Senior Associate

16 hours ago

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada PwC Canada Full-time

As a Senior Associate – Cyber Security Forward Deployed you are a multi-faceted technologist. You lean heavily into using AI, are comfortable working in a client’s environment, writing code, integrating disparate security tools, and build production-ready defense systems. You will be both part of and/or leading the planning and execution of a variety of opportunities including AI to Defend and/or cloud and application security initiatives for our clients. You will architect deeply technical solutions, lead cross-functional engineering pods, and convert client ambiguity into shipped capabilities. You will simultaneously drive practice growth —while remaining hands-on and technical. You will be a key technical contributor in PwC’s Cybersecurity Consulting practice. You’ll work closely with managers and other team members to design and implement security solutions (e.g. Cloud/App Security, AI to Defend) for our clients, helping secure their cloud environments and software development processes. In this consulting role, you will tackle complex security challenges – performing analyses, setting up security controls, conducting assessments – and collaborate with cross-functional teams (cloud engineers, developers, risk advisors) to embed security throughout clients’ digital transformation projects. You’ll also engage with client stakeholders, own technical workstreams end-to-end and ensure security recommendations align with business goals and are clearly communicated. This position offers an opportunity to build your expertise in cloud infrastructure security, secure application development, DevSecOps and emerging capabilities/skills in AI, while growing your consulting skills in a dynamic, client-facing environment. You operate as the senior engineer on a delivery pod, mentor Associates, own technical workstreams end-to-end, and translate client ambiguity into shipped, production-ready solutions.

The Opportunity:

  • Design, develop, test, and deploy security solutions across cloud (AWS/Azure/GCP) and applications (SDLC integrations, AppSec pipelines)
  • Implement and integrate a variety of security products (e.g. Cloud & Application Security); configure secure baselines; perform cloud and Kubernetes security architecture reviews and remediation.
  • Build production-quality code and infrastructure including but not limited to secure CI/CD pipelines, IaC modules, cloud landing zones.
  • Work with cloud architects and developers to implement security solutions including cloud platforms and applications. Configure security controls (identity & access management, data encryption, network security) and ensure cloud configurations follow leading security practices and compliance requirements.
  • Conduct security assessments and threat modeling for client cloud environments and applications, identifying vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and compliance gaps.
  • Deliver cloud and application security strategy engagements and advise organizations on how to transform their current cloud & application security practice.
  • Integrate security into the software development lifecycle, collaborating with DevOps teams to incorporate automated security tools and secure coding practices (DevSecOps) into CI/CD pipelines. Design secure architecture and coding guidelines, ensuring that new applications and services are built with security by design.
  • Support the delivery of client projects by preparing clear, high-quality deliverables (reports, presentations, technical documentation) that communicate security findings and recommendations effectively. Engage with client stakeholders, explaining technical issues in clear terms and advising on improving cloud and app security postures from planning through deployment.
  • Collaborate within multidisciplinary teams – including other cybersecurity specialists, data architects, and business consultants – to deliver comprehensive security solutions. Contribute to knowledge sharing and mentor associates by demonstrating best practices in cloud and application security (review code; write runbooks, ADRs, and technical documentation). Stay updated on emerging cloud and application security trends (e.g., new cloud security services, emerging threats, compliance changes) to continuously improve our offerings.
  • Contribute to pre-sales: POCs, demos, prototypes, RFP technical content, solution architecture artifacts.

What You'll Bring:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Cybersecurity or a related discipline (STEM). 3–6+ years of relevant experience in hands‑on software development, security engineering, DevSecOps, or cloud security.
  • Solid hands‑on with at least one major cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP) — IAM, networking, KMS, native security services (GuardDuty, Defender, SCC), and IaC (Terraform).
  • One of the following depth areas: Cloud: Kubernetes (EKS/A