VP, Information Technology Details

VP, Information Technology

Ellucian - Reston, VA

Employment Type : Full-Time

Together we are powering the future of Higher Education

Here at Ellucian, we are motivated by a mission ~ the power of education to transform lives and change the world. We are the global market leader in EdTech for Higher Education, serving more than 2,700 customers and reaching over 26 million students in 50+ countries. We are dedicated to helping Higher Ed thrive by transforming their institutions to agile, digitally connected campuses that enable student success.

About the opportunity

The Vice President, IT Infrastructure and Operations will lead a team responsible for the support, maintenance, and management of the Company's global computer systems, including employee desktops, servers, phone systems, networks, AV systems, cloud infrastructure, and others. This individual will be responsible for end-user support, infrastructure management, system operations, and overseeing our operational projects. With locations around the world, the Vice President, IT Infrastructure and Operations will ensure that the right people, processes, and technologies are in place to ensure optimal global employee productivity.

This individual will be responsible for making improvements to processes, procedures and systems to maximize automation and IT efficiency. The ideal candidate will have a people-first approach to technology, ensuring that the employee experience is the top priority. We look for this role to provide leadership, promote advances in digital innovation, and deliver a competitive advantage for Ellucian. You will develop and motivate a strong technology team. This position reports to the SVP, Chief Information Officer.

Where you will make an impact

• Technical and Management role to lead the team responsible for global infrastructure strategy, support, management, and maintenance.
• Lead the IT team in support of all aspects of our corporate network and server infrastructure including server/network services, systems administration & maintenance, telephony and backup & disaster recovery. Includes both in-house and cloud-based environments.
• Manage vendors and service providers to ensure operational and contractual obligations
• Lead the IT Operations Project team, responsible for development of new projects. Oversee the planning, execution and successful delivery of key projects and approved budgets.
• Improve IT's systems and processes with a focus on automation and efficiency. This will include employee onboarding/offboarding, PC imaging and lifecycle management, incident management, system change management, and other key processes
• Ensure the IT knowledgebase is actively managed and updated
• Ensure employees have sufficient training
• Manage software and license compliance, as well as annual recertifications.
• Manage the lifecycle of IT applications, ensuring that upgrades, sunsets, and changes are appropriately planned and seamlessly managed.
• Create and maintain a strategy for the global IT infrastructure
• Coach and mentor staff, including regular one-on-one meetings focusing on employee growth and development
• Manage IT purchasing to ensure that IT staff has appropriate spares to onboard employees and handle break/fix issues.
• Partner with departments and business stakeholders to identify business and technology needs in order to recommend, develop and deliver appropriate solutions.
• Manage the relationships with global suppliers.
• Monitor the performance of IT systems, both on premise and in Azure.
• Deliver outstanding customer service and operational excellence with reliable, efficient and agile operational methods.
• Ensure processes and technical documentation related to regulatory and audit requirements.
• Negotiate outside service, support, and consulting agreements in support of the platforms your team manages.
• Ensure adherence to IT standards and procedures and that audits are properly addressed.
• Maintain documentation in support of disaster recovery, compliance, and continuity of operations.
• Manage, grow, and support a global team of highly skilled workers.
• Assists, mentors, and coaches team members in the application of business objectives, evolving platform solutions, subject matter expertise, software development lifecycle processes, and training.
• Communicates effectively with teams, business leads, and other personnel about delivered solutions including plans, processes, achievements, blockers, resources capacity, and improvement opportunities. Transparency is a critical success factor in this role.

What you will bring

• • Bachelor’s Degree in with an Information Technology focus.
  • 10+ years in a relevant IT role with 5+ years in a senior role with a high technology company (global preferred)
  • Experienced in working with executive leadership and business colleagues to establish enterprise strategies, directions/roadmap of work, business priorities, creating business cases, and defining measurable business value
  • Experience in change management to more fully leverage technology and drive innovation
  • Strong background in systems administration, IT support, and IT network operations
  • Expert knowledge of Windows operating systems, both client and server
  • Strong knowledge of Microsoft Active Directory and related services
  • Strong knowledge of cloud topologies, including Microsoft Azure and AWS
  • Expert knowledge of IT infrastructure best-practices, frameworks, and topologies
  • Experience designing network and system architectures
  • Experience in IT process design and implementation
  • Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams across cultures, regions and geographies (experience in India preferred)
  • Experience managing complex business partner relationships across the enterprise
  • Ability to think strategically, provide strategic leadership, and communicate in a strategic way
  • Demonstrated experience in leading the transformation of a complex organization’s use and exploitation of technology as a strategic advantage
  • Demonstrated experience working in a highly matrixed organization and partnering to achieve exceptional business outcome
  • Ability to develop strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders
  • Ability to coach, mentor and develop high-caliber workforce across the globe
  • Ability to drive decisions concerning infrastructure selection, architecture, tools, processes, resource allocation, vendor partnerships, and delivery of infrastructure solutions
  • Demonstrated experience with full infrastructure life cycle in large global implementations
  • Demonstrated experience in delivering “Cloud First” approaches to technology solutions
  • Ability to understand requirements, forecast skills, select, and place resources for competency centers (balancing personnel developmental needs and business delivery)
  • Able to travel 10-20% of the time

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