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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Network Cybersecurity Project Coordinator

💰 $ - $

CybersecurityNetwork SecurityIT Project ManagementInformation SecuritySOC Operations

🎯 Role Definition

The Network Cybersecurity Project Coordinator is responsible for planning, coordinating, tracking and reporting on network security initiatives and implementations across enterprise environments. This role acts as the central point of contact between security engineering, network operations, vendors, SOC teams, compliance, and business stakeholders to ensure timely delivery of projects such as firewall refreshes, segmentation, VPN upgrades, IDS/IPS deployments, SIEM tuning, vulnerability remediation programs, and cloud network security initiatives. The coordinator drives project governance, risk and change control, resource allocation, and stakeholder communications while ensuring alignment with security frameworks (NIST, ISO27001, PCI-DSS) and corporate policies.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Network Administrator or Network Engineer
  • Security Analyst or SOC Tier 1/2 Analyst
  • IT Project Coordinator or IT Business Analyst

Advancement To:

  • Network Cybersecurity Project Manager
  • Cybersecurity Program Manager
  • Security Engineering Lead or Network Security Architect

Lateral Moves:

  • Compliance & Risk Analyst
  • Vendor/Third-Party Risk Manager
  • Cloud Security Specialist

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Coordinate end-to-end delivery of network security projects (firewall migrations, segmentation, IDS/IPS and VPN deployments), establishing timelines, milestones, dependencies and clear ownership across security, networking, and infrastructure teams.
  • Maintain and update detailed project plans, Gantt charts and RACI matrices; proactively identify schedule impacts and escalate risks to program managers and stakeholders.
  • Serve as the principal liaison between internal teams (SOC, NOC, security engineering, compliance, application owners) and third-party vendors to ensure technical requirements, SLAs, and deliverables are clearly defined and met.
  • Drive change control and CAB coordination for network and security changes, preparing business impact analyses, change tickets, rollback plans and ensuring all changes have required approvals.
  • Track project budgets and procurement activities for security hardware and software (next-gen firewalls, VPN appliances, IDS/IPS, network taps), coordinating with sourcing and finance to manage cost forecasts and purchase orders.
  • Organize and facilitate technical design reviews and implementation workshops, capturing action items, configuration baselines, and test plans to validate security controls are configured per architecture and policies.
  • Manage vendor relationships for managed security services and hardware suppliers, including statement of work (SOW) reviews, delivery schedules, escalation paths and performance KPI tracking.
  • Coordinate vulnerability remediation projects with security testing teams and system owners: prioritize findings, assign remediation tasks, monitor patching progress and validate closure in vulnerability management systems.
  • Support incident response by coordinating network-level containment activities with SOC and network teams, ensuring documented and auditable execution of playbooks during security events.
  • Prepare and deliver executive and operational project status reports, dashboards and KPIs (timeline adherence, budget variance, risk register, incident metrics) for steering committees and stakeholders.
  • Facilitate user acceptance testing (UAT), network validation and performance verification for security deployments; schedule testing windows, capture defects and drive their remediation to closure.
  • Maintain and update network security documentation and runbooks, including configuration standards, network segmentation diagrams, change logs, and disaster recovery / rollback procedures.
  • Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and security frameworks (NIST CSF, ISO27001, PCI-DSS), coordinating evidence collection and remediation tasks for audits and assessments.
  • Coordinate cross-functional operational readiness activities including cutover planning, maintenance window scheduling, business communications and post-implementation reviews to measure project success.
  • Create and maintain asset and configuration inventories for network security devices to support lifecycle management, firmware upgrades, and end-of-life planning.
  • Implement and monitor project risk registers and issue logs, driving mitigation plans and contingency actions to reduce technical and operational exposure.
  • Support configuration management and baselining efforts; ensure secure configurations, standardized templates, and hardening guidelines are applied consistently across network security devices.
  • Coordinate SIEM integration and log ingestion projects: gather logging requirements, work with engineering to normalize sources, test parsers and validate alerts with the SOC.
  • Facilitate cross-team knowledge transfer sessions and training plans for network and application teams on new security controls, operational procedures and incident escalation paths.
  • Drive continuous improvement by gathering lessons learned, documenting process improvements, and updating project governance artifacts to improve delivery cadence for future cybersecurity projects.
  • Lead capacity planning coordination and performance testing for security appliances to ensure SLAs are maintained and hardware is correctly sized for anticipated workloads.
  • Manage ticketing and workflow for project-related service requests, using ITSM tools (e.g., ServiceNow, Jira) to ensure traceability, prioritization, and SLA adherence.
  • Support procurement and licensing processes for security software and cloud network security services, ensuring contract terms align with security and compliance requirements.
  • Coordinate penetration testing and red/blue team exercise logistics with internal security teams and external vendors; capture remediation plans and track implementation status.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
  • Assist with preparing system diagrams, runbooks and post-change verification reports to support operational handoff.
  • Provide administrative coordination for security steering committee meetings, including agenda creation and minute-taking.
  • Monitor vendor performance and contract deliverables, escalating SLA breaches and coordinating corrective action.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Strong project coordination skills with experience using Jira, Microsoft Project, Smartsheet or equivalent project management tools.
  • Working knowledge of network security technologies: firewalls (Palo Alto, Cisco ASA/FTD, Fortinet), VPN (IPSec, SSL), IDS/IPS (Snort, Suricata, Cisco), and network segmentation best practices.
  • Familiarity with SIEM platforms (Splunk, IBM QRadar, Azure Sentinel) and basic log ingestion / normalization concepts.
  • Experience coordinating vulnerability management and remediation workflows with tools like Nessus, Qualys, Rapid7 or similar scanners.
  • Understanding of cloud network security (AWS VPC, Azure NSG, Cloud Firewall) and experience coordinating cloud security projects or migrations.
  • Proficiency with ITSM and change management processes (ServiceNow preferred) and CAB coordination.
  • Basic scripting/automation knowledge (PowerShell, Python, or shell) to assist with automation requests and operational handoffs.
  • Knowledge of security frameworks and compliance regimes (NIST CSF, ISO27001, PCI-DSS, GDPR) and experience coordinating evidence collection for audits.
  • Experience with network monitoring tools and telemetry used by NOC/SOC, and ability to coordinate SOC requirements during projects.
  • Familiarity with configuration management and device baselining for network/security appliances.
  • Experience with vendor and contract coordination for managed security services, hardware refreshes and licensing renewals.
  • Ability to produce management reports, dashboards and KPIs using Excel, Power BI or Tableau.

