Director of Security

About the company

Earnest helps ambitious professionals make smarter financial choices so they can build the future they want. The company focuses on giving borrowers better options and a clearer route to managing debt with confidence.

Role summary

Reporting to the Chief Technology Officer, the Director of Security will shape and run the security function for a growing, regulated business. This leader will guide a team, strengthen the security program, and partner with product and engineering to keep security practical, scalable, and aligned with business goals.

Key responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and expand the security organization, including developing newer security managers and engineers such as a Senior Security Engineer and Security Architect.
• Design and continuously improve the company’s security strategy and overall security program from an early stage.
• Work with engineering and product teams to bring security into system design, threat modeling, design reviews, and CI/CD processes.
• Own security architecture, security operations, engineering security practices, IT compliance, and third-party risk review efforts.
• Act as a thoughtful risk advisor by setting guardrails that support the business instead of blocking progress unnecessarily.
• Explain security risks and technical issues clearly to executive leaders, cross-functional partners, and non-technical audiences.

What the company is looking for

• Proven experience leading and developing small security teams in growth-stage, highly regulated organizations.
• Comfort working in or with public-company environments and the obligations that come with them.
• Strong communication, influence, and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to drive alignment across a complex organization.
• Ability to balance business growth, employee experience, and risk reduction in a pragmatic way.
• Solid understanding of cloud-native security practices, including least privilege, zero trust, segmentation, IAM, and trade-offs between security, usability, and performance.

Nice to have

• Experience in fintech or insurtech, especially in a growth-stage environment.
• Prior involvement in taking a company through an IPO.
• Hands-on knowledge of security and compliance frameworks such as NIST, CIS, SOX, SOC2, PCI, and CCPA/CPRA.
• Exposure to DevSecOps, infrastructure as code tools such as Terraform or Ansible, and automated security controls in deployment pipelines.

Location

This position is based in the United States and is onsite in San Francisco, California.

Compensation

The base salary range for this role is $240,000 to $300,000 USD. In addition, the successful candidate is eligible for an annual performance bonus and equity. Final pay will depend on job-related experience and qualifications, internal pay practices, location, and budget.

Benefits and perks

• Health, dental, and vision coverage, plus savings plans.
• Mac computers and a home-office setup stipend.
• Monthly reimbursement for internet and phone expenses.
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
• Restricted Stock Units (RSUs).
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match.
• Tuition reimbursement support.
• A $1,000 travel benefit for each Earnie-versary, usable anywhere in the world.
• Competitive annual PTO.
• Competitive parental leave.

Culture and values

Earnest emphasizes speed, resilience, excellence, teamwork, and humility. Team members are expected to move quickly, take on difficult problems, keep improving, collaborate closely, and maintain a grounded sense of humor.

Equal opportunity and inclusion

Earnest is committed to creating an inclusive workplace where employees feel valued and heard. The company welcomes applicants whose experience is close to the stated requirements and provides equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability, or genetics. Qualified candidates with criminal histories will be considered in line with applicable fair-chance requirements.