Ken Yrey
Pittsburgh,PA
Summary
Veteran in cybersecurity with a strong background in MSSPs. Expertise spans alert triage, program management, automation, and systems design. Committed to enhancing operational efficiency and developing training tools that foster team growth and performance.
Overview
1
1
Certification
10
10
years of professional experience
Work History
VSOC Operations Manager
Nightwing LLC
05.2026 - Current
- Led daily SOC operations, aligning staffing, priorities, and workflows with mission requirements.
- Coordinated cross-functional teams to resolve issues and maintain service continuity.
- Monitored performance data and identified process gaps to improve operational efficiency.
- Implemented standard procedures that strengthened consistency, quality, and accountability.
- Managed reporting, documentation, and status updates for leadership visibility.
- Supervised operations staff and kept employees compliant with company policies and procedures.
- Assisted in recruiting, hiring and training of team members.
Solutions Architect and Developer
Nightwing
04.2024 - 05.2026
- Coordinated with senior leadership to develop systems/solutions addressing industry-specific issues
- Constructed data visualizations to support SOC leadership in decision making
- Leverage automations that streamline organizational workload
- Construct data visualizations that enhance SOC Leadership decision making
- Developed learning plans and tools to support career growth for technical personnel
SOC Lead
RTX TRR VSOC
05.2022 - 04.2024
- Coordinated SOC operations for MSSP role, overseeing 50+ staff to ensure effective security services
- Developed and maintained workflow systems to improve tracking and optimize work output
- Created and distributed educational publications to support growth of technical personnel
- Standardized operational and security processes to ensure consistent service delivery
SOC Shift Leader
Raytheon Foreground
05.2020 - 05.2022
- Mentored SOC analysts, fostering technical skills and leadership capabilities
- Implemented senior leadership directives, aligning operations with organizational goals
- Developed local SOC work structure, streamlining processes to support operational goals
Threat Hunter
Raytheon Foreground Security
10.2018 - 05.2020
- Executed Threat Hunting practices to identify and mitigate conventional and unconventional adversarial activity in customer environments.
- Created playbooks and instructional material to streamline Security Analysts' investigation workflows.
- Supported alert triage for active Security Operations Center, improving incident response and reducing response times.
SIEM Content Developer
ReliaQuest
07.2018 - 11.2018
- Implemented SIEM rules across diverse environments in ArcSight, Qradar, LogRhythm, McAfee ESM, and Splunk to enhance threat detection
- Developed abstract rules for detecting network intrusions based on IOCs
- Research and deconstruct cyber attacks into sequenced Indicators Of Compromise (IOC) detectable through network device logs
- Analyzed large data sets to establish network activity baselines and identify abnormalities
- Executed testing of rules in lab environment using penetration testing tools to ensure effectiveness
- Documented processes to assist diverse audiences in effectively utilizing developed SIEM content
Security Analyst
ReliaQuest
10.2016 - 06.2018
- Delivered incident response support for security incidents, ensuring timely resolution and mitigation of threats.
- Analyzed and investigated security-related data from diverse devices and environments, improving threat detection capabilities.
- Conducted analysis of threat and vulnerability reports, shaping security posture and enhancing response strategies.
- Provided Incident Response (IR) support for security incidents.
- Utilized various security technologies such as SIEM, IDS/IPS, and DLP to enhance security operations.
- Contributed to 24x7 Security Operations Center by monitoring security alerts and incidents.
Education
Bachelor's Degree - Computer and Information Systems Security/Information Assurance
University of South Florida
Tampa01-2016
Bachelor's Degree - Information Technology
Broward College
01-2013
Skills
- Incident response support
- Security standardization
- Threat hunting practices
- Cybersecurity automation
- Threat detection
- Security standardization
- Operations management
- Operational reporting
- Data analytics
- Security process standardization
- Problem resolution
- Team coordination
- Process standardization
Certification
- Atlassian Certified in ITSM with Jira
- Service Management Foundations
- Linux+ LPIC Level 1 Exam 1
- Linux Essentials Certification
- MTA: Windows Operating System Fundamentals - Certified 2016
- CompTIA Security+
- CompTIA Network+
- CompTIA CySA+
- GIAC Security Essentials
Personal Information
Timeline
VSOC Operations Manager
Nightwing LLC
05.2026 - Current
Solutions Architect and Developer
Nightwing
04.2024 - 05.2026
SOC Lead
RTX TRR VSOC
05.2022 - 04.2024
SOC Shift Leader
Raytheon Foreground
05.2020 - 05.2022
Threat Hunter
Raytheon Foreground Security
10.2018 - 05.2020
SIEM Content Developer
ReliaQuest
07.2018 - 11.2018
Security Analyst
ReliaQuest
10.2016 - 06.2018
Bachelor's Degree - Information Technology
Broward College
Bachelor's Degree - Computer and Information Systems Security/Information Assurance
University of South Florida