Director of Technology Risk

Career Guide
A Director of Technology Risk leads the identification, reduction, and monitoring of risks that come from using technology. The role partners with engineering, security, compliance, audit, and business leaders to protect customers, data, and operations while enabling the company to move quickly and meet legal and industry expectations.

Key Responsibilities

  • Set the technology risk strategy and priorities across the organization
  • Build and maintain a technology risk framework and reporting cadence
  • Identify major technology risks such as outages, cyber threats, third party exposure, and change risk
  • Lead risk assessments for new products, systems, and major technology changes
  • Define risk controls and ensure they are designed well and operating as intended
  • Oversee third party technology risk reviews for vendors and partners
  • Partner with engineering and security teams to plan and track risk reduction work
  • Prepare executive updates for leadership teams and board level stakeholders
  • Support internal audit and external exam requests with clear evidence and documentation
  • Coach and manage technology risk teams and cross functional working groups

Top Skills for Success

Risk Assessment
Risk Reporting
Control Design
Control Testing
Cybersecurity Fundamentals
Cloud Risk Management
Third Party Risk Management
Technology Governance
Incident Management
Regulatory Awareness
Stakeholder Management
Executive Communication
Program Management
Team Leadership

Career Progression

Can Lead To
Technology Risk Senior Manager
Technology Risk Director
Head of Technology Risk
Chief Risk Officer
Chief Information Security Officer
Transition Opportunities
Enterprise Risk Management Director
Security Governance Leader
Technology Audit Leader
Compliance Technology Leader
Operational Resilience Leader

Common Skill Gaps

Often Missing Skills
Cloud Risk ManagementThird Party Risk ManagementRisk QuantificationExecutive CommunicationMetrics DesignOperational ResilienceData Governance
Development SuggestionsBuild a clear portfolio of outcomes such as reduced high severity risks, improved control coverage, faster audit closure, and stronger vendor oversight. Practice translating technical issues into business impact, cost, and customer risk. Strengthen cloud and vendor risk depth through real assessments, evidence collection, and measurable remediation plans.

Salary & Demand

Median Salary Range
Entry Level150,000 to 200,000 USD
Mid Level200,000 to 260,000 USD
Senior Level260,000 to 350,000 USD
Growth Trend
Strong demand, driven by increasing cyber incidents, heavier regulation, cloud adoption, and growing reliance on vendors. Hiring is especially steady in financial services, healthcare, and large technology platforms.

Companies Hiring

Major Employers
JPMorgan ChaseBank of AmericaWells FargoGoldman SachsMorgan StanleyCitiCapital OneVisaMastercardAmazonMicrosoftGoogleIBMAccentureDeloitte
Industry Sectors
BankingInsurancePaymentsFintechHealthcareCloud ServicesEcommerceConsultingTelecommunicationsEnergy

Recommended Next Steps

1
Create a one page technology risk dashboard with key metrics and trend commentary
2
Lead a risk assessment for a major system change and publish a remediation plan with owners and dates
3
Build a repeatable third party risk review checklist and improve vendor evidence quality
4
Partner with security and engineering to reduce the top five risks and track progress monthly
5
Prepare a board ready summary that explains technology risks in plain business terms
6
Target roles in regulated industries where technology risk leadership is most valued