Director Integrated Release & Operations

Director Integrated Release & Operations

POSITION PURPOSE SUMMARY:

The Director Integrated Release and Operations is a key trusted role, responsible for orchestrating the comprehensive release management and operational support processes for a suite of SaaS-based products, including Salesforce, Workday, Mulesoft, ServiceNow, Snowflake and OneIdentity. This role demands a strategic visionary who can elegantly integrate release cycles with operational efficiency to ensure the flawless delivery and support of IT services.

Key deliverables include the development and execution of a robust release management strategy, the establishment of a streamlined release schedule, and the facilitation of cross-functional team coordination to ensure successful product deployments. The director will also collaborate with the existing ITSM team in support of the Change Advisory Board (CAB) processes, ensuring business continuity and minimizing impact on Front Lines.

MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Strategic Planning and Execution: Spearhead the creation and implementation of strategic plans that align with the organization’s objectives, with a focus on optimizing operations processes. Make data-driven decisions to guide long-term success. Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to ensure seamless execution and continuous alignment with the company’s vision and goals.
• Oversee Comprehensive Release Management: Develop and implement a robust framework for planning, scheduling, and executing product releases, ensuring seamless integration with business operations.
• Lead Change Advisory Board (CAB): Collaborate with the ITSM team in support of CAB activities, ensuring business continuity and minimizing impact on Front Line ministries through thorough change assessment and communication.
• Ensure Quality and Compliance Excellence: Uphold stringent quality standards and regulatory compliance for all releases, while continuously refining processes to boost efficiency and minimize downtime. Foster and support an innovative culture, reducing risk through meticulous planning and a phased implementation approach.
• Team Leadership and Development: Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of release managers and operations professionals, fostering a positive and inclusive team culture and promoting professional growth and development opportunities.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Collaborate with development and operational teams to create and execute release plans that optimize product delivery, enhance operational efficiency, and ensure responsiveness, while avoiding or mitigating potential conflicts.
• Guarantee that Product and Platform owners conduct comprehensive testing across multiple domains before release, ensuring rapid identification and resolution of any bugs or issues during deployment and adoption.
• Oversee and manage system cutovers and go-live events, ensuring meticulous planning and flawless execution to minimize disruptions.
• Evaluate risks associated with development and operational activities, developing robust contingency and back-out plans to address potential issues.
• Cultivate a culture of collaboration and excellence, ensuring that operational teams work together cohesively and effectively.
• Leverage deep technical acumen to address large-scale platform and infrastructure challenges, optimizing system performance and reliability.
• Provide strong leadership and mentorship to development and operational teams, driving high performance, accountability, and professional growth.

CRITICAL RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

Strong partnerships are needed with the following internal colleagues:

• Internal IT leadership team, team leaders, and SMEs.
• Functional team leads and SMEs, and various office Units.
• Leaders of key technology initiatives.

External:

• Services vendors, Technology vendors, System Implementers/Integrators.

MANAGERIAL/TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP RESPONSIBILITY:

• Reports directly to: Senior Director, Managed IT Services.
• Direct reports for this position: TBD – information will be provided separately.

FINANCIAL AND MATERIALS MANAGEMENT:

• TBD information will be provided separately.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

• Work Environment and Travel: The role involves being part of a project and operational team with the flexibility to work remotely. However, there is an expectation to travel occasionally, including visits to the Territorial Headquarters or Office Units, which may require up to 5 days or more of travel per month.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE QUALIFICATIONS:

Education, Qualifications and Certifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field.
• Certification in relevant IT disciplines (e.g., ITIL, PMP) preferred.

Experience and Skilled Knowledge Requirements

• 5-7 years experience as an Operations Director or similar role, managing large-scale IT portfolios and operations across multiple domains.
• 5-7 years successful leadership of an IT operations team.

Skills and Capabilities (examples provided below):

• Strong technical acumen and expertise in managing integrated cloud-native systems in multiple environments (e.g., development, application support, infrastructure, integration, IT service management, IT operations management).
• Demonstrated success in leading the creation of new release management processes as part of a transformation to a Product Management organization.
• Extensive experience in coordinating and managing simultaneous system cutovers and go-lives, with an extraordinary sense of what needs to be done in what sequence for successful system cutovers.
• Solid Quality Assurance experience, with a strong focus on ensuring high-quality standards for user acceptance testing (UAT), practices and methodologies across multiple domains.
• Ability to assess operational risks, including identifying what is fraught with danger vs. routine, and develop effective risk mitigation strategies.
• Diligent in uncovering potential risks by asking tough questions and unwavering in determining acceptable levels of risk.
• Experience with Salesforce and/or Workday platforms preferred.
• Excellent leadership and communication skills, with the ability to influence and drive change effectively.
• High learning agility and a fearless approach to tackling complex operational challenges.
• Current knowledge of cloud technology, including application platforms, infrastructure, related hardware, software, security, monitoring, and processes.
• Ability to get up to speed quickly and ensure a risk-based approach to the leadership and management of integrated development and operations.
• Proven track record in effectively managing IT budgets and resources to ensure cost-effective operations.
• Ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders and executive leadership.
• Experience in implementing ITIL frameworks and best practices to optimize service delivery and support and ensure consistency in practices.
• Proven analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to analyze complex technical and business requirements.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to align IT operations with organizational goals and objectives.
• Experience in managing vendor relationships and negotiating contracts to ensure optimal service levels and pricing.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment and drive teams to meet ambitious deadlines and milestones.
• Strong customer service orientation.
• Experience working in a team-oriented, collaborative environment.

Personal Attributes:

• Driven: Highly motivated to personally achieve.
• Resilient: Tenacious, overcomes obstacles; recovers from, and gets beyond adversity quickly; incorporates lessons from obstacles and adapts approaches.
• People Smart: Understands how to interact with people; assesses and takes into consideration the audience and the context; knows what, when and how to communicate.
• Adaptive: Flexible; iterates and adjusts approach based on new information.
• Ability to make sound and logical judgments.
• Ability to present ideas in a user-friendly language.
• Keen attention to detail.

*** If you are interested in this job please submit a MS Word copy of your resume. Thanks!!! ***