Research Manager Cybersecurity – Strategic Programs

(ref. OZK-2022-30)

Laatst aangepast : 24/06/2022

DistriNet is an international research group embedded in the Department of Computer Science, Group Science and Technology of KU Leuven, with 12 professors, a business office, 9 research managers, 2 research experts, 12 PostDocs and about 60 researchers, a majority being PhD Students. The dominant expertise of DistriNet focuses on Secure Software, covering applications, services, middleware and systems, infrastructures, methods and tools.

Responsibilities

DistriNet seeks to expand its team with a research manager who will focus on a broad range of challenges in cybersecurity, including secure application development, security middleware and data protection solutions, system and network security, etc. 

Strategic research that is proposed and managed by the candidate will be oriented towards practical platforms in various contexts, such as web and mobile applications, cloud platforms (e.g. PaaS), etc.

The research manager for Cybersecurity will further extend and valorize DistriNet’s research at an international level in cybersecurity. A significant part of the job is related to the management of government programs in Cybersecurity.

This includes the following responsibilities: 

• You manage research projects, programs and activities by tracking the project progress, by attending and organizing project meetings and by participating in and organizing of project collaboration initiatives. 
  
• You initiate, attain and coordinate research project ideas.  This includes knowledge acquisition of relevant national and international research programs, participation in project idea initiatives, negotiations with partners and defining project plans.
• By attending and organizing workshops and stakeholder meetings you expand DistriNet’s national and international network in research, industry and government.
• You follow and assess relevant internal and external developments within the research domain of cybersecurity; you cover a broad range of research topics directly coupled to challenges in cybersecurity.
• You compare internal research results with those of other research centers.
• You contribute to the development of the research strategy related to cybersecurity both within the DistriNet research group, as well as in the collaborations of strategic partners in Flanders and abroad; you translate the policy plan into operational goals.
• You cooperate with the Flemish Government and with KU Leuven corporate services concerning contract matters, program evaluation and external communication.

Profile
* Ph.D. in Computer Science (Doctor in Engineering or in Sciences: Informatics, Computer Science), or equivalent based on experience.


* Knowledge and experience in one or more of the following research subdomains of Cybersecurity:

• Secure software and applications: e.g. practical programming guidelines and styles; program verification; security testing;
• Security building blocks at the middleware level: for data protection, for authentication and authorization, for audit and compliance, etc.
• System security, network and infrastructure security;
• Security of contemporary platforms such as cloud and edge computing platforms, IoT environments, data storage, block chain etc.
• System and network security
• Hardware security

* Experience in the management and execution of national and international research projects.

* Experience in the definition and coordination of national and international research programs and proposals.

* Affinity with the national and international industrial ICT community.

* The ability to work independently as well as part of a research organization.

* The ability to coach people and to collaborate in a peer-2-peer fashion.

* Fluent in English, both written and oral.

Offer

We offer a permanent position as Research Manager at KU Leuven in a very dynamic and internationally oriented research group at one of the best universities in Europe.

Interested?

For more information please contact Prof. dr. ir. Wouter Joosen, tel.: +32 16 32 76 53, mail: [email protected] or Mr. Lieven Desmet, tel.: +32 16 32 62 59, mail: [email protected].

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