Senior Information Security Engineer in Manchester

Purpose of the role

To support the Chief Information Security Officer in managing and reporting the Information Security Risks faced by Technology Services (TS) in delivering AJ Bell’s systems and services. This role is responsible for playing a lead role in designing and implementing improvement to the Cybersecurity risk management tools, systems, and processes. Key to this is assisting and supporting the Information Security team to drive continual improvement through innovation, automation and integration of its tools and processes.

The key responsibilities of the role are:

• Lead the delivery and maintenance of technical enterprise security solutions for (but not limited to) the following areas: End Point Protection, Cloud Security, Network Security, DevOps, Security Monitoring & Remediation.
• Design and implementation of enterprise security technology controls and platforms, following secure infrastructure engineering best practices.
• Lead the Identification, evaluation, and requirements collection for new enterprise security tools.
• Driving the adoption of new tools and techniques, ensuring adequate operational handover is in place and able to articulate inherent value and impact.
• Lead the planning and co-ordination of patch management activities for internal systems and hardware.
• Assessing and recommending server hardening activities to be completed by the Infrastructure and Service Delivery teams.
• Supporting audit and due diligence activities within Technology Services.
• Supporting and advising on projects and change initiatives to ensure that there is no negative impact on our security posture.
• Acts as an integration point between CISO and AJ Bell Infrastructure teams to ensure integration of technical IS solutions into the wider technology estate.

Technical Skills:

• Demonstrable experience of implementing enterprise security platforms.
• Strong understanding and knowledge of Information Security risk management tools and techniques.
• Awareness of Information Security control standards and frameworks.
• Awareness and understanding of the Information Security threat landscape.
• Deep understanding of Information Security solutions e.g. email / web gateways, Privileged Account Management (PAM), Identity Governance and Administration (IGA), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Endpoint protection etc.
• Knowledge/experience working with firewalls is highly advantageous.
• Experience of Cloud security solutions and standards is highly advantageous.

Competence, knowledge and skills:

• Experience working within recognised Information Security frameworks and best practices such as ISO27001, NIST etc.
• 5 years’ experience in an Information Security role gained in a financial services or e-commerce environment is preferred.
• Significant experience in the area of Information Technology (IT) security.
• Strong knowledge of core IT and networking concepts.
• Well versed in IT security capabilities, framework and concepts.
• Extensive experience implementing industry-standard IT security platforms.
• Strong ownership of tasks, attention to detail and following through to conclusion.
• Ability to challenge approach, strategy and implementation to ensure Information Security is consistently considered and improved.
• Ability to work under own initiative to plan and communicate effectively with colleagues and customers.
• Structured, self-starting, flexible and enjoy working in fast-paced environments.
• Effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Ability to plan, organise and follow through on assigned tasks and complete with little or no prompting from management.
• Excellent attention to detail.
• Attained or working towards CISSP certification.

About us:

AJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 644,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £103.3 billion. Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures. Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company. Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,500 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years and in 2025 named a Great Place to Work®.

What we offer:

• Starting holiday entitlement of 26, increasing up to 31 days with length of service and a holiday buy and sell scheme.
• A choice of pension schemes with matched contributions up to 7%.
• Discretionary bonus scheme.
• Annual free share awards scheme.
• Buy As You Earn (BAYE) Scheme.
• Health Cash Plan – provided by Simply Health.
• Discounted private healthcare scheme and dental plan.
• Free onsite gym.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Bike loan scheme.
• Sick pay+ pledge.
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, and shared parental leave.
• Loans for travel season tickets.
• Death in service scheme.
• Paid time off for volunteer work.
• Charitable giving opportunities through salary sacrifice.
• Calendar of social events, including monthly payday drinks, annual Christmas party, summer party and much more.
• Personal development programmes built around you and your career goals, including access to personal skills workshops.
• Ongoing technical training.
• Professional qualification support.
• Talent development programmes.
• Peer recognition scheme, with rewards including restaurant and shopping vouchers or time off.
• Monthly leadership breakfasts and lunches.
• Casual dress code.
• Access to a range of benefits from our sponsorship deals.

Hybrid working:

At AJ Bell, our people are the heart of our culture. We believe in building strong connections by working together. That’s why we offer a hybrid working model, where you’ll spend a minimum of 50% of your working time per month in the Manchester office. For new team members, an initial period will be full-time in the office to help you immerse yourself in our business and build valuable relationships with your colleagues.