Chief Information Security Officer

Join the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and be part of a team committed to creating a positive impact in the lives of fellow Texans. At HHSC, your contributions matter, and we support you at each stage of your life and work journey. Our comprehensive benefits package includes 100% paid employee health insurance for full-time eligible employees, a defined benefit pension plan, generous time off benefits, numerous opportunities for career advancement and more.

Explore more details on the Benefits of Working at HHS webpage.

Functional Title: Chief Information Security Officer Job Title: Director VI Agency: Health & Human Services Comm Department: CHIEF INFO SECURITY OFFICE Posting Number: 19093 Closing Date: 09/14/2026 Posting Audience: Internal and External Occupational Category: Computer and Mathematical Salary Range: $10,271.00- $16,853.13 Pay Frequency: MonthlySalary Group: TEXAS-B-31 Shift: Day Additional Shift: Days (First) Telework: Travel: Regular/Temporary: Regular Full Time/Part Time: Full time FLSA Exempt/Non-Exempt: Exempt Facility Location: Job Location City: AUSTIN Job Location Address: 4601 W GUADALUPE ST Other Locations: MOS Codes: ,C0,111X,112X,113X,114X,20C0,30C0,40C0,611X,612X,631X,641X,648X,90G0,91C0,91W0
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Brief Job Description:

This position is open to U.S. Citizens and permanent residents.

This onsite role requires the selected candidate to work from an HHS office in Austin, Texas.

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) is seeking an exceptional, forward-thinking Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) to lead cybersecurity for one of the largest and most mission-critical public-sector technology environments in Texas.

This role is responsible for protecting public trust, supporting continuity of essential services, enabling secure modernization, and preparing the agency for emerging cyber threats, including artificial intelligence, cloud transformation, third-party risk, and post-quantum cryptography.

The successful candidate will be a strategic security executive who can translate risk into business decisions, build strong partnerships across the organization, and lead a mature cybersecurity program that protects sensitive health, benefits, operational, and agency information throughout the HHS system.

Reporting to the Chief Information Officer, the CISO provides executive leadership and oversight for the HHS information security program. The CISO also serves as the agency's Designated Information Security Officer for HHS information resources, with authority to administer enterprise information security requirements, coordinate agency-wide security governance, and report cybersecurity risk and control effectiveness to executive-level management consistent with Texas Government Code  and TAC Chapter 202.

Additional responsibilities include cybersecurity strategy, governance, risk management, security operations, incident response, security architecture, policy development, awareness initiatives, and executive reporting.

The CISO serves as a trusted advisor to executive leadership, business areas, technology teams, information owners, and agency partners. The position requires a collaborative leader who understands that effective cybersecurity enables, rather than impedes, the agency's mission. The CISO will advance cyber resilience, support secure modernization, strengthen identity and access management, promote zero trust principles, and drive risk-informed adoption of emerging technologies.

The next HHSC CISO will:
Build trust with executive leadership through clear, measurable, and actionable risk reporting.
Lead a mature cybersecurity program focused on governance, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Strengthen cyber resilience to ensure critical services remain available during and after cyber incidents.
Prepare the agency for emerging threats through post-quantum readiness, modernization planning, and technology risk management.
Partner with business and technology leaders to integrate security into strategic, operational, and procurement decisions.
Develop a high-performing cybersecurity workforce and foster a culture of…