Director of Security Research & Development, ServiceNow

• Experience in leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving. This may include using AI-powered tools, automating workflows, analyzing AI-driven insights, or exploring AI’s potential impact on the function or industry
• 20+ years of progressive experience in software engineering and security, spanning hands-on development through engineering leadership OR related experience and education
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field
• Deep expertise across multiple security domains, including application security, infrastructure security, identity and fraud prevention, insider threat, and trust & safety
• 5+ years of engineering management experience leading and scaling teams of 25+ engineers, including hiring managers and building leadership layers
• Demonstrated track record of building engineering teams and capabilities from scratch (0→1), not only inheriting and optimizing existing organizations
• Strong hands-on software engineering foundation with production experience in Python and Java. You started as a builder and never stopped thinking like one
• Experience managing globally distributed engineering teams across multiple time zones and geographies, including team buildouts in new locations
• Enterprise-scale software engineering experience at a major SaaS, cloud, or technology company — building systems that serve millions of users with high availability, security, and regulatory compliance requirements
• Hands-on experience with AI/ML systems, GenAI, or Agentic AI technologies — building, integrating, or securing them within enterprise products
• Ability to operate as a credible engineering peer to VP and Sr. Director-level product engineering leaders — holding your own in architecture reviews, design discussions, and roadmap negotiations

Desirable

• The ServiceNow Security Organization (SSO) delivers world-class, innovative security solutions to reduce risk and protect the company and our customers
• We enable our customers to migrate their most sensitive data and workloads to the cloud, accelerating our business so that we are the most trusted SaaS provider
• We create an environment where our employees are proud to work and can make a positive impact
• ServiceNow’s Product Security organization is investing in a dedicated Security R&D function — a software engineering team embedded within Product Security that builds security capabilities with the same rigor, CI/CD discipline, and quality standards as ServiceNow’s product engineering organization
• We are looking for a Director to lead and scale this team
• Security R&D operates in two complementary modes
• First, through open contribution to product engineering — writing code alongside and directly into product engineering efforts where security domain expertise adds value
• Second, by designing and developing its own security capabilities, both internal tooling and externally facing product features, including AI-powered security automation, third-party integrations, and platform-native security services
• A small US-based team is already in place
• The Director will grow and reshape this team while simultaneously standing up a new engineering hub in Israel — a strategic investment committed to by senior leadership
• This is primarily a greenfield build: the technical vision, team culture, engineering identity, and hiring bar are yours to define
• This role reports to the Senior Director of Product Security Engineering
• Builder-led culture: Security R&D is defined by engineering output, not advisory reviews. We emphasize building production security capabilities with the same discipline as product engineering
• Dual operating model: Your team both contributes directly to product engineering and develops its own security products and services — a rare combination that requires deep engineering credibility and strong product instincts
• Platform advantage: ServiceNow owns the entire stack — runtime, ACLs, data layer, workflow engine. You can build security capabilities that no external vendor can replicate
• Global scope: Standing up the Israel hub is a strategic investment. You will shape a world-class engineering center from its inception, with direct influence on its culture and technical direction
• AI intersection: The role collaborates closely with AI Security on agent security tooling, placing you at the frontier of securing AI systems at enterprise scale
• Scale the existing US-based Security R&D team and stand up a new engineering hub in Israel. Hire engineering managers, senior engineers, and architects across both sites
• Establish the Israel hub as a high-performing engineering center. Hire local leadership, define operating rhythms across time zones, and travel regularly to build team cohesion and culture
• Define the org structure, team charters, and technical ownership model across the US and Israel. Ensure seamless collaboration between sites
• Set the hiring bar and engineering culture: this is a team of software engineers with deep security expertise, not security consultants who happen to write code
• Lead the development of AI-powered automated security review capabilities, integrating in-house models and third-party services to dramatically expand security review coverage across ServiceNow’s codebase
• Drive open contributions to product engineering in security-critical areas, embedding Security R&D engineers directly into product teams where their domain expertise accelerates delivery
• Design and build Security R&D’s own capabilities — security tooling, automation, and platform services — both for internal consumption and as externally facing product features
• Leverage ServiceNow’s unique platform advantages — ownership of the Agent Framework runtime, ACL enforcement, data layer, and workflow engine — to build security capabilities that external vendors cannot replicate
• Collaborate with the AI Security team on AI agent security tooling, bringing software engineering discipline to securing AI systems at enterprise scale
• Represent Security R&D credibly to senior engineering leadership. This role demands a leader who is seen as a peer who ships production code, not an advisor who reviews it
• Partner with embedded product managers to define and execute the Security R&D roadmap, balancing long-term platform investments with near-term delivery milestones
• Build relationships across Product Security’s other functions to ensure Security R&D amplifies their impact through engineering