Vice President, European Cybersecurity Engagement

Description

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title and Summary

The Vice President, European Cybersecurity Engagement will lead Mastercard's government and institutional cybersecurity engagement across Europe, across a range of critical stakeholders — including the European Commission, ENISA, NATO, national cybersecurity agencies, and other key multilateral and bilateral partners.

This individual will build and steward trusted relationships across the European cybersecurity ecosystem, positioning Mastercard as a strategic partner to governments navigating an increasingly complex threat landscape. The role combines deep engagement expertise, cybersecurity policy fluency, and a sophisticated understanding of Europe's evolving regulatory and institutional environment.

While this role is not a sales position, it will be commercially oriented in a meaningful sense: effective engagement that establishes Mastercard as a credible, indispensable partner creates the conditions for deeper collaboration and, in partnership with Mastercard's product and sales teams, for commercial opportunities across identity, fraud prevention, and threat intelligence. This individual will be instrumental in identifying where Mastercard's capabilities are most relevant to European government needs and in shaping how the company is positioned in those conversations.

Role:

Design and execute Mastercard's European government cybersecurity engagement strategy, in close coordination with the SVP, regional, and country teams.

Build and maintain high-level relationships with key European institutions and bodies — including the European Commission (DG CNECT, DG HOME), ENISA, NATO, Europol's EC3, national cybersecurity agencies (BSI, ANSSI, NCSC-UK, CCN, and others), and relevant multilateral forums.

Represent Mastercard in European cybersecurity policy forums, working groups, and industry dialogues — advancing the company's thought leadership and securing speaking and advisory roles at key events.

Work with government affairs and regional teams to understand European cybersecurity policy developments and how to translate these into strategic insights and opportunities for Mastercard.

Identify and develop opportunities for Mastercard's cybersecurity capabilities to address European government priorities, partnering closely with product and sales teams to develop credible, tailored value propositions.

Develop and deliver high-quality briefings, reports, and executive communications tailored to European government and institutional audiences.

Cultivate relationships with think tanks, academic institutions, and civil society organizations that shape European cybersecurity policy conversations.

Serve as the primary point of contact for European government and institutional inquiries related to Mastercard's cybersecurity capabilities and engagement.

Requirements

• Extensive years of experience in cybersecurity, international affairs, or European public policy — with meaningful direct experience engaging with European institutional or government stakeholders.
• Deep familiarity with the European cybersecurity landscape, including the roles and priorities of key EU institutions, NATO structures, and national cyber agencies across major member states.
• Strong existing network across European government, institutional, and industry cybersecurity stakeholders.
• Fluency in the European regulatory environment as it relates to cybersecurity, data, and critical infrastructure protection.
• Ability to operate with credibility and influence in both multilateral institutional settings and bilateral government relationships.
• Demonstrated experience identifying strategic opportunities and translating them into tangible outcomes — whether partnerships, joint initiatives, or commercial pathways.
• Experience in cybersecurity, financial services, critical infrastructure, and/or technology sectors preferred.
• Multilingual capability preferred; strong command of English required.
• Prior experience working with or within the private sector on European government-facing initiatives a significant advantage.
• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree in international relations, European affairs, cybersecurity, or public policy preferred.
• WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
• Success in this role means Mastercard has a visible, credible, and valued presence in Europe's most important cybersecurity conversations, from Brussels to Berlin to London and beyond. This individual will be measured by the quality and seniority of relationships built, the frequency and impact of Mastercard's engagement in key forums, the quality of strategic intelligence flowing back into the organization, and, working alongside sales and product colleagues, the emergence of well-positioned commercial opportunities that reflect Mastercard's unique value to European governments.
• Corporate Security Responsibility
• All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:
• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed;
• Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and
• Complete all periodic mandatory security trainings in accordance with Mastercard’s guidelines.