Director, Authentication and Directory Services

About the role

Pfizer's Identity Security and Access Management (ISAM) organization runs a centralized, scalable identity security ecosystem. The Director, Authentication and Directory Services, provides global leadership and strategic direction for enterprise authentication and directory capabilities, covering people, platforms, operating model, service health, security posture and multi-year roadmap. The portfolio includes Active Directory, hybrid and cloud directories, single sign-on, federation, multi-factor and passwordless authentication, and public key infrastructure. The role is hybrid and is based in Thessaloniki, Greece.

Key responsibilities

• Define and execute the global strategy and multi-year roadmap, translating enterprise, CISO and ISAM priorities into measurable outcomes, investment decisions and modernization plans.
• Lead a globally distributed organization of managers, engineers, product owners and partner resources, with accountability, succession plans and skills development.
• Own service performance, demand, capacity, lifecycle, budget, vendor commitments and KPIs for availability, resilience, security, adoption, cost and customer experience.
• Govern architecture, standards and modernization across Active Directory, Entra ID, federation, SSO, MFA, passwordless authentication, identity synchronization, Group Policy, DNS and hybrid identity.
• Ensure controls align with Pfizer policy, regulatory requirements and security practices, sponsor removal of legacy protocols and insecure configurations, and maintain audit-ready evidence.
• Ensure highly available global services with monitoring, disaster recovery, capacity management, change governance and 24x7 support, and lead major incidents and problem management.
• Direct major programs such as directory modernization, domain controller upgrades, cloud migration and passwordless adoption, and resolve cross-functional dependencies.
• Partner with Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Cloud Engineering, End User Computing, Application Development, Manufacturing, Business Integration, Compliance and Audit, and communicate service health and investment needs to executives.
• Set the strategy for technology partners and managed service providers, including Microsoft and Ping Identity, and govern vendor performance and contracts.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, information systems, cybersecurity, engineering or a related discipline.
• 8+ years of experience in identity and access management, cybersecurity, infrastructure or enterprise technology, with substantial leadership of global authentication and/or directory services.
• Experience leading people managers and multidisciplinary engineering and operations teams in a large enterprise.
• Experience owning strategy, architecture, engineering, operations and reliability for identity services supporting more than 100k users and 4k global applications.
• Proven ability to lead modernization programs, manage vendors, direct incident response and problem management, and communicate to executive and non-technical stakeholders.
• Understanding of security, privacy and regulated-industry requirements such as SOX, GxP and NIST-aligned controls.
• Agile work environment experience; preferred: Master's degree, leadership in a regulated global industry, and experience modernizing legacy directory infrastructure.

Required skills

• Microsoft Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID, LDAP/LDAPS, directory schema and replication, Group Policy, DNS, hybrid identity.
• SAML, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, federation, single sign-on, multi-factor and passwordless authentication.
• Preferred: deep experience with Microsoft AD/Entra, Ping Federate, Ping One, Keyfactor and PKI platforms, and relevant security, identity, cloud or service-management certifications.

The annual base salary for this position ranges from EUR 67,500, depending on location and final compensation is set according to skills and experience. Benefits vary by location and may include health care coverage, retirement savings plans, insurance, an Employee Assistance Program and wellness benefits.