Chief Technology Officer

We are Secure Community Network (SCN) , a nonprofit 501(c)(3) serving as the official safety and security organization of the Jewish community in North America. Here at SCN, we deeply value the team of people that work diligently to commit their lives to action for a better tomorrow and we are excited to add a Chief Technology Officer to our organization.

The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) serves as the Secure Community Network's principal technology executive, responsible for the strategy, architecture, and operational integrity of the organization's technology ecosystem in direct support of SCN's mission, translating operational and security priorities into a coherent technology roadmap. Reporting to the National Director/CEO and serving as a member of the executive team, the CTO is responsible for the organization's technology systems and infrastructure, including the design, deployment, and continuous evolution of SCN's threat intelligence and open-source information collection systems, to include its 24/7 National Command Center and growing suite of artificial intelligence-enabled analytic tools. The CTO ensures secure, reliable, and scalable systems for a workforce distributed across the country, including safeguarding the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive threat and law-enforcement-related information. This role is critical in building the internal technology capability required to support SCN's growth as the national safety and security organization for the Jewish community.

This role may be based anywhere in the US. Our main office is located in Chicago, so local candidates would work out of our office in a hybrid model, and candidates based elsewhere would regularly travel to Chicago as needed.

WHAT YOU WILL DO:

• Technology Strategy & Leadership:
  • Serves as a member of SCN's executive leadership team and principal advisor to the National Director/CEO on all matters of technology strategy, architecture, and investment.
  • Leads the architecture, planning and development of SCN's real time threat detection and open source intelligence platform including continual adoption of innovative, new AI driven law enforcement and intelligence technologies.
  • Develops and leads execution of a multi-year technology roadmap that aligns SCN's tools, platforms, and infrastructure with its operational, intelligence, and organizational growth priorities.
  • Establishes technology governance, standards, and policies across the organization, ensuring consistency, security, and scalability as SCN's mission and footprint expand.
  • Partners with the Chief Financial and Administrative Officer to build and manage the technology budget, evaluating return on investment for major technology initiatives.
  • Ensures that technology investments and initiatives deliver measurable improvements in mission effectiveness, community outcomes, operational efficiency, cybersecurity posture, and organizational scalability.
  • Recruits, develops, and leads a high-performing technology team; sets performance expectations and fosters a culture of accountability, innovation, security-mindedness, and continuous improvement.
  • Collaborates across SCN's departments to ensure technology investments support cross-functional priorities.
• Enterprise IT & Workforce Support:
  • Oversees enterprise IT infrastructure, including networks, cloud platforms, endpoint security, and collaboration tools supporting a national workforce that is largely remote and distributed.
  • Ensures secure, reliable access to systems and information for employees working from SCN's Field Support Center as well as in the field.
  • Builds and leads a technology team - in-house staff, contractors, and vendors - capable of supporting a fast-growing, mission-driven organization.
  • Manages relationships with technology vendors, contractors, and partners, negotiating contracts and ensuring service levels meet SCN's operational requirements.
• Cybersecurity & Information Security:
  • Establishes and oversees SCN's cybersecurity program, including policies, controls, and incident response protocols to protect sensitive threat information, donor data, and organizational systems.
  • Ensures compliance with applicable data privacy, information security, and law enforcement information-sharing requirements, and establishes an information security framework appropriate to SCN's mission and risk profile, including evaluation and implementation of relevant standards and certifications such as NIST, SOC 2, ISO 27001, CJIS, FedRAMP, and other applicable frameworks. Leads risk assessments and manages relationships with third-party security auditors and consultants as needed.
• Command Center & Mission-Critical Systems:
  • Owns the technology architecture, uptime, and resiliency of SCN's National Command Center, including video wall, monitoring, communications, and case management systems.
  • Leads planning for system redundancy, business continuity, and disaster recovery for all mission-critical platforms.
  • Evaluates and integrates emerging technologies that enhance the Command Center's real-time threat monitoring and response capabilities.
• Open-Source Intelligence:
  • Directs the identification, evaluation, procurement, and deployment of tools used to collect, aggregate, and analyze open-source information in support of SCN's threat identification and situational awareness mission.
  • Collaborates with SCN's intelligence, analysis, and law enforcement liaison teams to ensure technology tools meet evolving operational needs.
• AI Adoption:
  • Leads the responsible integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities across the organization, positioning SCN to benefit from AI organization-wide.
  • Establishes protocols and quality controls governing the use of AI-generated analysis and outputs in threat management, ensuring they meet the standards required for engagement with law enforcement and security partners.
• Data Strategy:
  • Owns SCN's enterprise data strategy, including data integration, architecture, and governance across all systems.
  • Ensures leadership and departments have access to accurate, timely data, analytics, and reporting to support operational and strategic decision-making.
  • Establishes data quality standards and a consistent, trusted source of information across SCN's platforms.
• Innovation & Strategic Partnerships:
  • Identifies and deploys technologies that improve the speed, scale, quality, and effectiveness of SCN's services to communities and partner institutions, including developing new technology-enabled services and tools.
  • Continuously scans the technology landscape for solutions that can advance SCN's mission and expand the reach and impact of its services.
  • Builds and maintains relationships with leading technology companies, research institutions, universities, and startups to expand SCN's capabilities and provide early access to emerging technology.
  • Explores pilot programs, grants, and collaborative research opportunities that advance SCN's technology capabilities and mission.
• External Engagement:
  • Joins the National Director/CEO and senior leadership as a regular participant in funder meetings, partnership discussions, board presentations, and engagements with law enforcement and community stakeholders, representing SCN's technology, data, and AI capabilities.
  • Credibly articulates how SCN's technology platform, intelligence capabilities, data assets, and AI-enabled services strengthen the case for SCN's mission and impact with funders, boards, communities, and partners.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Minimum of 10 years of progressive technology leadership experience, including at least 5 years in a senior technology executive role (CTO, VP of Technology, or equivalent).
• Demonstrated experience building and overseeing OSINT, threat intelligence, or comparable mission-critical analytic technologies; experience within law enforcement, intelligence, national security, public safety, or related AI/analytics environments strongly preferred.
• Experience designing and maintaining technology infrastructure for mission-critical, 24/7 operations or command centers preferred.
• Direct experience evaluating, deploying, and governing artificial intelligence and machine learning tools in an operational or analytic environment.
• Strong knowledge of cybersecurity, data governance, and information security principles, with working knowledge of relevant frameworks and standards such as NIST, SOC 2, ISO 27001, CJIS, FedRAMP, or comparable frameworks. Proven experience building and leading enterprise IT and technology infrastructure to support a geographically distributed workforce.
• Experience managing technology budgets, vendor relationships, and cross-functional teams.
• Ability to obtain and maintain any security clearances or vetting required to support SCN's law enforcement and intelligence community partnerships.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts for non-technical executives, board members, and partners.
• Ability to travel as needed.
• Ability to receive and process sensitive intelligence and information appropriately.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and comfortable operating in an Apple environment.

