Assistant Director - It Infrastructure (Exe Lev)

Salary : $155,000.00 - $172,000.00 Annually
Location : Houston, TX
Job Type: Executive Level
Job Number: 32599
Department: Houston Information Technology Services
Opening Date: 11/01/2023
POSITION OVERVIEW
PN# 32599 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR - IT INFRASTRUCTURE (EXE LEV)
Workdays & Hours: Monday - Friday, 8 am - 5 pm*
*Subject to change
HOUSTON IT SERVICES STRATEGY
The HITS Department mission is to provide solutions that serve, protect, and enlighten our citizens. Our vision is that HITS will be a catalyst for the transformation of Houston into a digital city for all.
Our Strategic Priorities include:

• Engage citizens through connected mobile and digital experiences to increase satisfaction and participation
• Inspire and empower employees to do their best work by aligning their skills to the strategy and leveraging the power of mobility and collaboration
• Optimize government operations to ensure security, reliability, cost and operating efficiencies
• Transform services to better utilize data to produce actionable analysis, better decision making, and transparency to citizens

ROLE AND REPORTING
The Assistant Director (AD) - IT Infrastructure is responsible for creating the future-state vision and technical plan for the Enterprise Infrastructure Services (EIS) Division's network and telecommunications teams to execute by targeting gaps and identifying innovation opportunities to resolve security, availability, scalability, performance, agility and cost efficiency challenges. The EIS Division provides mission critical infrastructure services 24/7/365 to the City of Houston's (COH) diverse group of 23 departments encompassing public safety, utilities, transportation, community services, and central service operations. The AD - IT Infrastructure reports to the Deputy Chief Information Officer-Infrastructure (DCIO-Infrastructure).
RESPONSIBILITIES
Under the general direction of the Deputy Chief Information Officer-Infrastructure (DCIO-Infrastructure), the Assistant Director-Infrastructure position's duties, functions and responsibilities include:

• Lead diverse team of network and telecommunications professionals in the design, configuration, and maintenance of a large metropolitan data network and telecommunications environment supporting 1200+ network nodes, 15,000 telephones and 32+ contact centers.
• Build Public Safety Video design and maintenance support team within the EIS Division.
• Build capital design/construction project liaison support role(s) between HITS, General Services Dept, and Public Works Dept.
• Develop 5-year network and telecommunications infrastructure plans in support of the overall Houston IT Services Strategic Plan
• Develop, coordinate, and assess progress of network and telecom project portfolio and plans
• Identify current and desired future-state usage of next-generation network and telecommunications software features included in the City's Enterprise Agreements. Implement new features according to implementation schedule agreed upon by CIO, DCIO and CISO.
• Maintain contact center solutions and improve performance while staying current with industry standard technology
• Ensure infrastructure as-built documentation is current and reflects all installed configurations
• Develop infrastructure policies and procedures according to manufacturer recommendations and industry best practices and monitor compliance
• Develop and monitor customer experience and infrastructure performance metrics to continuously demonstrate and improve the performance of network and telecommunications systems
• Use performance and lifecycle data to develop platform investment and refresh plans.
• Develop the plan for improving operational efficiency and reduce costs where practical
• Develop and lead updates to the design standards and specifications for consistency and maximum system reliability
• Partner with the COH CISO and to implement IT controls to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information assets
• Participate in Change Advisory Board committee to ensure operational changes are performed with optimal upfront planning, leveraging Method of Procedure (MOP) standard processes
• Drive IT and OT solutions for City-wide solutions to align with standards
• Develop, maintain and measure network service level agreements
• Act as the escalation point for customer network incidents and troubleshooting
• Ensure management coordination of after-hours network and telecom support in support of critical business operations
• Establish and maintain relationships with departmental contacts to ensure a comprehensive understanding of business requirements and to provide consistent communication throughout the lifecycle of the network and telecommunication environments.
• Develop capital project budgets and complex business case analyses
• Serve on HITS Department Emergency Management leadership committee to guide department-wide operational readiness and emergency response

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR - INFRASTRUCTURE MANDATE
Understand the Customer and the Business. Improve organization's reputation as a valued partner by building strong relationships with all customer departments. Focus on the business needs and assist in the evaluation of requirements and problem resolution. Enable the business to function by ensuring service levels and infrastructure roadmaps that accommodate future business needs. Develop a reputation as a good listener, problem solver, and ally to the business.
Build next generation IT foundation and capabilities to enhance mobility, collaboration, capacity and agility. Develops plans for platform evolution, including IaaS & PaaS options, system expansion, upgrade, operational performance and maintenance. Identifies changes and trends in infrastructure technologies and service delivery strategies and interprets their meaning and business value to stakeholders. Drives innovation and strategic solutions.
Organize to succeed. Provides clear organizational design strategy to best align team skillsets / capabilities with business needs. Identifies appropriate balance between insourced and outsourced services. Manages multiple enterprise contracts for both services and consulting.
WORKING CONDITIONS
This position is physically comfortable; the individual has discretion about walking, standing, etc. There are no major sources of discomfort in a normal office environment. Operates a motor vehicle. There are no major sources of discomfort, i.e., essentially normal office environment with acceptable lighting, temperature and air conditions.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
EDUCATION
Requires a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Management and Information Systems (MIS) or a closely related field.
EXPERIENCE
At least ten (10) years of experience in an IT infrastructure of a department or enterprise IT environment that includes three (3) years managing a technology team. Strong understanding of the department's core business functions and business strategy.
Professional experience related to the type of work to be performed may substitute for the education requirement on a year-for-year basis.
Must be able to pass a criminal background check, obtain and maintain federally mandated security clearances where required.
PREFERENCES
Preference will be given to applicants that possess these core competencies:
1.) Communication
2.) Interpersonal Skills & Values
3.) Problem Solving & Execution
4.) Business Knowledge
5.) Attract Talent: Right People, Right Job
6.) Engage and Inspire
Preference will also be granted to individuals that possess:

