Associate Director, Adversary Intelligence & Readiness (AIR)

This is the opportunity to demonstrate your passion about understanding how modern attackers operate and continuously strengthening an organisation’s cyber defence capabilities. Do you excel at leading highly technical teams, challenging assumptions, and driving measurable security improvements across intelligence, testing, and readiness domains? Then you could be the perfect fit to lead Novo Nordisk’s “Adversary Intelligence & Readiness (AIR)” function within the Cyber Defence Centre.

Your new position
As Associate Director for Adversary Intelligence & Readiness, you will lead a highly specialised team spanning Threat Intelligence, Threat Hunting, Red Teaming, Purple Teaming, and Security Testing capabilities.

• You will play a key role in shaping Novo Nordisk’s adversary-focused cyber defence capability by continuously validating our defences against real-world attacker behaviour and ensuring that intelligence is operationalised into measurable improvements across detection, engineering, and response.
• Your team will work closely with the broader Cyber Defence Centre functions, including Threat Detection & Response, Defence Engineering, and Detection Analytics & Orchestration, to continuously improve cyber defence effectiveness across the organisation.
• You will be responsible for establishing and maturing adversary simulation and readiness capabilities, ensuring that Novo Nordisk continuously challenges and strengthens its cyber defences against evolving threats.

By joining us, you will help shape a modern cyber defence capability focused on understanding adversaries, validating defences, and improving organisational readiness in an increasingly complex threat landscape. Additionally, you will be an integral member of the Cyber Defence Centre management team, collaborating with peers across the organisation to strengthen Novo Nordisk’s overall cyber resilience.

Your key responsibilities include;
• Lead Novo Nordisk’s adversary-focused readiness capability across Threat Intelligence, Threat Hunting, Red Teaming, Purple Teaming, and Security Testing.
• Drive operationalisation of threat intelligence into actionable detection, engineering, and response improvements.
• Establish and mature adversary emulation and purple teaming capabilities aligned to modern attacker techniques and real-world threats.
• Continuously validate cyber defence capabilities through threat-informed exercises, simulations, and testing activities.
• Partner closely with Threat Detection & Response, Defence Engineering, and Detection Analytics & Automation teams to improve cyber defence effectiveness across the enterprise.
• Drive threat-informed defence strategies aligned to frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK.
• Translate technical findings and adversary behaviour into clear operational and strategic recommendations for both technical and leadership audiences.
• Build a culture of continuous improvement, challenge, and readiness across the Cyber Defence Centre.
• Develop meaningful metrics and reporting around readiness, detection validation, and adversary simulation effectiveness.
• Lead and mentor a highly technical team with diverse offensive and defensive security capabilities.

Your new department
The Cyber Defence Centre (CDC) is part of Infrastructure and Information Security within Enterprise IT at Novo Nordisk and is based in Denmark. We are a global organisation with team members across Denmark, the USA, and India.

The CDC brings together intelligence, engineering, analytics, automation, and response capabilities into an integrated, adversary-focused cyber defence capability designed to protect Novo Nordisk against evolving cyber threats.

We are responsible for continuously strengthening Novo Nordisk’s cyber resilience through threat-informed defence, detection engineering, advanced analytics, security monitoring, incident response, adversary simulation, and operational security technologies.


Your skills & qualifications

You hold a Master’s degree, preferably in IT, Information Security or equivalent with 7+ years of experience within cyber security, with experience across areas such as Threat Intelligence, Threat Hunting, Red Teaming, Purple Teaming, Incident Response, Security Testing, or Detection Engineering.
• A strong adversary-focused cyber security mindset.
• Strong understanding of modern attacker tradecraft, threat actor behaviour, and threat-informed defence principles.
• Experience leading highly technical teams and driving cross-functional collaboration across global organisations.
• Experience operationalising threat intelligence into detection and defence improvements.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence both technical and leadership audiences.
• Experience working with frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to translate complex technical risks into actionable outcomes.

As a person you are structured, proactive, intellectually curious, and comfortable challenging established thinking. You thrive in complex environments, can navigate ambiguity, and can drive alignment across highly technical teams and stakeholders.


Working at Novo Nordisk
Founded in Denmark in 1923, Novo Nordisk has become one of the world’s leading healthcare companies. At Novo Nordisk, we are committed to driving change to defeat diabetes and other serious chronic diseases. To fulfil this purpose, we pioneer scientific breakthroughs, expand access to our medicines, and work to prevent and ultimately cure disease.

With us, your skills, commitment, and ambition help us change patients’ lives worldwide. In exchange, we offer you a rewarding and purpose-driven culture with talented and diverse co-workers. Your professional and personal development is important to us, and in Novo Nordisk the opportunities are endless.

What we offer

At Novo Nordisk, you’ll join a global healthcare company with a unique culture and strong results. We offer continuous learning, career development, and benefits tailored to your life and career stage.

Salary:  For this role, the Annual Base Salary ranges from 847,000.00 to 1,245,100.00 DKK, corresponding to the level of the position.

The placement within the salary range will be assessed during the recruitment process based on the candidate’s skills, competencies, knowledge, and relevant experience.

Incentives and Benefits: The salary package may include short-term and/or long-term incentives as well as other employee benefits based on position level,  location, functional area and relevant market benchmarks.

Learn more about our Reward Philosophy here.

More information

For further information, please feel free to contact Hiring Manager for this role, Associate Vice President Sathyan Krishnan at SYKS@novonordisk.com

Deadline

10 July 2026

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.

At Novo Nordisk, we're not chasing quick fixes – we're creating lasting change for long-term health. For over 100 years, we've been driven by a single purpose: to defeat serious chronic diseases and help millions of people live healthier lives. This dedication fuels our constant curiosity and inspires us to push the boundaries of what's possible in healthcare. We embrace diverse perspectives, seek out bold ideas, and build partnerships rooted in shared purpose. Together, we're making healthcare more accessible, treating and preventing diseases, and pioneering solutions that create change spanning generations. When you join us, you become part of something bigger – a legacy of impact that reaches far beyond today.