Director of Information Technology (IT)

Come work for a company that makes a difference within the communities of the State of California. This company works on cutting-edge prevention programming, providing counties with an independent administrative and fiscal intergovernmental structure. Our client helps fund, develop, and implement California's mental health services and educational programs. 

As a mental health organization, this company actively seeks to support qualified disabled candidates in obtaining employment with their company and is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  Please complete the self-identification section of the application.

This company offers a VERY Generous Benefits Package, including:

• 10% company-sponsored retirement account (401a) 100% vested – additional compensation/retirement.
• Medical, Dental, Vision, LTD, Life Insurance, Wellness Program, FSA
• Generous PTO plan

Job Title: Director of IT
Salary: $180.000 - $215,000
Department: IT / Digital Information
Reports To: CDIO
FLSA Status: Exempt
Location: Sacramento
Work Model: Work from home (Remote)
Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm (Could vary depending on business needs)
Background Check Eligible (Y/N): Y

JOB SUMMARY:

MAJOR AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY include but are not limited to:

• Develop and execute IT strategies that align with business objectives, ensuring scalability, security, and reliability.
• Lead and mentor technical teams, fostering a culture of innovation, continuous improvement, and technical excellence.
• Oversee IT infrastructure, including networking, storage, servers, and cloud solutions, ensuring high availability and performance.
• Drive the adoption and integration of AI technologies across IT operations and business processes.
• Work closely with teams to align IT initiatives with customer needs and market demands.
• Monitor service performance metrics, focusing on those that directly affect customer satisfaction and retention.

Security and Compliance Excellence

• Establish and oversee IT governance frameworks, policies, and standards across the organization to ensure consistency, compliance, and operational alignment.
• Lead our organization's journey toward HITRUST certification, developing and executing strategic roadmaps to strengthen our security and compliance posture.
• Guide the evolution of our security framework, drawing from experience with compliance standards such as SOC 2, HIPAA, or similar frameworks.
• Implement and maintain comprehensive security policies, risk management strategies, and incident response protocols.
• Partner with security teams to identify and mitigate IT security risks.

Infrastructure & Cloud Management

• Drive the transformation and optimization of our technology infrastructure, balancing on-premises and cloud-based solutions.
• Lead cloud service implementations, ensuring best practices for security, identity management, and scalability.
• Develop and maintain robust backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity plans.

• Oversee the implementation and optimization of enterprise systems, including SharePoint, ensuring seamless integration with business processes and high user adoption.
• Guide teams in developing and implementing solutions that enhance usability, document management, and workflow automation.
• Ensure enterprise systems meet the day-to-day operational needs of both technical and non-technical staff.
• Regularly gather feedback from customers and stakeholders to inform IT roadmaps and ensure solutions are intuitive, reliable, and valuable to users.

IT Support Operations

• Build and lead a high-performing IT support organization focused on service excellence.
• Establish and maintain SLAs, escalation procedures, and IT service management best practices.
• Manage vendor contracts and ensure third-party providers meet security, uptime, and performance expectations under government-funded agreements.
• Foster knowledge sharing and professional development within the team.
• Foster a customer-focused culture within the IT department, promoting a user-first mindset, responsiveness, and continuous improvement.

Strategic Technology Management

• Build relationships with technology vendors and service providers to maximize value and innovation.
• Serve as a strategic technology advisor to executive leadership, contributing to decisions related to digital transformation, enterprise risk, and technology investment.
• Collaborate across departments to align IT solutions with business needs.
• Oversee IT budgeting, procurement, and asset management with a focus on ROI.
• Drive innovation with a focus on improving customer interactions, increasing satisfaction, and simplifying the user experience
• Define and report on IT operational KPIs that demonstrate business value, service excellence, and system reliability.
• Perform other duties as assigned, demonstrating flexibility and commitment to organizational success.

BACKGROUND CHECK ELIGIBLE DUTIES:

This position will have access to various applications that house confidential information, including county records, employee demographic and private behavioral health information; ensure that access is used responsibly, maintaining the integrity and security of systems while preventing accidental or malicious misuse.

QUALIFICATIONS: An acceptable equivalent combination of education, experience, and skill will be considered.

Education or Certification: Microsoft certifications (e.g., Azure Administrator, Azure Solutions Architect, SharePoint Administrator).

Certifications or training in executive leadership, strategic IT management, or digital transformation (e.g., CIO Institute, Harvard Exec Ed, etc.) are a plus.

Professional Experience:

• A minimum of 7 years of relevant experience in strategic IT leadership, with at least 3 years in a people manager role.
• Experience with IT compliance frameworks (such as HITRUST, SOC 2, HIPAA, ISO 27001) and ability to lead compliance initiatives.
• Experience with Azure cloud services, Active Directory, and hybrid environments.
• Experience managing enterprise-wide technology implementations.
• Track record of successfully implementing and maintaining enterprise collaboration platforms.
• Experience with networking, virtualization, and enterprise IT infrastructure.
• Experience driving enterprise change initiatives, including user training, adoption strategies, and cross-functional change management.
• Hands-on experience implementing AI technologies within enterprise IT environments to enhance automation, analytics, or security.
• Experience managing a portfolio of IT projects, balancing competing priorities, and aligning technology investments with organizational strategy.

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with ITIL frameworks and IT service management (ITSM) best practices.
• Prior experience in healthcare IT or a regulated industry.
• Experience managing technical teams in a matrix organization.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential functions satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

IT, Strategic, and Job Specific Knowledge:

• Strong understanding of AI technologies and their practical application in IT operations.
• Demonstrated experience in IT budgeting, procurement strategy, and ROI-based decision-making.
• Familiarity with IT and security requirements in government-funded programs, including compliance with state procurement or grant-funded technology initiatives.

Communication & Interpersonal Skills:

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to effectively understand and explain technical terms to non-technical stakeholders.
• Proven ability to deliver clear and concise presentations.

Leadership & Management:

• Ability to supervise, mentor, and coordinate the work of IT professionals and vendors.
• Demonstrated ability to foster a cooperative and collaborative work environment.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and collaborate with legal, finance, programs, product, and operations teams to align IT with organizational goals.
• Able to provide and document timely and effective performance feedback to applicable team members.
• Must be able to work a full-time schedule to manage a team of full-time team members, with the majority of work time spent during business hours.

Analytical & Problem-Solving Skills:

• Strong analytical skills with the ability to assess processes and data to inform decision-making.
• Excellent problem-solving abilities, with a proactive approach to overcoming challenges and driving optimization

Personal Attributes:

• Detail-oriented and organized, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.
• Demonstrates initiative, independence, and resourcefulness in executing responsibilities.
• Adaptable to dynamic work environments and capable of working both virtually and in-office settings.
• Willingness to travel as necessary to support contract negotiations and stakeholder engagements, as necessary.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS - The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit and stand; use phone and headset; use hands, arms, fingers to type; answer phones; write; use calculator; demonstrate strength to lift and carry materials weighing up to 20 pounds; demonstrate clear vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; hearing and speech to communicate in person and over the telephone; and drive a motor vehicle on public roads and highways.

SENSORY DEMANDS - The incumbent must spend long hours in intense concentration. The incumbent must also spend long hours on the computer entering information which requires attention to detail and high levels of accuracy.

MENTAL DEMANDS - There are a number of deadlines associated with this position, which may cause significant pressure. The incumbent must also deal with a wide variety of people on various issues.

REGULAR WORK SCHEDULE – Varies depending on business needs; however, company normal business hours are 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday – Friday.