The Director of Technology (DoT) is responsible for the strategy, management, and execution of KIPP Public Schools Northern California’s IT Support and Infrastructure. They will manage a nine-person team to provide reliable IT services, exceptional customer service, and collaborative tech support across our 22 Schools and Regional Support Office (RSO), spanning 5 geographic subregions, with over 900 staff and 7,000 students. The DoT will join KIPP’s leadership team during an important phase of growth in which we need to scale our IT service delivery with quality and durability.
The ideal candidate is strategic and systems oriented, has experience in scaling operational IT support and leading a technical team, inclusive of leading quarterly planning and priority setting for the team, managing and developing teammates, and ensuring strong team systems are in place either through building them or holding teammates accountable to building and maintaining them. The DoT should be an excellent project manager and effective communicator, as they will lead or oversee some cross-team initiatives.
This position is located at our Regional Support Office (RSO) in Oakland, with occasional travel to our school sites throughout the Bay Area and Stockton – including San Jose, the Peninsula, San Francisco, East Bay, and Stockton. The Director of Technology reports to the Managing Director of Data and Technology. This is a hybrid role with the expectation that 2-3 days per week be spent onsite at our school campuses or at our Regional Support Office.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience:
- 2+ years of experience in a senior IT leadership role with people management responsibilities
- 6+ years of relevant experience in IT or technical customer support operations and projects
- Demonstrated business acumen and technical skills across:
- IT operations, including helpdesk and service delivery model
- Management of Technical Vendors and direct accountability of Network Infrastructure
- Budgetary management and oversight
- Contract negotiation
- Government regulations and compliance (specifically E-Rate)
- Experience in an educational environment preferred
- Experience with GSuite Admin preferred
Education:
- Bachelor’s degree and/or equivalent experience required
Knowledge/skills required:
- Adept at thinking strategically, translating plans into action, and exhibiting excellent judgment
- Outstanding project management skills and the ability to coordinate and maximize the contributions of others
- Success leading change initiatives in a complex environment with diverse stakeholders
- Team-oriented, and invested in cultivating strong team culture around strengths-based coaching, continuous learning, and productive collaboration and conflict
- Ability to self‐direct, prioritize among competing goals, and exhibit flexibility in a fast‐paced, entrepreneurial environment
- Strong results orientation and skilled at analyzing and using data to drive results
- Self-aware and reflective, with a commitment to feedback and growth
- Excellent written and verbal communication and organization skills
- Resourceful with limited budget and resources
- Unquestioned integrity and commitment to KIPP NorCal’s mission and values
Essential Functions and ResponsibilitiesLead and manage Technology Team to drive excellent outcomes
- Own the IT vision, strategy, planning, and progress monitoring for the Tech Team, including the team’s Annual Objectives and Key Results (OKRs)
- Lead, manage, and develop a high-performing nine-person team, by refining systems for project management, planning, and progress monitoring and maintaining a culture of continuous learning and improvement
- Increase efficiency and impact of technology team and Helpdesk operations as we continue to serve more students and stabilize our growing schools
- Set and oversee regional IT policies
Own Vision and Lead Strong Execution of our HelpDesk & Tech Support Model
- Partner cross-functionally with our Managing Directors and other Directors to bring our Vision and Road Map for a unified HelpDesk at KIPP NorCal to life (e.g. Facilities, HR, etc.)
- Own and oversee the execution of this work through the Tech Team
- Ensure the IT helpdesk (including both remote and on-site support) delivers high quality customer service and Service Level Agreement adherence
Ensure Student & Staff Hardware & Systems Readiness
- Improve our systems & procedures to ensure all employees and students have the devices, and software needed to be effective in their work
- Work across teams to Improve our systems & procedures for coordination across HR, Tech, and Data to procedures to provide smooth onboarding/offboarding of employees, from equipment to software accounts
- Ensure the team creates and delivers high quality training and content for schools on technology management, care, and usage
Oversee Planning & Execution of IT Infrastructure for reliability and cost-effectiveness
- Oversee team and vendors to track the health of our Network Infrastructure
- Oversee team and vendors to ensure we have an Annual and Quarterly Road Map in place
- Ensure we maintain a stable network infrastructure (network support is currently outsourced to a vendor)
- Negotiate and manage regional contracts with key service providers, like ISPs, phone and copier companies, and our network support vendor
Steward financial resources through strong budget management and procurement
- Own the organization’s annual $3M technology budget and related investments
- Audit life-cycle targets for employee and student devices, classroom technology and infrastructure devices to inform long-term budgeting plans
- Partner with our Associate Directors of Technology to determine school-level tech budgets that reflect infrastructure, device, and equipment needs, collaborating with school principals and regional Finance and Real Estate teams
- Partner with our Associate Directors of Technology and peers to ensure we procure durable, cost-effective equipment towards industry best standards and practices
- Negotiate cost-effective contracts with third-party vendors and service providers
- Manage organization’s federal E-Rate program, applying for and supervising disbursements for eligible services and infrastructure projects
The salary range for this position is between $132,000 and $162,000. Most candidates would be compensated at $142,000.