ABOUT SCN

The Secure Community Network (SCN), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is the official homeland safety and security organization of the Jewish community in North America. Founded in 2004 under the auspices of The Jewish Federations of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, SCN serves as the central organization dedicated exclusively to the safety and security of the American Jewish community, working across 146 federations, 50 partner organizations, over 300 independent communities, and other partners in the public, private, nonprofit, and academic sectors. SCN is dedicated to ensuring that Jewish organizations, communities, life, and culture can not only exist safely and securely but flourish. Learn more at securecommunitynetwork.org.

The target annual salary range for this position is $250,000 - $300,000. Final annual salary offered will be determined through a thorough assessment of multiple factors and criteria including candidate experience and qualifications, geographic market data, internal salary equity, and budget considerations.

SCN offers a comprehensive benefits package to all full time employees which includes Medical, Dental, Vision, Short and Long Term Disability, and Life and AD&D Insurance, as well as a 403(b) Retirement Plan with match, Flexible Spending Accounts for pre-tax Healthcare, Dependent Care, and Commuter Benefits, Accident and Critical Illness Insurance, Norton LifeLock, and an Employee Assistance Program. We provide paid time off including Vacation, Sick Leave, and paid Holidays.

Secure Community Network is an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment including the decision to hire, promote, discipline, or discharge, will be based on merit, competence, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of religion, race, color, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.

SCN has long been a committed leader in adopting, modeling, and encouraging adherence to Jewish values, including advocating for approaches that address issues related to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). Please review our DEIA statement here.