AI Assurance Manager in Crawley

Location: Crawley, United Kingdom

Thales is a global technology leader with more than 83,000 employees on five continents. With over 7,500 people in the UK, operating across defence, space, aerospace, and digital security, we help build a future we can all trust. Thales supports the security and stability of our nation by providing extraordinary technology to our customers, as well as delivering social value to the UK with our products and services.

You will be part of and responsible for driving a strong AI culture within the newly formed Enterprise AI Team. This will include leading the embedding best practice within the development teams (including ‘Secure by Design’ principles), contributing to use case development, developing AP tools, defining & supporting governance and taking a leading role in the AI assurance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead vulnerability management activities working closely with the Enterprise AI team to initiate remedial action where required, utilising “Secure by Design” Principles.
• Develop security requirements, epics and stories, along with guidance & governance to squads to ensure data protection and data security are included in the scope of new and existing data & digital products.
• Work collaboratively with other team members to ensure proposed solutions provide the required level of security assurance in line with data processing requirements, as well as Thales and customer risk appetites.
• Embed the latest security best practice within the development team enabling the principle of ‘everyone being responsible for security’.
• Support the delivery of technical security measures, to ensure successful and timely system accreditations and re-accreditations.
• Be central point of contact for all UK Digital Competency Centre technical security matters and concerns, supporting Enterprise AI team throughout the development lifecycle and engaging with key security stakeholders inc. UK Head of Information Assurance.
• Responsibility for developing, implementing and conducting formal and regular technical risk assessments of Thales’ DCC environment, recommending remedial action where required, utilising “Secure by Design” Principles.
• Assist with the deployment and implementation of security related initiatives.

Essential Skills:

• Extensive and proven experience in providing technical security support across a diverse range of systems and applications.
• Capability to analyze and advise on security implications for both new and existing systems/applications, including all proposed changes.
• Proficient in interpreting detailed system design documentation to identify potential security risks and devise effective mitigation strategies for secure and compliant solutions.
• Commitment to ensuring security activities align with compliance requirements, enabling Security Architecture and Services to manage risk while maximizing business value.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to convey complex technical security concepts clearly to management, clients, and team members at all levels.

Desirable Skills:

• Measurable experience covering fundamental security technical design principles.
• Experience conducting formal risk assessments and preparing Risk Management and Accreditation Documentation (RMADS) in compliance with UK Government policies.
• Proven track record in delivering technical security support for a variety of systems and applications.
• Experience acting as a formal stakeholder in security-related change control processes.
• Familiarity with security frameworks such as Cyber Essentials Plus, ISO27000 series, NIST-800 (including SP800-37 and SP800-53), and associated assurance activities.

Essential Experience:

• Possession of recognized security certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CCSK, or equivalent.
• Demonstrated understanding of cloud technologies and Infrastructure as Code (IaC).
• Proven application of security principles within Agile delivery frameworks.
• Experience assessing and managing technical security risks effectively.
• Ability to provide expert technical security advice to various business units and contribute to maintaining security risk registers.
• Up-to-date knowledge of current and emerging security technologies.
• Experience in reviewing and updating security policies and procedures.

Security Clearance Requirement:

Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires Security Clearance (SC). It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment. To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.