How to hire a chief security officer

How to hire a chief security officer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step chief security officer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a chief security officer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new chief security officer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a chief security officer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a chief security officer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A chief security officer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, chief security officers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents chief security officer salaries for various positions.

   Type of Chief Security Officer	Description	Hourly rate
   Chief Security Officer	Computer and information systems managers, often called information technology (IT) managers or IT project managers, plan, coordinate, and direct computer-related activities in an organization. They help determine the information technology goals of an organization and are responsible for implementing computer systems to meet those goals.	$48-98
   Information Assurance Engineer	Information assurance engineers are responsible for protecting an organization's data. They act as a team of security specialists that use their skill in securely operating and keeping data to protect the organization's most essential asset... Show more	$32-56
   Securities Consultant	A securities consultant is responsible for maintaining the safety and security of the company's premises, including enforcing protection for all the employees and company assets. Securities consultants also handle the confidentiality and stability of data network systems to prevent potential breaches and unauthorized access to information... Show more	$34-55

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Oversight
   • Risk Management
   • Security Program
   • Security Policies
   • CSO
   • Incident Response
   • Security Procedures
   • NIST
   • Security Operations
   • Business Continuity
   • PCI
   • ISO
   • Regulatory Compliance
   • HIPAA

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage SOX information security assessments.
   • Manage institution-wide information security governance processes including the creation and deployment of the initial security policy using the ISO framework.
   • Coordinate effective information exchange that begin with administrative controls using local encryption; direct migration to secure telecommunications links.
   • Enable secure transactions and electronic point-to-point communications, in private and secure digital encryption, leveraging digital signatures, without plugins.
   • Provide [] COBIT, and FISMA security program assessments.
   • Conduct destruction of COMSEC classify and unclassify material and maintain material inventories.

   More chief security officer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the chief security officer job description is a good way to get more applicants. A chief security officer salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a chief security officer in Montana may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level chief security officer. Additionally, a chief security officer with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average chief security officer salary

   $144,017yearly

   $69.24 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level chief security officer salary

   $101,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average chief security officer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$176,708	$85
   2	Washington	$160,314	$77
   3	Maryland	$154,971	$75
   4	New York	$147,324	$71
   5	Massachusetts	$142,539	$69
   6	Connecticut	$140,564	$68
   7	Oregon	$139,454	$67
   8	District of Columbia	$138,965	$67
   9	Minnesota	$136,888	$66
   10	Texas	$134,784	$65
   11	Arizona	$134,032	$64
   12	New Hampshire	$133,980	$64
   13	Illinois	$131,706	$63
   14	Georgia	$129,389	$62
   15	Ohio	$128,439	$62
   16	New Mexico	$124,794	$60
   17	North Carolina	$122,175	$59
   18	Virginia	$118,867	$57
   19	Hawaii	$112,549	$54
   20	Tennessee	$112,426	$54

   Average chief security officer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	McKinsey & Company Inc	$196,477	$94.46	11
   2	TS Imagine	$175,771	$84.51
   3	Okta	$174,328	$83.81	2
   4	Kaiser Permanente	$156,389	$75.19	13
   5	Queens Health Systems	$155,290	$74.66
   6	meZocliq	$149,387	$71.82
   7	Gap Inc.	$147,919	$71.11
   8	The Independent Traveler	$147,677	$71.00	2
   9	Jobandtalent	$147,674	$71.00
   10	Ambisafe	$147,674	$71.00
   11	Amgen	$147,322	$70.83	4
   12	Spear Education	$147,286	$70.81
   13	Media Services	$147,221	$70.78
   14	Brighton Health Plan Solutions	$146,646	$70.50
   15	Shalom Austin JCC	$144,897	$69.66
   16	Tiburcio Vasquez Health Center	$144,000	$69.23	5
   17	iMentor	$141,126	$67.85	1
   18	Argonne National Laboratory	$140,174	$67.39	6
   19	Silicon Labs	$140,162	$67.39
   20	Aon	$136,342	$65.55	22

4. Writing a chief security officer job description

   A chief security officer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a chief security officer job description:

   Chief security officer job description example

   Instrumental works with the world's most admired electronics brands like Bose, Cisco, SolarEdge, and others to significantly reduce the 20 cents of every dollar spent in manufacturing that is wasted. Our mission is to cut that waste in half and we're building a fundamentally new product and technology to do so.
   
