What are the responsibilities and job description for the Cyber Defense Director position at Ameris?
Ameris Bank is a purpose-driven company, dedicated to bringing financial peace of mind to communities, one person at a time. Whether a customer wants to grow their business, buy a home, or feel confident in their retirement plan, they have a partner in Ameris Bank. We serve customers in our locations across the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and nationwide through our extensive digital offerings and mobile app.
Delivering financial peace of mind starts with a team that values integrity and rewards ingenuity. At Ameris, you'll find teammates who are inclusive, collaborative problem-solvers who go the extra mile to support one another and to meet every customer's needs. When teammates are empowered and bring their diverse perspectives to the table, we create the best possible outcomes for our customers. At Ameris, we know that a growth mindset is key for high performance and fosters an environment that prioritizes continuous improvement. Teammates have access to Employee Resource Groups that serve as advocates and allies as well as professional development opportunities to drive ongoing education. Learn more about our purpose and how you can bring it to life as an Ameris Bank teammate.
The Cyber Defense Director will lead and shape the organization's cybersecurity strategy to anticipate, detect, and respond to evolving threats. This role oversees a multidisciplinary team responsible for threat intelligence, countermeasures, security alerting and monitoring, incident response, and digital forensics. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in advanced threat detection, cutting-edge defense technologies, and operational leadership to ensure the organization remains resilient against cyber threats. Performs other projects and duties as assigned.
Essential Functions, Duties, and Responsibilities :
- Develop and implement comprehensive security strategies, policies, and procedures that align to industry standards (e.g. NIST, FFIEC).
- Lead, mentor, and manage the security operations team, fostering a culture of security awareness across.
- Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive threat intelligence program, leveraging internal and external sources.
- Analyze and contextualize threat intelligence to identify trends, actors, and emerging attack vectors.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop and implement countermeasures to address identified threats, including advanced persistent threats (APTs) and emerging cyber threats.
- Build partnerships with industry peers, government agencies, and threat intelligence communities to enhance situational awareness.
- Provide threat intelligence insights to guide decision-making at the executive level.
- Design and oversee a 24 / 7 Security Operations Center (SOC) for real-time monitoring and alerting.
- Optimize security monitoring to ensure the right use cases through threat modeling are in place and aligned to MITRE ATT&CK methodology.
- Ensure continuous tuning of SIEM, EDR, and other security monitoring platforms to reduce false positives and enhance detection capabilities.
- Oversee the daily operations of the security operations center (SOC), ensuring effective monitoring.
- Develop and manage the organization's incident response plan, ensuring swift and effective response to cybersecurity events.
- Lead and coordinate incident response activities, including investigation, containment, eradication, and recovery.
- Conduct post-incident reviews and root cause analyses to drive improvements in response processes and prevent future incidents.
- Oversee forensic investigations to collect, analyze, and preserve digital evidence for security incidents.
- Establish processes and tools to ensure forensic readiness and evidence chain-of-custody compliance.
- Collaborate with legal, compliance, and law enforcement teams during investigations and litigation support.
Required Knowledge, Skills and Competencies :
Industry and Work Experience :
Academic :
Benefits Available to Employees :
Ameris Bank provides a comprehensive employee benefit package to all eligible employees.
Banking Advantages for Employees :
In addition to a wide array of benefits, Ameris Bank employees are also eligible for special bank services.
Disclaimer :
The above job description is meant to describe the general nature and level of work being performed; it is not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required for the position.
All job requirements are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities. Some requirements may exclude individuals who pose a direct threat or significant risk to the health and safety of themselves or other employees.
Equal Opportunity Employer / Protected Veterans / Individuals with Disabilities
The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)
