Job Description
IT Operations Manager
Organization Profile
Room to Read's mission is to provide under-privileged children with an opportunity to gain the lifelong gift of education. The organization was founded on the belief that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty and taking control of ones own life. We currently work in Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. In 2007, we began our expansion into Bangladesh.
Room to Read is a results-driven organization that seeks to intervene early in a child's life to provide ongoing educational opportunities in their communities. We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We have developed a successful approach to building educational infrastructure and opportunities which consists of:
- Partnering with communities to build schools through challenge grants
- Establishing bi-lingual libraries
- Publishing local language children's books
- Establishing computer and language labs
- Providing long-term scholarships to girls
Since our inception, Room to Read's worldwide team has impacted over 1.7 million children by constructing more than 440 schools, establishing over 5,100 libraries, publishing 226 new children's book titles in 11 local languages, and putting over 4,000 girls onto long-term, holistic scholarships. We are one of ten non-profits to have won the Fast Company / Monitor Group Social Capitalist award five years in a row and have been featured in a variety of media including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CNN, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and PBS.
Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$22 million, and our global staff numbers over 175; both of these figures will continue to grow rapidly in 2008. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, our Asia Regional Office is located in New Delhi, and we have program offices in Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. Our long-term goal is to help 10 million children to gain the lifelong gift of education.
Position Overview
The IT Operations Manager's role is to ensure the streamlined operation of the IT infrastructure at the Global Office in San Francisco and to support our Regional and Country Offices in Asia and Africa. This individual will plan, design, coordinate, and direct all internal IT-related functions, including network and server support, desktop support, telephony and internet connectivity, and external vendor management. This includes overseeing all IT operations, supporting and maintaining existing applications, and developing new technical solutions. The position will report directly to the Technology Strategist.
Duties & Responsibilities
- Manage the deployment, monitoring, maintenance, upgrade, and support of all IT systems, including networking devices, servers, computers, operating systems, hardware, software, peripherals, and telephony devices
- Analyze, create reports, and make recommendations on the improvement and growth of the IT infrastructure and systems
- Oversee the provisioning of end-user services, including network/server monitoring and support, help desk and technical support
- Manage the procurement of all IT systems, including networking devices, servers, computers, software, peripherals, and accessories
- Implement detailed asset management for all IT hardware, software, and equipment
- Develop and implement IT policies and procedures, including those for architecture, security, disaster recovery, quotas, standards, and best practices
- Develop training materials and best practices for all users
- Negotiate and administer vendor, outsourcing, and consultant contracts and service agreements
- Produce detailed timeline for each IT project and implement effective project control by monitoring the progress and reporting the status to stakeholders
- Keep current with the latest technologies
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelors Degree in Computer Science or related field or related experience
- Minimum eight (8) years experience within Information Technology
- Strong technical knowledge of network and PC operating systems, including Windows Server, Windows Exchange, and Windows XP Pro
- Strong technical knowledge of current networking hardware, protocols, and standards
- Solid knowledge of security and backup software systems
- Proven experience in IT infrastructure planning and development
- Keen attention to detail managing complex systems
- Ability to manage multiple concurrent projects with conflicting goals and priorities
- Ability to communicate technical concepts to technical and non-technical audiences
- Strong analytical and problem solving skills
- Demonstrated aptitude for learning new technologies
- Ability to conduct and direct research into IT issues and products as required
- Excellent interpersonal skills
- Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people
- Ability and desire to travel internationally (1 -2 trips per year)
- Effectiveness in working or volunteering in a non-profit organization that is focused on maintaining high quality work and low overhead
- Prior experience in a fast-paced, growth-oriented global or regional organization
- Proven track record of achieving results
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
- Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously and take initiative
- Legally eligible to work in the United States; no sponsorship provided
Preferred
- Experience configuring and maintaining Cisco networking devices (switches, routers, firewalls)
- Experience implementing and maintaining VMware-based virtualized server environments
- Experience designing, implementing, and maintaining Windows Server 2003 and Windows Exchange 2003/2007 systems
- Experience creating Voice Over IP (VOIP) solutions
- Experience with Riverbed WAN optimization technology
To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:
- Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact an up-and-coming non-profit organization
- Be an innovative and creative thinker - you are not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so
- Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
- Have a strong work ethic, take initiative, and require minimal direction
- Work well independently as well as part of a team
- Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment
Compensation
Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. Benefits include health, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, and a 401K match. The non-monetary compensation includes a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the world through the lifelong gift of education.
Application Procedure
Please send a cover letter and resume by email with "IT Operations Manager" in the subject line (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org. Due to high applicant volume, you may not receive a response from Room to Read.
Room to Read is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.
