Senior Information Security Governance & Assurance Manager

About the role

We are seeking a senior professional to lead the day‑to‑day security governance, certification and assurance programme for a fast‑growing financial services organisation in the Middle East. You will own the Information Security Management System (ISMS) and drive continuous improvement across ISO 27001 and SOC 2 compliance.

Key responsibilities

• Own the ISMS, manage ISO 27001 certification, surveillance, recertification and continual improvement.
• Lead SOC 2 Type I/II readiness, control mapping, evidence collection and auditor coordination.
• Build and maintain security control frameworks, policies, evidence programmes and remediation processes.
• Collaborate with engineering, product and operations teams to implement and enhance security controls.
• Perform control testing, identify gaps and drive remediation to verified closure.
• Coordinate external audits, due‑diligence requests, security questionnaires and assurance activities.
• Develop clear reporting on certification status, control effectiveness, findings and remediation.
• Automate assurance activities using GRC tooling, reusable evidence and continuous monitoring.

Required profile

• Minimum 10 years of experience in information security, security assurance or technology risk, with at least 5 years in security GRC or assurance.
• Background in fintech, payments, digital banking or other regulated financial environments.
• Proven experience leading ISO 27001 certification and operating an ISMS.
• Hands‑on experience with SOC 2 Type I/II readiness and examinations.
• Track record of implementing controls, building evidence programmes and driving successful audits.
• Experience working closely with engineering, cloud and product teams in cloud environments.
• Practical exposure to AI governance or AI‑related security risks.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., ISO 27001 Lead Implementer/Auditor, CISA, CRISC, CISM, CISSP) are a plus.

Required skills

• ISO 27001
• SOC 2
• GRC tooling
• Cloud environments
• AI governance

What we offer

• Senior individual contributor role with direct access to leadership.
• Opportunity to build and operate security governance and assurance architecture for a cloud‑native business.