IT Lead

WRA’s an employee-owned environmental consultancy. We are a tenacious team of planners, engineers, and scientists, and we aim to leave the lands we love better than we found them.

Read on to fully understand what this job requires in terms of skills and experience If you are a good match, make an application.

Our clients and partners hire us because we’re skilled at navigating through challenging projects involving wildlands, parks, community spaces, and infrastructure.

We bring over four decades of expertise, long-standing relationships, and connections to our local communities to make sure that projects are pursued in responsible ways where both people and the environment thrive.

As an organization, we believe that independence and interdependence are not mutually exclusive. We invest in systems, processes, and employee programs to support our staff’s collective engagement and success.

At the same time, we encourage our employees to operate with an ownership mindset, taking responsibility for outcomes and being true to our commitments.

We are seeking an experienced IT Lead to join our team. This individual will serve as the primary liaison between our staff and our external managed service provider, ensuring seamless IT operations and support.

The IT Lead will also manage the software budget as well as oversee all aspects of software licensing and vendor negotiations.

In addition, this role will be responsible for managing the IT onboarding and offboarding processes for new and departing employees, working in close collaboration with the People Operations team.

This role is pivotal in ensuring our IT infrastructure supports our business needs efficiently and effectively. In addition to IT responsibilities, our ideal candidate will be part of our overall operations team and will be willing to pitch in and handle other operations tasks as needed.

A service oriented person with a sense of responsibility and humor will thrive on our team.

The position is based out of WRA’s San Rafael office, although after an onboarding period, this role may be a hybrid of in-office and remote.

Travel between our 3 Bay Area and 1 San Diego offices will be required on a regular basis.

Key responsibilities are outlined below.

Liaison Duties :

• Act as the main point of contact between the company and our external managed service provider.
• Coordinate and manage IT support requests, ensuring timely resolution of issues.
• Monitor and review service level agreements (SLAs) with the managed service provider to ensure performance meets company standards.

IT Operations Management :

• Oversee daily IT operations, including network management, system administration, and security.
• Ensure the company’s IT infrastructure is reliable, secure, and up-to-date.
• Implement and maintain IT policies, procedures, and best practices.

Licensing and Vendor Management :

• Manage the software budget including all aspects of software licensing, including negotiation, procurement, and compliance.
• Evaluate and recommend new software and hardware solutions to meet business needs.
• Negotiate and manage contracts with IT vendors and service providers.

Onboarding and Offboarding :

• Oversee the IT onboarding process for new hires, collaborating with our external managed service provider, ensuring a successful new hire experience.
• Oversee the IT offboarding process for departing employees, including revoking access, recovering company equipment, and ensuring the secure handling of data.
• Develop and maintain documentation and procedures for onboarding and offboarding to ensure consistency and security.

Asset Management and Provisioning (all conducted in collaboration with our external managed service provider) :

• Maintain an inventory of all IT assets, including hardware and software.
• Manage the procurement, distribution, and lifecycle of IT assets to ensure optimal usage and compliance with company policies.
• Track asset allocation, maintenance schedules, and warranty information.
• Develop and implement procedures for asset tracking, including tagging, reporting, and auditing.
• Ensure timely provisioning and decommissioning of IT assets as needed.

Project Management :

• Lead IT-related projects, including system upgrades, implementations, and migrations with the support of our external managed service provider
• Develop project plans, timelines, and budgets; ensure projects are completed on time and within scope.

Team Collaboration :

• Collaborate with internal departments to understand their IT needs and provide appropriate solutions.
• Provide training and support to staff on IT systems and best practices.

Reporting and Documentation :

• Maintain accurate documentation of IT systems, processes, and configurations.
• Prepare regular reports on IT performance, incidents, and projects for senior management.

To be successful in this role, you will have :

• Associate’s degree or higher in Information Technology or a related field.
• At minimum of 5 years of proven experience in IT administration / management or a similar role, preferably in a professional services / consulting industry.
• Significant experience in IT operations with a special focus on customer support, system monitoring, and the Microsoft ecosystems.
• Demonstrated ability to efficiently manage operations queues and solve complex technical problems.
• A deep understanding of IT best practices and proactive system management.
• The agility to swiftly adapt to changing priorities and effectively manage multiple tasks.
• Strong understanding of IT systems, networks, and security protocols.
• Experience with vendor management, licensing negotiations, and IT onboarding / offboarding processes.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively with both technical and non-technical staff.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Advanced administration skills in applications like Atlassian, G Suite, Office 365, Zoom, and Slack.
• Experience in automating workflows or implementing system improvements.
• The willingness to pitch in on tasks and projects as needed within the Operations team.

WRA has an established internal leveling system for our staff that maps to salary bands that have been informed by market data.

Our leveling system is dependent on years of relevant industry experience, education, and the level of responsibility and autonomy at which you’re expected to operate.

The salary range for this position is $75,000 - $100,000 which represents the appropriate level for this position. In your first conversation with our recruiter, we will discuss leveling and compensation with you to make sure that our expectations are aligned.

WRA’s company vision is to cultivate a sustainable future where people and the environment thrive, and that effort starts first with our staff.

We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment, and we have developed flexible policies, internal practices, and are investing in programs that prioritize learning and sustainability.

We aim to create conditions that allow employees to prioritize their families, lead healthy and balanced lives, and to bring their authentic selves to work every day.

We believe that by creating an exceptional workplace, our employees will be able to do their best work and be able to meaningfully contribute to the sustainability of the environment and the communities in which we live.

WRA is an equal opportunity employer, and we are committed to creating a diverse environment. We recruit, employ, train, compensate and promote regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

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