Director of Information Services

Location: City of Cedar Park, TX Download: City of Cedar Park, TX - Director of Information Services Brochure

City of Cedar Park, TX
Director of Information Services

The Community

The City of Cedar Park is a vibrant suburb of 76,800 located 17 miles northwest of downtown Austin and is recognized for its fast growth in the dynamic Central Texas region. Cedar Park is the third largest city in the Austin metropolitan area, known for its outstanding schools, pro-business climate and relaxed family environment. Named one of Family Circle’s Top 10 Places to Raise a Family, Cedar Park offers all the benefits of life in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, with desirable neighborhoods, an entrepreneurial business environment, and an effective, well-managed city government.

Government

Cedar Park operates under the council-manager form of government, per the city charter. The council-manager form is a system of local government that combines the political leadership of elected officials in the form of a council or other governing body with the managerial experience of an appointed local government manager. The Cedar Park City Council consists of a Mayor and six at-large Council positions. All of these elected positions are volunteer. The City Manager is appointed by the City Council and serves as the Chief Administrative Officer for the City. The City Manager’s Office administers the programs and policies of the City Council. The City Manager and staff provide professional assistance to the City Council including information and recommendations. The current City Manager has been with the City since 1996 and was appointed City Manager in 2006. In addition, the City Manager’s two Assistant City Managers have served with the City for more than 10 years, providing stable leadership within the City Management team.

The Department

The mission of the Information Services Department is to provide proactive, impactful, reliable and cost-effective technologies and application solutions that promote the City’s strategic goals. The IS Department is made up of the Operations Division and the Applications Division.

The Operations Division provides the maintenance of data and voice systems and the creation, storage, and analysis of a substantial amount of data and information that is used in critical decision-making. It also provides first-class customer support for all technology end-users with desktop support, application server support, network connectivity backups and vital data.

The Applications Division is responsible for all City of Cedar Park application support and all mapping products and applications that directly support long-range city planning, asset management, spatial and demographic analysis, project planning and institutional support.

Additionally, the Department is supported by a Project Manager and Business Analyst who manage and align projects with the business objectives of the City and its operating departments.

The Position

The Director of Information Services serves as the City’s principle expert advisor regarding information technology operations, services, strategies, and resources. In addition, the Director of IS administers and directs all aspects of the City’s information technology and systems, including providing leadership in implementing information technology initiatives, overseeing the operation of the IS Department and ensuring the IS Department’s services . In addition, the Director of IS formulates policies, concepts, and procedures to ensure effective and efficient use of information technology systems and programs. The Director of IS’s work is performed under broad direction with wide latitude for exercising of initiative and independent judgment in establishing standards and setting priorities.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities:

Strategy/Planning: In collaboration with IT Steering Committee, directs development of long-range information technology plans to support the city’s programs and administration. Fosters innovation, prioritizes IT initiatives, and coordinates the evaluation, deployment, and management of current and future IT systems across the organization. Establishes IT departmental goals, objectives, and supporting budget. Develops policies and procedures for information security, disaster recovery, storage of critical data, and alternate site operations during emergencies.
Organizational Management: Sets and measures organization performance goals. Develops and maintains an appropriate IT organizational structure that supports the needs of the business. Selects, supervises, and develops staff through review of performance data, conferences, training and performance review.
Acquisition/Deployment: Advises on definition of business and systems requirements for new technology implementations. Conducts cost-benefit or other analyses. Collaborates with IT Steering Committee on project portfolio for the selection and acquisition of major information systems. Directs preparation of project and technical specifications. Reviews, negotiates, approves and administers hardware, software and services acquisition and maintenance contracts. Defines and communicates plans, policies, and standards for the organization for acquiring, implementing, and operating IT systems.
IT Operations Management: Ensures continuous delivery of IT services through oversight of IT systems uptime and performance. Defines and oversees operational policies and processes for all IT operational components (servers, storage, networks, software, security, etc.). Oversees provision of end-user services, including help desk and technical support services.
Administrative Management: Establishes and maintains regular written and in-person communications with the City’s executives, department heads, and end users regarding pertinent IT activities. Prepares and monitors annual budget and recommends new facilities, equipment or software. Makes presentations to the City Council for various projects and purchases
Collaborates with and advises other management staff with respect to information technology matters.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Information technology theories, strategies and practices.
State-of-the-art ERP systems and software, management and geographic information systems and software, data and voice communication systems, WAN/LAN, Internet/intranet, related systems hardware.
Modern up-to-date information security techniques and tools.
Project management and supervisory techniques, and budget preparation.
Capabilities, limitations, costs, acquisition procedures, performance, and operation of computer systems.
System analysis and design.
How to make disciplined and successful decisions with the potential to significantly influence City budgets and business operations.
Technology components including local area networks, server/client technologies, relational database management systems, enterprise class software applications, tiered software applications, software development cycles, server/desktop virtualization, VoIP phone systems, geographic information systems (GIS), and personal computer hardware/software.
Read, review, and interpret information from diverse formats, such as technical manuals, policies and procedures, system documentation, engineering designs, schematics or specifications.
Plan, direct and coordinate complex computer applications.
Research, evaluate, and report on proposed technology systems, perform requirements documentation, review and comment on complex contracts, and negotiate with technology vendors.
Perform calculations of computer or network capacity; making simple projections and forecasts.
Perform basic financial/budget reviews of department results.
Ability to manage a team with a diverse range of experience and technical skill.

Education and Experience

Qualified applicants will have a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology, Management Information Systems, Computer Science or a related field in addition to ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience in information technology, including six (6) years’ experience in a supervisory or management role that included supervisory system administration, and/or supervisory system design, and/or supervisory analysis and implementation experience. A valid Texas Driver’s License, or the ability to obtain one within six months of hire, with acceptable driving record is required.

The Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate will be a proactive, solutions-oriented leader with experience in strategic planning and organizational development. This individual will have the ability to align information technology with the business objectives of the City and its operating departments, and develop, implement and monitor long-range plans, goals and objectives in relation to the City’s goals. Municipal experience is highly preferred; experience working in a high growth city will be beneficial.

The ideal candidate will have the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with City management, City Council, department heads, vendors, and within the community. The ideal candidate will be a visionary leader who inspires the staff to achieve excellence and encourages professional development. Effective communication along with strong collaboration and team building skills will be necessary for this individual to be successful; advanced written and oral communication skills are imperative.

This individual must be able to adhere to the highest ethical and moral standards and be able to display transparency.

Salary

The City of Cedar Park is offering a competitive salary commensurate with experience and a comprehensive benefits package. Relocation assistance will be available for the successful out of area candidate.

How to Apply

Interested applicants should forward a cover letter and resume to:

resumes@affionpublic.com
Reference: CPDIS

Affion Public
2120 Market Street, Suite 100
Camp Hill, PA 17011
888.321.4922
www.affionpublic.com

The City of Cedar Park is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer.

*Deadline to receive resumes is August 30, 2018.

Posted: 03/22/2022