The Manager,Cyber Operations APAC is responsible for the effective day-to-day operation, performance and continued development of NCC Group's Security Operations Centre capability across the APAC region as well as other cyber operations services as service lines grow. Reporting directly to the Director, Global Security Operations Centre, the role translates the global SOC strategy into consistent regional execution, ensuring 24/7 service delivery aligns with global standards, processes, SLAs and KPIs.
This is a hands-on operational leadership role, leading SOC Team Leaders and analysts, maintaining service quality, supporting regional capability growth and working closely with global SOC leadership and peers across EMEA and North America. The role contributes to global improvement initiatives, including standardisation, automation and AI adoption, while remaining accountable for strong people leadership and reliable operational delivery within APAC.
This is a hands-on operational leadership role, leading SOC Team Leaders and analysts, maintaining service quality, supporting regional capability growth and working closely with global SOC leadership and peers across EMEA and North America. The role contributes to global improvement initiatives, including standardisation, automation and AI adoption, while remaining accountable for strong people leadership and reliable operational delivery within APAC.
Key Responsibilities
Regional SOC Operations
- Lead the day-to-day operation of the APAC SOC teams, with primary responsibility for service quality, operational performance and delivery against global SLAs and KPIs.
- Act as the senior operational SOC leader in-region, escalating material risks, service issues and resource constraints to the Director, Global SOC.
- Implement the global SOC strategy in APAC through consistent processes, technologies, playbooks, governance and reporting.
- Support the continued development of Manila as a resilient and scalable delivery location, working within the agreed global location strategy.
Operational Excellence
- Maintain high standards across incident detection, triage, response, escalation and reporting.
- Monitor SOC queues, capacity, workloads, shift coverage and service performance, taking corrective action where required.
- Coordinate 24/7 operational cover and ensure effective handovers, escalation routes and management support are in place.
- Act as an operational escalation point for complex or high-severity incidents in APAC and coordinate with appropriate global teams.
- Drive practical continuous improvement through root cause analysis, lessons learned, shift reviews and agreed maturity actions.
People Leadership and Capability
- Lead, coach and develop SOC Team Leaders and analysts, with clear objectives, regular performance conversations and active succession planning.
- Coordinate training and capability development so analysts are supported to meet current and future service requirements.
- Support recruitment, onboarding, retention and workforce planning for the Manila SOC in partnership with the Director, Global SOC and relevant enabling functions.
- Create an inclusive, accountable and high-performing culture aligned with NCC Group's Ways of Working.
Global Alignment and Collaboration
- Work directly with the Director, Global SOC and SOC leaders in EMEA and North America to maintain global coordination, consistent delivery and seamless coverage.
- Contribute operational insight to the global SOC roadmap, standards and improvement priorities, while remaining accountable for regional implementation.
- Collaborate with Customer Success, Incident Response, Detection Engineering, Security Engineering and Capability Development to resolve operational issues and improve customer outcomes.
- Support customer engagements, service reviews and escalations where senior operational representation is required.
Innovation, AI and Automation
- Support the regional rollout and adoption of globally agreed AI, automation and workflow improvements.
- Identify operational use cases that can improve consistency, investigation quality, analyst capacity and response times.
- Coordinate regional pilots and feedback, ensuring changes are controlled, measurable and aligned with the global technology roadmap.
Performance and Reporting
- Manage APAC operational performance against agreed measures covering quality, timeliness, accuracy, productivity, capacity and customer outcomes.
- Provide regular reporting, forecasts, risks and performance insight directly to the Director, Global SOC.
- Ensure clear ownership and follow-through for service improvement actions, audit findings and operational readiness requirements.
Skills, Knowledge & Expertise
| Essential: - Significant experience in SOC operations, including leadership of teams in a 24/7 environment. - Proven people management experience, ideally leading SOC Team Leaders and analysts across shifts or locations. - Strong operational understanding of incident detection, triage, response, escalation, service management and SOC performance measures. - Working knowledge of SIEM and EDR/XDR technologies, with the ability to support senior analysts and operational decision-making. - Experience implementing standardised processes, playbooks and governance within a changing operational environment. - Ability to work effectively across geographies and cultures in a global matrix organisation. - Clear, credible communication skills, including the ability to provide concise updates, escalate risk and influence stakeholders. Desirable: - Experience within a global MSSP, managed detection and response service, or comparable cyber operations environment. - Experience supporting the growth or development of an offshore or regional delivery location, particularly Manila or wider APAC. - Familiarity with AI and automation use cases in security operations. - Relevant security, service management or leadership qualifications.