Lead OT Security Engineer - Cyber Protection and Control
About us
National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) sits at the heart of the UK’s energy system. The reliability, safety and resilience of our transmission network is critical to daily life, and protecting it against cyber threats is a core priority.
We are seeking a Lead OT Security Engineer to take ownership of cybersecurity for our Protection & Control (P&C) and substation automation environments. This role is intentionally suited to someone with a strong electrical or power systems engineering background who is passionate about developing deeper expertise in OT cybersecurity.
Job Purpose
You will act as the subject matter expert for system-level cyber risk within P&C, leading how cyber assurance, compliance and resilience are defined, assessed and improved across substations and associated OT assets. As part of our Controls & Strategy / System-level security capability, you will translate engineering reality into meaningful cyber risk decisions, shaping investment, regulatory assurance and long-term resilience of the electricity network.
What you'll do
- Act as the technical lead for OT cybersecurity within Protection & Control and substation environments, ensuring secure-by-design implementation of new and changed engineering solutions.
- Own and be accountable for the cyber assessment framework for P&C assets, including defining cyber compliance metrics and assurance evidence to support regulatory and internal governance requirements.
- Lead cyber maturity, threat modelling and risk assessments across substation automation and protection systems, identifying gaps in current security posture and defining pragmatic remediation strategies.
- Work closely with protection engineers, substation designers, commissioning teams, operations, IT and programme delivery to embed cybersecurity across the full engineering lifecycle — from early design through to build, test, commissioning and in-service support.
- Provide deep technical insight into substation OT architectures, including protection relays, bay controllers, engineering workstations, gateways, OT networks and communications (e.g. station/bay LANs, IEC 61850 environments, remote interfaces and time synchronisation).
- Develop and maintain security cases, risk registers, assurance artefacts and control effectiveness evidence to demonstrate audit readiness and regulatory compliance.
- Act as the business lead for funded cyber resilience projects (including Ofgem-funded initiatives), ensuring solutions are fit for purpose, land well operationally and deliver measurable security value.
- Engage with suppliers, industry bodies and internal stakeholders to improve cyber resilience, share best practice and continuously raise NGET’s P&C cybersecurity capability.
- Coach and mentor engineers, helping build consistent and sustainable OT security practices across the organisation.
About you
You are an experienced electrical or power systems engineer with hands-on exposure to substations and Protection & Control environments, and a clear interest in developing or applying OT cybersecurity within critical national infrastructure.
Essential experience and background
- Degree (or equivalent practical experience) in Electrical / Power Engineering, Cybersecurity, Control & Instrumentation, Systems Engineering or a closely related discipline.
- Strong, demonstrable experience in substation Protection & Control or power systems engineering, such as protection relays, substation automation, commissioning, maintenance or engineering change in a regulated transmission or distribution environment.
- Practical understanding of substation automation and OT systems, including asset lifecycles, engineering governance and operational constraints.
- Ability to operate at system level — identifying engineering-led cyber risks and translating them into actionable mitigation and investment decisions.
Desirable cybersecurity knowledge (training can be supported)
- Awareness or experience of OT / ICS security principles within CNI environments.
- Familiarity with IEC 61850 (highly desirable) and ISA/IEC 62443 standards.
- Exposure to securing OT networks, segmentation, access control, remote connectivity and high-availability systems.
- Understanding of UK regulatory, industry and cyber assurance expectations within electricity transmission or distribution.
- Cybersecurity certifications (e.g. CISSP, CISM, GICSP/GRID) or willingness to work toward them.
Most importantly, you bring engineering credibility, curiosity and a genuine passion for building cyber resilience in complex, safety‑critical systems.
What you'll get
- Salary £60,000 - £78,500 pa + £3,000 pa Market Supplement + Benefits package (depending on experience)
- Training and Development.
- 37 hours Mon – Fri (Location - Variable/Flexible (Permanent/Full time with hybrid working)
- 26 days annual leave plus 8 statutory days.
- Enhanced parental leave.
- Generous contributory pension scheme - we will double-match your contribution to a maximum. company contribution of 12%. Totalling 18%.
- Statutory Bank Holiday swapping – if you wish to change them for another day
- The option to buy additional or sell holiday days.
- Financial support to help cover the cost of professional membership subscriptions, course fees, books, exam fees and time off for study leave – relevant to your role.
- Access to flexible benefits such as a share incentive plan, salary sacrifice car and technology schemes, support via employee assistance lines and matched charity giving to name a few.
- Family care benefits including a back-up care service for when your usual care arrangements fall through (six paid days each year as standard with the option to purchase further days).
- Access to numerous apps which support health, fitness and wellbeing.
More Information
The closing date for this vacancy is 8th April. However, we encourage candidates to submit their applications as early as possible and not to wait until the published closing date. National Grid’s recruitment periods can and may vary. We reserve the right to remove this advert or close it to further applications at any point during the recruitment process.
DE & I statement:
At National Grid, we work towards the highest standards in everything we do, including how we support, value, and develop our people. Our aim is to encourage and support employees to thrive and be the best they can be. We celebrate the difference people can bring into our organisation and welcome and encourage applicants with diverse experiences and backgrounds, offering flexible and tailored support, at home and in the office.
Our goal is to drive, develop, and operate our business in a way that results in a more inclusive culture. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, the innovation from diverse teams & perspectives, and business need. We are committed to building a workforce that can represent the communities we serve and have a working environment in which each individual feels valued, respected, fairly treated, and able to reach their full potential.
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