ARDC is no longer accepting applications for this position.

ARDC seeks an experienced Technology Department Manager to join our team and lead all technology efforts. These include, but are not limited to, overseeing the following department initiatives and personnel management:

• Activities of 44Net, and IPv4 address space allocated to amateur radio;
• Open-source software development projects; and
• General internal IT system administration, including streamlining existing systems and helpdesk.

In addition to having solid management experience in a technical field, this person must also be an excellent communicator – able to write policy, wrangle volunteers, and manage open-source technology development that includes staff, volunteers, and contractors. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated the ability to effectively communicate with executive-level management on a regular basis. It is expected you will prepare management reports and complex technical documents that are well written, appropriately and effectively organized, accurate, and comprehensive, meeting all professional standards.

Direct reports to this position include technical contractors and staff; the department is also supported by communications and operational staff, and 60-70 volunteers are working in association with our technical activities. This position reports to the Executive Director.

Some important notes about this role:

• Experience and history with amateur radio and the Internet is required. Many of the people we work with, projects we take on, and communities we make grants to are rooted in amateur radio, and our particular realm of focus intersects heavily with the information technology and hacker communities. Applicants without an active amateur radio license will not be considered.
• Experience working with nonprofits and/or open-source technology projects is required. There are nuances of working in nonprofit and community-driven environments, including participation in open-source technology projects, that can only be learned through experience – such as collaborative decision-making and best practices in engaging with open-source development. Experience in one or both of these areas is required for this role; applicants without such experience will not be considered.

Duties

Technology Department Management

Ensure that organizational priorities for the Tech Department are being carried out by our team of staff, contractors, and volunteers by:

• Creating project plans collaboratively with the team
• Monitoring overall progress on projects and updating plans accordingly
• Ensure quality work is produced by the overall team – from IT to network administration services to technology development – through applying rigorous development and project management standards, such as Agile and Scrum.
• Ensure that open source project development – particularly if it is in use, and including if it is being developed on our behalf by a third party – is thoroughly tested from both a user and developmentally sound and functional standpoint prior to deployment, such as creating a staging environment.
• Develop opportunities and systems for collecting statistics and metrics around projects for use in seeking improved performance of ARDC team and projects, as well as providing status updates to the Executive Director.
• Ensure proper training for administration and utilization of all technology tools in use or development by us, particularly from an administrative standpoint.
• Direct documentation development and maintenance for use and administration of all technical systems for current and new technical staff
• Oversee administration of 44Net-related technology, ensuring that new and existing users receive a timely response from 44Net administrators.
• Oversee volunteer management and engagement for ARDC volunteers – Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and 44Net Regional Coordinators
• Identify and propose opportunities for improved resourcing for our evolving technology department.
• Establish and set policy for monitoring and alerting. Be part of the escalation path for alerting.

Technical Systems Improvement

• Identify opportunities for streamlining processes and automation; work with SysAdmin / DevOps to implement
• Identify opportunities for improved security and work with staff to train and implement.

Technical Policy Development and Adherence

• Work collaboratively with staff, contractors, and volunteers to develop and propose policies, often with review from ARDC’s Board of Directors
• Ensure existing policies (e.g., privacy policy, terms of use, security) are up-to-date and in line with current best practices
• Ensure development and implementation of standard operating procedures to ensure compliance with implemented policies.
• Develop processes and architecture to support high availability

Required Knowledge & Skills

To do this job well, the person in this role needs to have:

• Minimum of six (6) years of technology management experience, ideally at the Director or CTO level
• Minimum of four (4) years in effective management in a remote environment
• Familiarity with and involvement in amateur radio, including possessing a valid amateur radio license
• Demonstrated ability working with (and love for) open-source software and culture, including the ability to manage open-source community projects
• Project and resource management skills, particularly using agile methods
• Demonstrated effective communication and interpersonal skills, both verbal and written, including the ability to communicate technical information to technical and non-technical personnel at various levels in the organization
• Knowledge of software, databases, infrastructure, or other IT functions.
• Knowledge relating to the design and development of software across the organization.
• Experience in implementing IT methods such as processes outlined in ITIL, like Root Cause Analysis, Change Management, etc
• Demonstrated ability to work with and manage individuals with a variety of backgrounds and technical perspectives
• Demonstrated ability to work with Git and Git workflows
• Self-motivation and ability to work independently and as part of a team, such as:
  • Demonstrated problem-solving skills.
  • Able to learn effectively and meet deadlines
  • Ability to prioritize tasks and prepare project plans and schedules
  • Experience assessing a broad spectrum of technical and resource needs and demands and establishing priorities, delegating and managing multiple sub-projects simultaneously
• Skills in web software, web software language, and object-oriented software concepts; knowledge of IP network protocols is required
• Expertise in the design and development of information technology architectures across an organization

Preferred Knowledge & Skills

• Bachelor’s degree or other credentials or certifications in related area(s)
• Expert knowledge of provisioning systems such as Ansible, Salt, Chef, and Puppet
• Significant experience integrating highly complex, diverse, internally and externally developed implementations of operational functions to build enterprise-class, scalable systems
• Advanced knowledge of and experience in complex hardware/software designs that use standard methods, are technically sound, have strong controls (security and audit), and result in maintainable and understandable software that meets network standards and technical requirements.
• Experience working in startups or other new, growing organizations
• Experience working in charitable organizations

Location

Remote, within the United States.

At this time, we can only extend employment to individuals located within US states and territories; if not a US citizen, must already have clearance to work in the US.

Language

English proficiency is required.

Salary & Benefits

Salary range: $175,000 – $190,000 / year

Benefits:

• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Medical insurance premium stipend reimbursement
• Matched contribution retirement plan
• Some flexibility in work hours

How to Apply

Please send a resume and cover letter to hr@ardc.net. Documents should list your amateur radio call sign. Please send all files (including cover letter) as a PDF attachment without spaces in the file name. For example: jane-doe-cover-letter.pdf.