SOC Manager

Introduction

In this role, you'll work in one of our IBM Consulting Client Innovation Centers (Delivery Centers), where we deliver deep technical and industry expertise to a wide range of public and private sector clients around the world. Our delivery centers offer our clients locally based skills and technical expertise to drive innovation and adoption of new technology.

A career in IBM Consulting is rooted by long-term relationships and close collaboration with clients across the globe.

You'll work with visionaries across multiple industries to improve the hybrid cloud and AI journey for the most innovative and valuable companies in the world. Your ability to accelerate impact and make meaningful change for your clients is enabled by our strategic partner ecosystem and our robust technology platforms across the IBM portfolio; including Software and Red Hat.

Curiosity and a constant quest for knowledge serve as the foundation to success in IBM Consulting. In your role, you'll be encouraged to challenge the norm, investigate ideas outside of your role, and come up with creative solutions resulting in ground breaking impact for a wide network of clients. Our culture of evolution and empathy centers on long-term career growth and development opportunities in an environment that embraces your unique skills and experience.

Your Role And Responsibilities

As a SOC Manager, you will play a key role in driving the success of our cybersecurity program by ensuring operational excellence, maintaining regulatory compliance, and supporting the delivery of high-quality security services.

• Provide first-line supervision and leadership to the 24/7 SOC team, including shift leads, analysts, and support personnel.
• Manage daily SOC operations to ensure timely detection, triage, investigation, and response to security incidents.
• Administer and improve SOC processes, controls, and playbooks to ensure their effectiveness and alignment with industry standards.
• Coordinate incident response activities and provide oversight for major security events and crisis situations.
• Produce and review aggregated SOC performance metrics and service delivery KPIs.
• Drive the continuous improvement of SOC operations, leveraging automation, orchestration, and integration with threat intelligence.
• Play a significant role in long-term SOC strategy and transformation planning.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align SOC capabilities with organizational cybersecurity goals.
• Provide guidance, coaching, and performance management for SOC team members.
• Coordinate closely with clients, business units, and external partners to ensure smooth operations and effective communication.
• Ensure team readiness and capability to support go-live and steady state operations of managed security services.
  
  

Required Technical And Professional Expertise

We are seeking a highly experienced SOC Manager to lead our 24/7 Security Operations Center (SOC). The successful candidate will be responsible for providing strategic oversight, operational leadership, and people management across all SOC functions, including monitoring, detection, incident response, and continuous improvement of cybersecurity defense capabilities.

Technical Skills

• 10+ years of professional experience in cybersecurity, with 5+ years in SOC management or leadership roles.
• Proven experience managing 24/7 SOC environments and security operations teams.
• Strong knowledge of SOC processes, incident response, SIEM/SOAR technologies, and threat detection practices.
• Track record of strong leadership, team management, and conflict resolution in high-pressure environments.
• Excellent communication, reporting, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Crisis management and decision-making experience during major incidents or outages.
  
  

Soft Skills

• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with keen attention to detail.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to interact effectively with stakeholders at all levels.
• Capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
  
  

Preferred Technical And Professional Experience

• Certifications such as CISSP, CISM, GIAC (GCIA, GCIH, GCED), or CSA are highly desirable.
• Experience with IBM QRadar, Splunk, IBM SOAR, or other enterprise-grade SIEM/SOAR solutions.
• Prior experience working in or leading Managed Security Services (MSS) or consulting engagements.