Director of IT

Job Description

Job Title: Director of IT

Location: Atlanta - Hybrid

FLSA Status: Exempt

SUMMARY:

The Director of Information Technology is responsible for the strategy and execution of IT initiatives that align with UP Entertainment’s objectives and culture, focusing on service excellence to our employees. This player-coach role allows you to contribute to the day-to-day management of the IT infrastructure, actively participate in technical projects and provide end-user support. Leading by example you will work closely with the IT support team which includes an IT Manager and MSP personnel. This role demands a passion for hands-on work, the strategic acumen to shape our technology landscape, an unwavering commitment to continuous improvement, and a genuine enthusiasm for mentoring.

WHO WE ARE:

UP Entertainment, home to UP Faith & Family, UPtv, AspireTV, AspireTV Life and Cine Romántico, is the destination for uplifting entertainment for passionate and diverse audiences across the leading cable, satellite, and streaming platforms. UP Faith & Family is the leading streaming service in uplifting entertainment and includes exclusive access to original productions from the UP Entertainment family of brands. UPtv is the trusted network for adults seeking positive programming with relatable stories about relationships, filled with love and laughter, through exclusive premiere movies, box-office hit films and beloved series. AspireTV is the premier network for Black culture and urban lifestyle programming featuring original productions in food, home and fashion. AspireTV Life is the first free ad supported streaming television (FAST) channel dedicated to sharing the experiences of the multicultural audience through cooking, fashion, travel, design and more. Additionally, UP Entertainment in partnership with PixL Dos, manages and distributes Cine Romántico, a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel featuring the best of Hollywood TV romance movies in Spanish. UP Entertainment’s award-winning pro-social initiative, “UPlift Someone,” has inspired over 200 million people to uplift others through its social videos and dedicated UPlift Someone Facebook page and website.

WHO YOU ARE

This dynamic role requires a strong background in IT, with a focus on strategy, security, and collaborative exploration of ways to make all areas of the organization more efficient through the application of technology. This role will lead and develop the company’s IT strategy and the team that supports it. The UP Entertainment primary objectives are to ensure that the company maintains a highly reliable and secure IT environment that genuinely serves the needs of our teammates, provide rapid and confidenceinspiring support when issues arise, and work across teams and with management to deploy creative and innovative technical solutions to eliminate pain points and accelerate the business. To be successful in this role, the candidate must exhibit the ability to combine conceptual thinking with high-quality delivery, keeping the business needs in mind.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop and implement IT strategies that align with the company's overall objectives and culture, focusing on service excellence to employees.

• Work with senior company leadership and the executive IT steering group to develop and lead execution of IT strategies driven by the company’s objectives and multi-year growth plan

. • Lead cross-departmental team responsible for internal use cases for AI/Generative AI initiatives, including deployment and management of internal tools, and management of written usage guidelines, employee communications and employee education.

• Collaborate with UP’s Head of Technology and Innovation (a consumer focused counterpart whose efforts also potentially impact employees and internal processes),

• Drive initiatives to enhance cybersecurity measures, safeguarding internal company data and employee information.

• Manage IT budgets and forecasts, ensuring cost-effective use of resources.

• Maintain IT asset database and provide capital/operational budgetary support and guidance for selection and replacement of equipment and internal-facing software tools.

• Serves as an IT change management agent, identifying and driving changes to systems and technologies, championing necessary infrastructure upgrades, staying ahead of information technology trends and improvements, and working with company leaders to recommend and implement changes and new technologies impacting their areas of responsibility when necessary.

• Lead the IT team in managing and optimizing our IT infrastructure and maintain associated written policies and procedures covering security, disaster recovery, business continuity, incident response, and other topics needed in order to insure continuous operation of company systems and access to associated data.

• Foster a culture of continuous improvement in IT services, promoting innovative solutions to enhance employee productivity and satisfaction.

• Collaborate with the People Solutions team, Finance, Legal, and other departments to ensure IT strategies and implementations comply with legal standards and support company policies. UP Entertainment

• Establish and maintain regular written and in-person communications regarding pertinent IT activities with the organization’s executives, managers, and end-users.

• Work with department managers for proper installation, migration, training, and policy design/enforcement associated with new information system technologies.

• Develop and conduct technology training opportunities for UP employees.

• Manage all IT-related communications to ensure that they are clear, accurate and understandable.

• ’Oversee one direct report currently responsible for network management, management and monitoring of user accounts, desktop support, general troubleshooting and timely issue resolution.

• Oversee and direct the company’s Managed Service Provider.

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in information technology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and work experience required.

• 10-15 years’ experience with at least 5 years in a leadership role and at least 5 years advising senior management.

• 5 or more years of experience supporting MS Active Directory.

• Proven experience in developing and implementing IT strategies that align with business goals.

• Excellent leadership and team management skills, with a focus on mentorship and development.

• Strong written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills, capable of fostering positive relationships across all levels of the organization.

• Able to effectively communicate high level technical details to non-technical people.

• Expert level knowledge and experience with information security, including firewalls, intrusion detection, cyber-attack tools and defenses, encryption, certificate authority, web filtering, anti-malware, anti-phishing, identity and access management, and multi-factor authentication.

• Strong quantitative and qualitative analytical skills.

• Strong working knowledge of cloud-based systems including Microsoft 365 and Sharepoint.

• Experience with VMware (virtualized servers) and Citrix UP Entertainment

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILTIES

The Director of IT will supervise the Manager of IT as well as the company’s managed service provider.

OTHER:

This is a hybrid job role, with a combination of telecommuting workdays and in-office workdays.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to equal-employment principles and comply with all applicable federal, state, and local equal employment opportunity laws and regulations. The terms and conditions of the application process and employment relationship are to be non-discriminatory—without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth or medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth), gender identity or expression, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, legally protected genetic information, marital status, veteran status, military status, sexual orientation or any other protected category or class that may be applicable to you in the jurisdiction where you are employed. Moreover, in accordance with federal and applicable state and local law, we provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees’ sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, or observances conflict with work requirements and for applicants and employees with known disabilities provided that such individuals are qualified to perform the essential functions of the job, with or without accommodation, and provided that any accommodations would not impose an undue hardship on the company or introduce a direct threat to the health and safety of the worksite employee with a disability or others. Any applicant or employee who requires a reasonable accommodation during the application process or to perform the essential functions of the job should contact a company manager, a company officer or Insperity to request such an accommodation.

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