SVP/CISO Cyber and Product Security

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The Senior Vice President Cybersecurity (Chief information Security Officer – CISO) leads Generac’s global Cybersecurity organization, partnering with the CIO, executive leadership, product engineering, manufacturing operations, business stakeholders, and external partners to protect the enterprise and its products.

This role is responsible for the strategy, leadership, and execution of Generac’s global cybersecurity and product security programs. Reporting to the Chief Information Officer, the CISO owns the enterprise security vision and multi-year roadmap, protecting Generac’s information assets, global manufacturing operations, connected products, and digital ecosystem against an evolving threat landscape. This leader brings a clear, experience-based view of what good looks like in a Fortune 500 industrial and manufacturing environment and is accountable for measurable reduction of cyber risk across IT, OT, and product domains.

The CISO leads a global organization spanning security operations, cybersecurity engineering, governance risk and compliance, product and IoT security, and OT/ICS security for manufacturing environments. The role requires an accomplished executive who has built and scaled high performing security teams, matured enterprise security programs in complex industrial settings, and can represent cybersecurity credibly to the executive leadership team, the Board of Directors, customers, and regulators.

Defines and executes a multi-year enterprise cybersecurity strategy and roadmap aligned to business objectives and benchmarked against Fortune 500 industrial and manufacturing peers, translating a clear view of what good looks like into prioritized, funded initiatives.

Serves as the senior-most cybersecurity executive, advising the CIO, executive leadership team, and Board of Directors on cyber risk posture, investment priorities, and emerging threats.

Models enterprise-first leadership by partnering across business units, functions, and regions to balance risk, speed, operational continuity, and business growth.

Owns the product security program for Generac’s connected products, energy technology platforms, and IoT ecosystems, embedding secure by design and secure development lifecycle practices across product engineering.

Establish and lead product security incident response (PSIRT), coordinated vulnerability disclosure, and compliance with emerging product security regulations and standards such as IEC 62443 and the EU Cyber Resilience Act.

Partners cross-functionally with product engineering, manufacturing, operations, legal, compliance, and business leaders to embed security requirements into business processes, product development, and operational decision-making.

Leads the security strategy for operational technology and industrial control systems across global manufacturing and distribution facilities, balancing risk reduction with production uptime and safety.

Establishes IT/OT convergence governance, segmentation and access standards, and incident response readiness tailored to plant floor environments.

Provides executive oversight of the global security operations center, incident response, threat intelligence, and vulnerability management functions, ensuring around the clock detection and response across internal teams and managed service partners.

Serves as executive incident commander for material cyber events, directing enterprise response and leading communications with executive leadership, the Board, legal counsel, insurers, and regulators, including SEC materiality assessment and disclosure support.

Owns the enterprise cyber risk management framework, security policy program, and control environment aligned to NIST CSF, ISO 27001, and applicable regulatory obligations including but not limited to driving certification/ recertification process for applicable products.

Directs security compliance, audit readiness, SOX-related IT control partnership, and customer assurance activities across global operations.

Owns the third-party cyber risk management program spanning suppliers, service providers, and technology partners across a global manufacturing supply chain.

Governs strategic security vendors and managed service providers through defined service levels, performance reviews, and rightsizing internal versus external capabilities.

Builds, leads, and develops a high performing global security organization, attracting top talent, developing future leaders, and establishing succession depth across security disciplines.

Defines the security operating model, organizational design, and budget, managing multi-million-dollar program and technology investments for maximum risk reduction per dollar.

Delivers clear, business-focused reporting on cyber risk, program maturity, and incident readiness to the executive leadership team and Board committees.

Champions enterprise-wide security culture, awareness, and accountability, positioning cybersecurity as a business enabler for Generac’s energy technology strategy.

Education

Bachelor’s degree with focus in Computer Science, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, Engineering, or a related field

Work Experience

15 years of progressive experience in cybersecurity, with at least 10 years in senior security leadership roles, including prior experience as a CISO, Deputy CISO, or equivalent head of security in a Fortune 500 or comparable global enterprise.

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities

Demonstrated experience leading cybersecurity in industrial, manufacturing, or similarly complex global environments, including OT/ICS security and product or IoT security for connected products.

Proven track record of building, scaling, and retaining high performing global security teams and maturing enterprise security programs against measurable outcomes.

Experience presenting to Boards of Directors, audit committees, and executive leadership, including cyber risk reporting and material incident communications.

Experience leading enterprise response to significant cyber incidents, including coordination with external counsel, forensic partners, insurers, law enforcement, and regulators.

Deep working knowledge of industry frameworks and regulations, including NIST CSF, ISO 27001, IEC 62443, MITRE ATT&CK, and SEC cybersecurity disclosure requirements.

Executive presence and exceptional communication skills, with the ability to translate complex technical risk into business terms for Boards, customers, and non-technical leaders.

Strategic vision balanced with operational depth across IT, OT, cloud, identity, application, and product security domains.

Strong business acumen, including financial management of large security budgets, vendor negotiation, and cyber insurance strategy.

Sound judgment and decisiveness under pressure, with the ability to lead calmly and effectively during high severity incidents.

Proven ability to operate effectively influence without direct authority in a matrixed global environment, influencing without direct authority, collaborating across functions, and aligning cross-functional leaders and teams around enterprise priorities and shared cybersecurity outcomes/priorities.

Demonstrated ability to lead through influence in a matrixed global organization, building trust, aligning cross-functional stakeholders, and driving accountability across teams that may not report directly to the role.

Education

Master’s degree in Cybersecurity, Computer Science, Engineering, or Business Administration (MBA)

Certification / License

CISSP, CISM, or equivalent executive-level security certifications

Work Experience

Experience in a publicly traded company subject to SEC cybersecurity disclosure rules; experience securing energy technology, power generation, or connected consumer/industrial products

Knowledge / Skills / Abilities

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

Office Environment (Includes field sales):

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk and hear; and use hands to manipulate objects or controls.  The employee is regularly required to stand and walk.  On occasion, the incumbent may be required to stoop, bend, or reach above the shoulders.  The employee must occasionally lift up to 25 pounds. Specific conditions of this job are typical of frequent and continuous computer-based work requiring periods of sitting, close vision, and the ability to adjust focus. Occasional travel.  

DISCLAIMER

All responsibilities and requirements are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities.

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only responsibilities to be performed by an employee occupying this job or position.  Employees must follow any other job-related instructions and perform any other job-related duties requested by their leaders.

“We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.”