IT Department Lead - Remote, Worldwide

About Nethermind:

Nethermind builds and secures core Ethereum infrastructure. We develop the Nethermind execution client, contribute to network upgrades, and deliver protocol-level work across rollups, zero-knowledge systems, and cross-chain architecture. Our security team audits smart contracts, ZK circuits, and off-chain components, with formal verification capabilities for critical systems.

We maintain deep expertise across the full stack—from client optimization to open-source tooling—backed by continuous contributions to Ethereum's evolution. As blockchain intersects with AI, we're developing hardware that anchors digital identity in verifiable biometrics with cryptographic privacy guarantees

The Role:

We're looking for a seasoned IT leader to take ownership of Nethermind's entire Internal IT Department: spanning Platform Engineering, Infrastructure Security, IAM, and FinOps.

This role owns the internal/corporate technology estate that the whole company runs on: developer platform, identity, security posture, and infrastructure spend. It sits alongside (and is distinct from) our client-facing blockchain infrastructure operations, though you'll partner closely with those teams.

You'll report directly to the CIO and serve as the central point of coordination for everything internal infrastructure. This is a hands-on leadership role: you'll manage people, drive strategy, break down silos between DevOps and the wider organisation, and be the go-to person for C-level and group leads on infrastructure matters. If you thrive at the intersection of people management, technical excellence, and cross-functional communication and you're excited about shaping how a 50+ country, fully remote Web3 company operates - we'd love to hear from you.

Responsibilities:

- Lead and supervise the full Internal IT Department: Platform Engineering, Infrastructure Security, IAM and FinOps.

- Drive company-wide and team-level infrastructure initiatives, co-defining strategy and roadmap with the CIO and rest of the team

- People management across the department: staffing, career guidance, performance reviews, and raising the technical bar

- Maintain clear, consistent communication with C-level executives and group leads to strengthen cross-functional relationships and eliminate DevOps silos

- Act as the primary point of contact for all internal IT matters, staying in constant sync with the CIO on new initiatives and resource allocation

- Adapt the best of AI technology to the daily engineering and non-engineering working routine

- Communicate with external clients when required, representing the department's capabilities and aligning on infrastructure needs

- Continuously identify and implement improvements and optimisations in the way the organisation works

- Support hiring efforts: sourcing, interviewing, and evaluating candidates to grow the team with top talent

- Conduct monthly performance reviews using Rippling, providing structured feedback

Must Haves:

- Proven experience leading and scaling IT / infrastructure / platform engineering teams (5+ years in a management role).

- Strong background in cloud infrastructure, Kubernetes, and DevOps/SRE practices.

- Strategic thinking with the ability to co-define and execute on technical roadmaps.

- Hands-on understanding of infrastructure security, IAM, and FinOps disciplines.

- Experience translating compliance and audit requirements (e.g. SOC2, ISO 27001, or sector-specific frameworks) into operational controls.

- Comfort owning or governing internal AI tooling and agentic workflows, with a security-first mindset.

- Excellent people management skills: hiring, mentoring, career development, and performance management.

- Ability to communicate complex technical topics clearly to C-level stakeholders and non-technical audiences.

- Practical experience with security incident response and threat modelling, ideally including supply-chain and adversarial/state-actor scenarios.

- Comfortable operating in a fully remote, async-first, globally distributed environment.

- Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, able to juggle multiple initiatives and stakeholders simultaneously.

Nice to Haves:

- Experience in the blockchain / Web3 / crypto ecosystem.

- Familiarity with multi-cloud and hybrid architectures (AWS, OVH) at scale.

- Experience running ****self-hosted / sovereign infrastructure (e.g. self-hosted identity providers, internal platforms) over off-the-shelf SaaS.

- Background in productising internal platforms (PaaS / IaaS offerings) or spinning internal tools into standalone products.

- Hands-on experience with FinOps tooling and large-scale cost optimisation.

- Track record building or governing AI/ML and agent infrastructure.

What We Offer/ Benefits

- Flexible Work Options: Remote-first culture with the opportunity to work from anywhere.

- Global and Diverse Workforce: You'll work with people from various backgrounds and cultures.

- Learning and Development: You'll work on innovative, challenging projects and have access to experts and mentors to enhance your skills.

- Career Growth: Access to training, mentorship, and opportunities to contribute to open-source initiatives.

- Global Events and Conferences: Opportunities to attend the industry events.

- Collaborative and Innovative Culture: We foster teamwork and encourage new ideas.

- Unlimited Time Off: Enjoy the freedom to structure your working hours in a way that suits you best, with the flexibility to take unpaid time off whenever needed to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

- Equity participation allowing you to benefit directly from the company's success.

Our Commitment to Diversity

At Nethermind, we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all team members. We believe a variety of perspectives drives innovation and leads to b