Cyber Security Capability Manager

Job Description

Due to the positive growth at MBDA a position has been created to manage the Cyber Security Engineering team and lead in its capability delivery. As our Cyber Security Capability Manager reporting into the UK Head of Cyber Security, you’ll play a vital leadership role at the heart of our cyber security mission, leading a team of skilled engineers and specialists who protect MBDA’s critical cyber security systems and capabilities. This is an opportunity to shape our cyber resilience strategy, influence the adoption of emerging technologies like AI and ML in security, and ensure that MBDA remains a trusted leader in secure defence solutions.

Salary: Up to £70,000 depending on experience

Dynamic (hybrid) working: 2-3 days per week on-site due to workload classification

Security Clearance: British Citizen or a Dual UK national with British citizenship

Restrictions and/or limitations relating to nationality and/or rights to work may apply. As a minimum and after offer stage, all successful candidates will need to undergo HMG Basic Personnel Security Standard checks (BPSS), which are managed by the MBDA Personnel Security Team.

What we can offer you:

• Company Bonus: Bonus of up to 21% of base salary
• Pension: maximum total (employer and employee) contribution of up to 14%
• Flexible working: We welcome applicants who are looking for flexible working arrangements
• Enhanced parental leave: offers up to 26 weeks for maternity, adoption and shared parental leave -enhancements are available for paternity leave, neonatal leave and fertility testing and treatments
• Facilities: Fantastic site facilities including subsidised meals, free car parking and much more…

The opportunity:

• Lead and develop the Cyber Security Engineering team, ensuring effective resource coordination, security clearance management, and technical delivery.
• Manage the delivery, maintenance, and availability of MBDA UK’s cyber security tools and ensure robust business continuity and disaster recovery processes.
• Oversee SOC account and access administration, enforcing identity and “need-to-know” principles across tools, files, and networks.
• Maintain and evolve the Group Cyber Security Skills Matrix to identify gaps, inform training needs, and manage related budgets.
• Liaise with internal and external stakeholders—including vetting and supplier partners—to ensure timely access to skilled resources.
• Coordinate cyber engineering supplier relationships, contributing to technology roadmaps, lifecycle planning, and capability development.
• Support operational security tasks such as patch management, certificate lifecycle management, and tool configuration (including AI and ML feature integration).
• Maintain physical and digital access controls for SOC areas, ensuring compliance and security best practice.
• Collaborate with the wider Information Management (IM) organisation to enhance security reporting and alerting services.
• Ensure accurate operational record keeping and documentation across all cyber security areas.

What we're looking for from you:

Essential:

• Significant experience in a Cyber Security leadership or management role (e.g. SOC Manager, Cyber Engineering Manager, Capability Lead, Network Security Manager).
• Demonstrable experience with SOC tools and security technologies across large or complex environments (e.g Splunk, Elastic, Sentinel).
• Experience managing business continuity and disaster recovery for cyber systems.
• Strong understanding of security operations lifecycle, from incident response through to capability planning.
• Experience in supplier management, product lifecycle, budgeting, and resource coordination.
• Working knowledge of security vetting processes and handling of secure information.
• Working knowledge of identity and access management (IAM) and principles of least privilege and need-to-know.

Desirable:

• Experience in defence, government, or other high-assurance environments.
• Experience developing and maintaining Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and security documentation.
• Exposure to AI/ML-based security capabilities or next-gen automation.
• Experience with security architecture, including tool integration and high availability environments.
• Understanding of PKI, certificate management, patching, and secure system configuration.
• Relevant certifications such as:
  • CISSP, CISM, or CRISC
  • CompTIA Security+ / CySA+
  • GIAC (GCIH, GMON, GCED)
  • ITIL or PRINCE2 (for service and project management alignment)

Our company: Peace is not a given, Freedom is not a given, Sovereignty is not a given

MBDA is a leading defence organisation. We are proud of the role we play in supporting the Armed Forces who protect our nations. We partner with governments to work together towards a common goal, defending our freedom.

We are proud of our employee-led networks, examples include: Gender Equality, Pride, Menopause Matters, Parents and Carers, Armed Forces, Ethnic Diversity, Neurodiversity, Disability and more…

We recognise that everyone is unique, and we encourage you to speak to us should you require any advice, support or adjustments throughout our recruitment process.

Follow us on LinkedIn (MBDA), X (@MBDA_UK), Instagram (MBDA_UK) and Glassdoor or visit our MBDA Careers website for more information.