Director of Information Technology

About this role

Current Employees: If you are currently employed at any of the Universities of Wisconsin, log in to Workday to apply through the internal application process.

Job Category: Limited

Employment Type: Regular

Job Profile: IT Director II (B)

Job Summary: What is WIDA? For over 20 years, WIDA has provided a trusted, comprehensive approach to supporting, teaching, and assessing multilingual learners. We are an educational services organization that advances language development and academic achievement for multilingual children in early childhood and grades K-12. In short, we provide educators around the world with high-quality language standards, assessments, professional learning, and research. We are proud to be a part of UW-Madison's nationally ranked School of Education.  Visit https://wida.wisc.edu/about/careers and watch our Introduction to WIDA video to see why WIDA is an incredible place to work!  

The Director of Information Technology position is located within the Operations department and will report to the Chief Operating Officer (COO). This position will be responsible for leading and overseeing WIDA's technology ecosystem, including customer relationship management (CRM) systems, learning management systems, cloud technology, data analytics, websites, cybersecurity, technical support, systems integration, and business analysis.

We are looking for a forward-thinking partner who collaborates closely with consortium stakeholders, state partners, and internal leaders. This leader will partner closely with technical leaders across the University, acting as WIDA's main point of contact when technology is a part of an incident or needed for a solution.

The Director will ensure technology solutions meet changing business needs, support data-informed decision-making, help staff adapt to new technologies, and position WIDA for long-term success. They will also consult on data warehouse design; user authentication for WIDA's consortium of 42 states, territories, and agencies; and compliance with data security requirements. The ideal candidate champions innovation by identifying opportunities to responsibly leverage emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, to improve processes and organizational effectiveness while adhering to institutional policies and ethical practices.

We are seeking a strong manager with technical expertise who can translate strategy into action by developing talent, assigning ownership, and empowering technical experts to deliver results. The Director of IT manages a team including IT analyst staff, support specialists, administrators and developers, assigning them to projects and operational challenges where they can help improve programs, processes, and services.

Remote work is an option for this position on a voluntary basis; however, due to UW policy and travel expectations, this position requires living in Madison, WI, or the surrounding area, as this position may occasionally require on-site work at our Madison office.

UW Travel Policy and Remote Work Policies outline business travel requirements for fully remote employees, and WIDA is committed to supporting employees with their business travel and minimizing or eliminating out-of-pocket expenses whenever possible. Please review UW Remote Work Policy UW5087, in particular, Section III, Part G which addresses an employee's Headquarters Location. We will be happy to support and address questions about remote work or travel during the interview process.

WIDA operates in a Windows-based environment, and a Dell PC laptop will be issued for use in this role. Software and virtual connection tools that are critical to our work dictate that WIDA staff work on a PC. 

Key Job Responsibilities: • Directs strategic information technology planning initiatives and establishes divisional objectives to ensure appropriate use of financial, administrative, staffing resources, and alignment with the strategic plan 

• Leads cross-functional technology planning and roadmap efforts to identify organizational needs, prioritize investments and drive adoption of technology solutions through strong stakeholder partnership and organizational buy-in

• Serves as the divisional IT liaison representing the division's interests to internal and external stakeholders 

• Leads enterprise technology architecture, systems integration, and data governance initiatives to ensure secure, reliable, and scalable technology solutions across the consortium's technology ecosystem

• Develops and implements technology modernization strategies, including cloud services, artificial intelligence capabilities, automation, and emerging technologies, to improve operational effectiveness and support organizational priorities

• Advises institutional or divisional leadership on information technology operations and business models 

• Develops operating policies and procedures to comply with regulations, institutional policies, and divisional objectives

• May perform manager functions through subordinate managers 

• Exercises supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees

• Develops and audits the budget 

Department: School of Education / WIDA / Operations

Compensation: Minimum: $113,503.00 Commensurate with qualifications and experience. This position offers a comprehensive benefits package, including generous paid time off, competitively priced health/dental/vision/life insurance, tax-advantaged savings accounts, and participation in the nationally recognized Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) pension fund.

Required Qualifications: • Minimum of five (5) years of IT leadership experience, including responsibility for managing technical experts and managing a technology roadmap aligned with organizational objectives

• Demonstrated expe

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