Soft Skills

  • Strong written and verbal communication skills; ability to translate technical detail into business-level updates and executive summaries.
  • Proven stakeholder management and negotiation skills to coordinate cross-functional teams and third-party vendors.
  • Excellent organization and time-management with the ability to prioritize competing requests across multiple projects.
  • Strong problem-solving mindset, attention to detail and the ability to anticipate project risks and escalate appropriately.
  • Customer-focused attitude with the ability to build trust and rapport with technical and non-technical teams.
  • Adaptability in fast-changing environments and a continuous improvement mindset.
  • Leadership presence to facilitate meetings, drive decisions and maintain momentum on open actions.
  • Confidentiality and professional judgement when handling sensitive security incidents and data.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, Network Engineering, or related field; or equivalent work experience.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor’s or Master’s in Information Security, Cybersecurity, or IT Management; or relevant professional certifications (PMP, CISSP, CISM, CompTIA Security+, ITIL).

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Computer Science
  • Cybersecurity / Information Security
  • Network Engineering
  • Information Systems
  • IT Management

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3 - 7 years in IT, networking, or cybersecurity roles with at least 2+ years in project coordination or project support for network/security initiatives.

Preferred:

  • 5+ years of combined network and security experience with demonstrable coordination of firewall, segmentation, SIEM, or cloud network security projects.
  • Hands-on exposure to enterprise change control and incident response procedures.
  • Experience working in a SOC/NOC integrated environment and coordinating cross-functional security programs.
  • Professional certifications such as PMP or CAPM for project management and/or Security certifications (CISSP, CISM, CompTIA Security+) are highly desirable.
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