   The company is focused on growing our cohort of strategic accounts who are in place and happy and rapidly driving expansion in those accounts through strategy, systems building, people organization, and development. Some of our customers have NRRs in excess of 2-3X - we're looking for a leader who is excited and able to capitalize on the massive opportunity we've created with our technology.
   
   Our C-suite is a lead-from-the-front team that fearlessly tackles gnarly zero-to-one challenges throughout the organization. Oftentimes these are highly cross-functional, or just plain tricky, and we're looking for a business and operational-minded C-level executive who loves driving solutions for these types of problems to complement our existing expertise. This is a C-level position about business building - not purely business scaling: we're looking for an executive who proactively seeks out and identifies problems or risks, uses a deep understanding of the business to create a proportionate response, leverages the right cross-functional teams, and urgently drives to an enduring solution. This individual is a strategist as well as a tactician: they will help to inform the company strategy, and then be able to run with it internally - building out complementary structures, programs, and metrics - potentially rolling up their own sleeves to get things done with urgency.
   
   Given the importance of this role to the overall company objectives and the critical relationships to our executive team and the C-Suite, this is an in-person role based out of our Palo Alto Headquarters, reporting directly to the CEO. The specific role title and exact team scope will be dependent on the candidate and will be collaborated on during the interview process.
   
   What You'll Be Doing:First, you'll dive deeply into our business to understand how our industry works and the value our technology provides for our customers. You'll understand our business model, market, segmentation, customers, and operations and seek out risks and opportunities. You'll be an expert in the business of Instrumental.Then you'll use that knowledge to execute strategically - we aren't seeking a leader who “brings a playbook”, we're looking for someone who will make one based on their deep dive and business acumen: informing the business strategy and building the organizational systems needed to execute on that strategy. This may involve rethinking the definitions of functional roles, reconsidering the business model, redesigning the organization, or any number of other things.Develop and implement structures, programs, and metrics to drive core company goals across the business. Figure out how to turn squishy “feelings” into metrics that predict churn, growth opportunities, and high NRR.Leading and coaching a global team. You'll translate the company strategy - right now our focus is on expansion in strategic accounts - into actionable plans and initiatives, developing systems, metrics, and people as you go. While the exact teams to be included in your scope will be determined as part of the interview process based on your interests and prior experience, you'll work collaboratively with your team, the executive team, cross-functional teams, and leadership to solve challenges as they arrive and proactively drive value for customers. You'll drive scale with great systems, not only people - and lead from the front. You'll bring a strong culture of communication and transparency to a part of the business where it can be tempting to hide problems.You'll establish a high standard of execution in leading by example, in partnership with the founders, motivating others through their own self-directed urgency, fearless zero-to-one problem solving, and energy. You'll keep a finger on the skip-level pulse and hold a high bar for their team: moving quickly to make changes, hiring exceptional people, and creating the kinds of development opportunities for your team that keeps amazing people growing at Instrumental.
   
   We're Looking for Someone Who:Does hard things because they are hard and meaningful.Loves the building stage of startups: rolling up their sleeves, rolling with the punches, and rolling out improvements - all with startup urgency. You have seen what we're building towards in a larger organization, have a win under your belt, and are excited to be part of laying the bricks in the foundation for Instrumental as a partner in our C-Suite.Is a strategist and a tactician. You build your action plan from strategic first principles, and you know how to inspire a team and motivate them to take on challenging goals, while also being willing to dive in yourself to help the team achieve them.Has strong analytics skills and an unquenchable thirst to know what is happening and what will happen, with demonstrated experience identifying KPIs, creating metrics, and building systems.10+ years of leadership experience, including prior experience at the VP-level or equivalent role at one or more high-growth B2B companies, and has a demonstrated specialization in startups. Prior C-level experience is not explicitly required. Has deep business chops and the battle scars to show for it.Has a passion for gadgets, building physical things, or eliminating inefficiencies. Technology experience is a must - with a bonus for direct experience with manufacturing, big data technology, or AI.
   
   We're a growing team that consistently works collaboratively, is supportive of each other, and is highly energized by the opportunity for large impact. We actively work to promote an inclusive environment, valuing passion and the ability to learn. You're encouraged to apply even if your experience doesn't precisely match the job description!
   All candidates must have an unrestricted right to work in the U.S.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right chief security officer for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your chief security officer job on Zippia to find and recruit chief security officer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting chief security officers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new chief security officer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the chief security officer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new chief security officer. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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