is between $150,000 – $235,000, inclusive of base salary and variable compensation.

Equal Opportunity Employer

IDC is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified persons. Employment eligibility verification required. We participate in E-Verify.