Security Solutions Lead

Security Solutions Lead

Do you have a passion for ensuring your clients are able to prepared and ready to respond to todays most advanced security threat? So do we.

Digital disruption is opening up more opportunities for businesses to connect with their customers and the ever evolving threat landscape is attempting to get in the way of our clients being able to make the most of this new way of working. Clients need improved, seamless security that provides a good employee and customer experience. That's what we'd love you to do for us. With your vision and ability to steer clients toward new ways of thinking, we can open up excellent career opportunities for you too.

If you have deep technical skills and experience in designing and implementing Microsoft Security solutions, both within Microsoft 365, and Identity platforms such as Azure Active Directory, and love to take clients on the full security journey from Advisory, through to Managed Security Service this role is for you.

About you

You offer clients the kind of security that improves the way they operate, designing and deploying creative security solutions that protect identities and their information whilst enable flexible working. You’re a creative problem solver, always thinking ahead and spotting risks. With a business and experience focus, you uncover and prevent cyber threats to protect businesses from risks whilst delivering improved ways of working. You’re a leader in the space of Workplace Security with a deep understanding of the project and solutions lifecycle, designing and estimating solutions that not just meet our client’s needs, but far exceed their expectations.

About the role

Working on some of the largest and leading-edge projects and clients; the role of the Security Solutions Lead is a mixture of security solutions pre-sales as well as to be customer-facing and to play an active role in transforming our client’s Security on their Microsoft platforms by building trust with our clients and leading our teams through successful deliveries.

The role will involve architecting and estimating security solutions and ensuring they are deliverable. Throughout the project lifecycle we expect you to be present and a trusted expert leading and guiding our teams and the delivery of the solutions you and the other members of the Security Pre-Sales have solutioned. You should be comfortable with project delivery from performing discovery, analysis, design, build, test and deployment of solutions. Once solutions are delivered clients may also need help in managing and evolving their security solutions via managed security services for longer term resilience and enhanced protection. You should be a leader and trusted advisor to our clients, being a significant presence in any meeting, bringing the voice of Security Risk to our clients and our colleagues, helping them to identify and mitigate risk with innovative security solutions. You should be comfortable leading workshops and presenting to large audiences, demonstrating your thought leadership. You should be passionate about supporting and developing other members of the team, both junior and senior, helping them to know what you know, and learning from others that understand things that you may not.

As the offering lead, you will be responsible for the performance of the Workplace Security offering from a sales and revenue perspective, therefore it is key that you are able to engage the business and our clients with your offering, growing sales and revenue year on year in line with growth targets.

You have a deep and validated understanding of Microsoft Security technologies. You will be expected to demonstrate experience and deep expertise across at least 4 of the areas below and to have fully working knowledge of all of the areas below and how they interact:

• Active Directory
• Azure Identity Management and Azure AD Premium
• Microsoft Endpoint Manager for Windows 10, iOS, Android and MacOS
• Microsoft Information Protection
• Microsoft 365 Defender
• Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
• Microsoft Defender for Office 365
• Microsoft Defender for Identity
• Office 365 Security
• Windows 10 Security
• Microsoft Cloud App Security
• Azure Security, including Azure Sentinel
• Microsoft Compliance Manager
• Zero Trust Security

About You/ Scope of Responsibilities:

• Primary technical contact on a client engagement during presales and pre-delivery phases
• Consults, advises our clients & internal stakeholders on uses of technology to solve business problems
• Partners with Avanade’s Management Consulting (Advisory) teams and Regional Innovation teams to pursue what is possible and ensure the best possible outcome for our client’s business
• Leads and oversees the development of the technical approach and estimation of a proposal during the sales process. 
• Very strong, executive level communication skills
• Operate in a senior technology advisory capacity to CxOs and their senior leadership.
• Learn our client's business/vertical, their organization, systems, challenges, and goals.
• Participate in, and lead stakeholder brainstorming, technical planning, and design sessions.
• You're an active contributor and facilitator with an important voice.
• Craft the vision by mapping requirements to solutions, communicated through functional and technical design documents.
• Ensure quality through enforcement of best practice and project governance.
• Provide governance and oversight on key projects (2-3 projects at a maximum).
• Employee experience strategy and transformation.
• Digital culture assessment and strategy
• Workforce / workplace analytics
• Future of work / workforce strategy
• Change Enablement: communication and training experience.
• Well-versed in new technology-enablement and transformation leadership to help clients assess, build, transform and operationalize new capabilities.
• Understanding of the Microsoft technology eco-system and how it can be used to transformation businesses

Additional responsibilities for leaders:

• Develop and grow the Modern Workplace Security practice at a regional level
• Support the identification, development, selling and implementation of workplace experience propositions
• Develop and cultivate senior client relationships in the clients Security function, including CISO level and other key security buyers, such as CIO’s.

Additionally, you can demonstrate knowledge, experience and hold at least 2 certifications in the following areas:

• CISSP
• CSSP
• CompTIA Security+
• Microsoft Security Exams
• Please list any other security qualifications

To supplement the technical knowledge, solution architect and project delivery experience, you come from a Consulting background with good customer facing skills, the ability to connect with customers and understand their requirements and produce high quality written work. You will have a passion for growing your own career and those around you. You have strong analytical and problem-solving skills. As an Architect, you are willing and able to travel extensively within the UK and Ireland, potentially across a number of different clients. You will be able to obtain UK Security Clearance, and ideally will have held this previously.

What we offer 

• Opportunity to work for Microsoft’s global alliance partner of the year (14 years in a row), with exceptional development and training (minimum 80 hours per year for training and paid certifications) 
• Reward and Recognition scheme 
• Wide benefits package 
• Avanade University – real-time access to technical and skilled resources globally 
• Dedicated career manager to encourage your progression 
• Engaged and helpful co-workers genuinely interested in you

As is the nature of working within a global professional services environment, your clients and projects will change over time so the flexibility to travel is a pre-requisite. Whilst this role is solution architecture focused, you should be willing and able to travel to client sites as required. 

Avanade® Is An Equal Opportunity Employer. Avanade prohibits discrimination and harassment against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, age, religion, sex, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, veteran, military or marital status, genetic information or any other protected status.