Cloud Security Architect

Job Summary

The Cloud Security Architect serves as the cloud security subject matter expert within the Senior Solution Architect role. This position works directly with cloud platform, application, infrastructure, data, and cybersecurity teams to design secure solutions across AWS, Azure, GCP, SaaS, and hybrid environments.

The role translates business, technical, risk, and regulatory requirements into implementable cloud security designs. Key areas of focus include Zero Trust architecture, cloud identity and access, workload protection, network security, data protection, security observability, and the secure adoption of artificial intelligence.

Essential Tasks & Leadership Philosophy

• Design security architectures for cloud-hosted applications, platforms, data services, and infrastructure across AWS, Azure, GCP, SaaS, and hybrid environments.
• Apply Zero Trust principles to solution designs, including identity-centric access, least privilege, workload segmentation, continuous verification, data protection, and security telemetry.
• Provide hands-on security architecture support throughout solution design and delivery, including design reviews, threat modeling, risk analysis, control selection, and remediation guidance.
• Design secure architectures for generative AI, machine learning, AI agents, and other AI-enabled solutions, with particular attention to identity, authorization, enterprise data access, secrets, model integration, agent actions, monitoring, and human oversight.
• Work with platform and engineering teams to integrate security controls into cloud services, infrastructure-as-code, CI/CD pipelines, APIs, and application delivery processes.
• Evaluate proposed technologies and designs, document security risks and trade-offs, and recommend practical solutions that balance security, delivery objectives, operational supportability, and cost.
• Support the development and implementation of AI-enabled cybersecurity capabilities, including opportunities to improve security analysis, control validation, vulnerability prioritization, threat detection, and risk reporting.
• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to architects and engineers on cloud security, Zero Trust, and secure AI design practices.

First Year Success Factors

Within the first year, the Cloud Security Architect will:

• Establish effective working relationships with cloud platform, application, infrastructure, data, AI, and cybersecurity teams and become a trusted security architecture partner for priority initiatives.
• Lead the security architecture and design of assigned cloud and AI solutions, providing clear requirements, documented design decisions, actionable risk guidance, and timely support through implementation.
• Develop or improve a focused set of reusable solution designs for recurring cloud security needs, such as cloud identity, workload access, network segmentation, secrets management, data protection, logging, and security monitoring.
• Apply Zero Trust principles to priority solution designs and demonstrate how identity, least privilege, segmentation, data protection, and continuous monitoring reduce risk within those solutions.
• Support priority enterprise AI initiatives by defining and applying practical security controls for AI identities, enterprise data access, model and application integration, AI agent actions, monitoring, and human oversight.
• Identify and help implement at least one practical use of AI or automation that improves a cybersecurity capability or architecture process, such as threat modeling, control analysis, vulnerability prioritization, design review, or risk reporting.
• Demonstrate measurable value through secure solution delivery, improved design consistency, earlier identification of architectural risks, and actionable guidance that delivery teams can implement.

Education & Career Experience Requirements

• High School Diploma or equivalent required. Bachelors degree preferred.
• Foundational-level industry certification required upon hire.
• Architect or senior-level industry certification preferred within 12 months of hire.
• Minimum seven years experience in designing and implementing solutions, including cloud-native, microservices, and event-driven architectures required.

Additional Qualification

• Ability to influence internal and/or external constituents.
• Ability to communicate trade-offs and risks to both technical and business stakeholders.
• Possesses strong technical aptitude.
• This position requires deep expertise (example cloud-native architectures, zero-trust security, data governance, infrastructure automation).
• Ability to drive multiple projects to successful completion.
• Proven experience leading and delivering the architecture for large-scale, complex solutions spanning multiple teams, systems, or Agile Release Trains required.
• Effective leadership skills.
• Demonstrated experience mentoring other architects and driving architectural alignment across multiple programs.

Physical Actions

Physical Environment