• The ability to translate complex business strategies and needs into strategic priorities that leverage industry trends and emerging technologies while integrating existing architectures, platforms and data.
• A unique blend of business and technical savvy; a big-picture vision, and the drive to make that vision a reality.
• The natural approach of a hands-on leader; broadly shares responsibility and accountability of both routine and important tasks and decisions.
• The ability to hold others accountable by monitoring progress and results and giving effective feedback; able to make tough decisions when appropriate.
• Experience with managing teams responsible for designing, implementing, and supporting large scale networks, network routing, switches, and inter related networking and security technologies. Experience provisioning single and multitenant cloud environments is beneficial.
• The ability to provide strong team leadership while developing and managing business processes and workflow, standardizing documentation, and improving project reporting.
• Professional level of familiarity implementing and troubleshooting Cisco FTD/ASA firewalls, Nexus Data Center switches, Cisco ACI, SD-WAN, DNAC, ThousandEyes, Meraki wireless devices, Catalyst routers, Catalyst switches, and Industrial Ethernet products.
• Professional level understanding of TCP and UDP mechanics including ability to interpret packet captures
• Professional understanding of popular network communications protocols such as DNS, RPC, HTTP, HTTPS, etc.
• Professional understanding of Ethernet and the surrounding technology such as Spanning Tree Protocol (802.1w, 802.1d)
• Professional understanding of EIGRP, as well as real world implementation and troubleshooting experience
• Professional understanding of BGP as well as real world implementation and troubleshooting experience
• Professional understanding of MPLS networks
• Professional understanding of SNMP
• Professional understanding of monitoring and alerting solutions to proactively address issues to minimize operational impact on network and telecommunication services
• Demonstrated strengths influencing decision makers, business judgment, attention to detail, written and oral communication skills, and a practical common-sense approach to getting things done.
• The ability to establish creditability and be decisive but also to recognize and support the organization's preference and priorities
• The ability to balance high-level identification of innovation opportunities with oversight of technical development processes.
• The ability to manage several concurrent tasks and priorities
• Very strong focus on the customer's needs and a willingness to accommodate them
• Self-motivation and the ability to work with almost no supervision.
• Strong understanding of the department's core business functions and business strategy
• Solid knowledge and understanding of networking and TCP/IP
• Well-developed interpersonal skills. Ability to get along with diverse personalities; tactful, mature and flexible
• The ability to maintain the highest standard of confidentiality is required with zero tolerance
• A high energy level, comfortable performing multifaceted projects in conjunction with normal activities
• A results oriented mindset with the ability to balance other business considerations
• The ability to speak and present information effectively to groups of varying sizes
• Proven experience working in a rapidly changing, high intensity environment
• The thirst of an avid, proactive learner and ability to work well in a team-based environment
• Strong interpersonal and writing skills
• Superior attention to detail
• A forward-looking view of technology
• The ability to drive ideas and action around the common vision

**Preference shall be given to eligible veteran applicants provided such persons possess the qualifications necessary for competent discharge of the duties involved in the position applied for, such persons are among the most qualified candidates for the position, and all other factors in accordance with Executive Order 1-6.**
GENERAL INFORMATION
SELECTION / SKILLS TESTS REQUIRED
Department may administer skills assessment test
SAFETY IMPACT POSITION YES
If yes, this position is subject to random drug testing and if a promotional position, candidate must pass an assignment drug test.
SALARY INFORMATION
Factors used in determining the salary offered include the candidate's qualifications as well as the pay rates of other employees in this classification.
PAY GRADE: 34
APPLICATION PROCEDURESOnly online applications will be accepted for this City of Houston job and must be received by the Human Resources Department during active posting period. Applications must be submitted online at:
To view your detailed application status, please log-in to your online profile by visiting: or call (832) 393-6027.
If you need special services or accommodations, call (832) 393-6027. (TTY 7-1-1)
If you need login assistance or technical support call 855-524-5627.
Due to the high volume of applications received, the Hiring Department will contact you directly, should you be selected to advance in our recruitment process.
All new and rehires must pass a pre-employment drug test and are subject to a physical examination and verification of information provided.
EOE - Equal Opportunity Employer
The City of Houston is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.
The city offers a competitive benefits program, including competitively priced health coverage and a defined contribution pension plan.
Benefits include:
• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• Wellness
• L...