Director, IT & Security

About Cambiar Education:

Founded in 2016 as the first K-12 nonprofit venture studio, Cambiar Education saw untapped potential in the marketplace that could change the world of education - an opportunity to foster and advance radical, innovative ideas that massively accelerate student success for all. Since then, Cambiar has propelled over 140 game-changing ventures that operate at the speed of innovation, cultivated a portfolio of bold and visionary leaders, and built a connected community anchored in a commitment to creating and scaling solutions that center all students. As a member of the Cambiar Education team, you will help change the marketplace for education innovation to prove undeniably that every student can succeed and thrive.

Role Overview

As Cambiar expands its national portfolio of education innovation initiatives, we are scaling our digital ecosystem—integrating systems, data, and tools that power our mission. Safeguarding the security, integrity, and trust of this ecosystem is critical to enabling our impact.

The Director, IT & Security, reporting to the SVP, Technology, will be both a strategic leader and a hands-on practitioner responsible for Cambiar’s technology platforms and cybersecurity posture. This role will guide the organization’s approach to IT systems management, vendor oversight, and security best practices—ensuring strong governance, resilient infrastructure, and a culture of data stewardship. You will lead Cambiar’s work to strengthen IT and security operations, implement modern processes and tools, and partner with both internal teams and external vendors to advance the technology maturity and security posture across Cambiar and its incubated ventures.

The ideal candidate combines technical acumen, strategic vision, and a human-centered mindset—balancing operational excellence with the flexibility and creativity that drive innovation. They bring deep expertise in IT and cybersecurity best practices, strong leadership and communication skills, and a proactive, solution-oriented approach.

What you’ll do:

You’ll serve as a trusted partner to Cambiar’s leadership, operations, and venture teams, leading the IT and Security strategy and roadmap, vendor partnerships, and compliance. Your work will include both strategic direction and tactical execution.

• Establish a systems inventory and governance framework: Build and maintain a comprehensive registry of Cambiar’s applications, data flows, and integrations to identify risks, redundancies, and opportunities for optimization.
• Rationalize and optimize the tech stack: Evaluate usage, cost, and security posture of tools to reduce duplication, improve interoperability, and deliver measurable efficiencies.
• Lead cybersecurity strategy: Develop and implement policies and practices aligned to SOC 2 and other relevant frameworks; establish and oversee secure architectures across cloud, network and applications including data classification, backup and retention, and incident response.
• Enhance access and identity management: Implement scalable joiner/mover/leaver workflows, least-privilege and role based access principles, and security aware optimization.
• Oversee and partner with the IT vendor: Manage relationships, ensure SLAs and DPAs are met, and guide shared workstreams such as device management, identity and access management, and network security.
• Consult for incubated ventures: Provide advisory support on IT infrastructure, security practices, and compliance as ventures establish and scale their systems.
• Foster a security-minded culture: Foster organization-wide understanding of cybersecurity practices and shared accountability for data protection. Lead risk management and compliance, conducting regular assessments, audits, and training to strengthen organization-wide awareness and readiness.
• Monitor and report: Track metrics, manage audits, and present IT/security performance and emerging risks to leadership and the board.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with operations, finance, data, and partner teams to embed privacy, security, and trust into every project.

This role is for you if:

• You bring 10+ years of experience in IT operations, cybersecurity, or technology risk management, ideally in reputed mission-driven or innovative environments.
• You have hands-on experience executing and managing IT systems, cybersecurity software and processes (IAM, MDM, RBAC, pentesting, etc.), and compliance frameworks (SOC 2, ISO, or similar).
• You’re adept at partnering with external vendors while also building internal capacity and scalable IT processes.
• You thrive in dynamic, entrepreneurial settings, balancing structure with adaptability and creative problem-solving.
• You are an excellent communicator who can translate and motivate technical topics into accessible, actionable insights for diverse audiences.
• You demonstrate high integrity and discretion, with a strong sense of responsibility for protecting sensitive information.
  You are organized, detail-oriented, and proactive, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver results independently.
• You have a proven record of building secure, efficient, and people-centered systems that enable productivity and trust.
• Experience in education, nonprofit, or social impact organizations is a plus.

What you'll get:

• Salary range of $140,000-$170,000 per year depending on experience, location and aligned title
• Comprehensive medical, dental, vision benefits
• Paid vacation and sick time, plus organizationally-observed holidays throughout the year
• Access to optional benefits such as 401(k) Retirement Plan, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), HSA/FSA, pet insurance, etc.
• Stipends to partially cover phone and internet costs, home office set-up, and wellness
• Team retreats and meetings during the year to meet your teammates or see our work in-person

Our Core Values:

We’re committed to living our organization's core values:

• CREATE 🌎 We create to make a transformative difference in the world. We are eternally optimistic and develop game-changing solutions.
• LOVE ❤️ We believe in the tremendous talent and human potential of all; we want to discover, engage, and celebrate everyone’s unique “superpowers.” We seek out and lean into eclectic ideas, joyful debates, and direct feedback.
• GROW 🌱 We have an insatiable curiosity, love big challenges, and aren't afraid to fail. We accelerate growth and impact so change agents and change efforts reach their fullest potential.
• LAUGH 😄 We laugh often and out loud; creativity is best fostered when we are having fun! We defer judgment so we can all laugh, dance, sing, and express "like no one is watching."
• DARE 🚀 We dare to dream big, take bold action, and challenge the impossible. We embrace risk, push boundaries, and step into the unknown with strength and courage, knowing that growth lies beyond comfort.

Work environment:

Although our team works remotely, you are expected to engage in overnight travel at least 2x throughout the year to various US cities to meet up with other team members (in-person retreats, other program-related meetings and events), and be ready to play an active role in contributing to our collaborative, inclusive culture.

We’re looking for applicants who are comfortable working remotely and who have experience successfully collaborating with team members across different time zones. Your core working days and hours will be M-F from 8am-6pm, with the ability to flex according to workload, scheduled calls and in-person/virtual meetings.

Our Equal Opportunity Employer Commitment:

At Cambiar Education, we believe everyone can make a positive impact, and that a range of perspectives and experiences strengthens our team. We are committed to building an agile, engaging environment where every team member can do their best work, the foundation for creating life-changing impact for one million youth.

Cambiar Education is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants. This policy extends to all aspects of our employment practices including, but not limited to, recruiting, hiring, promotions, transfers, compensation, benefits, training, leaves of absence, and other terms and conditions of employment.

Originally posted on Himalayas