Consulting Director, Specialized Services, Proactive Services (Unit 42) - Remote

Company Description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We take our mission of protecting the digital way of life seriously. We are relentless in protecting our customers and we believe that the unique ideas of every member of our team contributes to our collective success. Our values were crowdsourced by employees and are brought to life through each of us everyday - from disruptive innovation and collaboration, to execution. From showing up for each other with integrity to creating an environment where we all feel included.

As a member of our team, you will be shaping the future of cybersecurity. We work fast, value ongoing learning, and we respect each employee as a unique individual. Knowing we all have different needs, our development and personal wellbeing programs are designed to give you choice in how you are supported. This includes our FLEXBenefits wellbeing spending account with over 1,000 eligible items selected by employees, our mental and financial health resources, and our personalized learning opportunities - just to name a few!

Job Description

Your Career

The Consulting Director will help drive Proactive Consulting Services across a growing portfolio of strategic service offerings including SOC Assessments, Cloud Security, AI/ML Security Assessments, and other emerging service domains. This senior-level consultant will serve as a trusted advisor and key contributor to helping our customers strengthen cybersecurity resilience and advance their overall security maturity.

Your Impact

• Serve as a key contributor to the development, maturation, and innovation of SOC, AI Security, and Cloud Security consulting services
• Lead and deliver technical and strategic cybersecurity assessments in areas such as SOC maturity, cloud security, AI/ML model and implementation risks, and application/infrastructure security
• Translate technical findings and observations into clear, actionable business risk implications and strategic recommendations
• Conduct reviews and assessments based on frameworks such as NIST CSF, MITRE ATT&CK, ISO 27001, and other industry standards
• Provide deep subject matter expertise and delivery leadership across a range of environments, including cloud-native, hybrid, and on-premises ecosystems
• Provide strategic guidance on the development of security programs, operations models, threat detection capabilities, and incident readiness
• Drive cross-functional value by integrating the Palo Alto Networks product platform (e.g., Cortex XSIAM, Prisma SASE, Precision AI) into consulting engagements where applicable
• Engage in a pre-sales capacity with client prospects, uncovering cybersecurity pain points across SOC operations, cloud infrastructure, and AI system implementations
• Identify alignment between Unit 42 solutions and customer challenges, crafting and delivering communications that clearly articulate solution value and outcomes
• Support engagement teams in addressing and overcoming deep technical objections that arise throughout the delivery process
• Strengthen the team’s ability to tie recommendations to each client’s unique business processes, strategic initiatives, and risk mitigation objectives
• Lead the practice and invest in developing long-term client relationships that support Unit 42’s goal of becoming a trusted strategic advisor
• Lead the design, development, and delivery of consulting enablement content to grow capabilities across the Unit 42 team
• Partner with Palo Alto Networks product development teams by contributing to feedback loops that support bi-directional communication on product features, delivery impact, and consultant needs in reducing customer risk

Qualifications

Your Experience

• 4+ years of experience delivering cybersecurity advisory or risk assessments based on industry-accepted frameworks and standards
• 6+ years of professional services and consulting experience, with 3+ years in a Director (or equivalent Senior Manager) role leading consulting delivery teams strongly preferred
• Demonstrated delivery experience in one or more of the following: SOC Maturity Assessments, Cloud Security Reviews, AI/ML Model Security Assessments, Application Security Reviews, and Threat Modeling
• Experience advising CISOs and other senior stakeholders on strategic planning, resource prioritization, capability development, and cybersecurity roadmaps
• Strong understanding of cybersecurity domains including network, endpoint, identity, cloud, and AI/ML security principles
• Adept at translating high-level strategic client discussions into detailed proposals and project outcomes
• Hands-on experience with technologies such as SIEM, EDR/XDR, CNAPP, CSPM, IAM, Infrastructure as Code (IaC), and cloud-native platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Solid knowledge of emerging threats and attacker TTPs, with the ability to contextualize them into practical assessment and strategy engagements
• Experience advising CISOs and other senior stakeholders on strategic planning, resource prioritization, capability development, and cybersecurity roadmaps
• Proven experience managing diverse teams of business and technical consultants
• Ability to scope new consulting opportunities, including drafting statements of work, proposals, and resource estimates
• Background in scripting, automation, or use of command-line tools in assessments is a plus
• Public speaking, training, and enablement experience is strongly preferred
• 10+ years of experience building, strengthening, and expanding long-term client relationships
• Ability to travel as needed to meet business demands (on average 25%)
• Bachelor’s Degree in Information Security, Computer Science, Digital Forensics, Cybersecurity, equivalent professional or equivalent military experience required

Additional Information

The Team

Unit 42 Consulting is Palo Alto Network's security advisory team. Our vision is to create a more secure digital world by providing the highest quality incident response, risk management, and digital forensic services to clients of all sizes. Our team is composed of recognized experts and incident responders with deep technical expertise and experience in investigations, data breach response, digital forensics, and information security. With a highly successful track record of delivering mission-critical cybersecurity solutions, we are experienced in working quickly to provide an effective incident response, attack readiness, and remediation plans with a focus on providing long-term support to improve our clients’ security posture.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non-sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/commissioned roles) is expected to be between $183000/YR - $252000/YR. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

Our Commitment

We’re problem solvers that take risks and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [email protected].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.