Job Summary:The Assistant Director of Network and Communication Services leads the university's unified network operations and unified communications (UC) function, encompassing campus LAN/WAN infrastructure, wireless networks, voice/video collaboration platforms, emergency communications, and emerging services.
Essential Functions:- Designs and manages campus LAN/WAN infrastructure supporting diverse network environments (classrooms, research labs, administrative offices, outdoor spaces, residence halls) with resilient Wi-Fi coverage, consistent user experience, and high availability.
- Establishes network reliability and security which is aligned with institutional data protection policies (FERPA, research data governance); manages identity-based access control across on-premises and cloud-connected resources.
- Oversees service delivery of network infrastructure through service management functions, ensuring incident, problem, and change management processes maintain network uptime and performance; manage SLAs and first-contact resolution metrics.
- Partners with UA stakeholders in various groups to support construction efforts, projects, and other future-forward initiatives; ensures scalable network availability and bandwidth for emerging use cases while managing privacy and security risks.
- Manages vendor relationships with network equipment providers, managed services partners, and cloud service providers; coordinates multi-vendor environments and negotiate service agreements aligned with institutional objectives.
- Designs and operates enterprise unified communications infrastructure including voice (telephony), video conferencing, messaging, and contact center platforms; manage dial plans, auto attendants, and call routing logic aligned with institutional organizational structure.
- Ensures unified communication service quality through 24/7 operations monitoring, incident escalation, and user support; manages SLAs for call setup time, meeting reliability, and technical resolution; tracks adoption metrics and user satisfaction.
- Manages network and telecommunications staff and projects. Collaborates with other IT groups as needed.
- Manages stakeholder and customer relationships and escalates issues appropriately to IT Leadership. Practices professional communication skills.
- Provides input to enterprise networking and communication architecture and strategies.
Additional Position Information:
Education:
Requires a relevant Bachelor’s degree.
Licenses/Certifications/Requirements:
Current network certifications preferred (e.g., CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate), CCNP (Cisco Certified Network Professional), Microsoft Certified: Enterprise Administrator Expert). Valid Drivers License.
Experience:
- Requires a minimum of 6 years of progressive IT operations experience, including management of enterprise network operations (LAN/WAN design, routing, switching, firewalls, load balancing) and management of enterprise voice/UC platforms (PBX, VoIP, cloud UC products).
- Deep hands-on knowledge of network infrastructure (routers, switches, firewalls, access points, load balancers); experience with hybrid network architectures (on-premises and cloud-connected).
- Enterprise telephony and UC platform expertise: dial plan design, auto attendant configuration, IVR setup, user provisioning, call routing logic; experience with at least one major UCaaS platform (Teams, Zoom, Google Workspace, or on-premises UC).
- Network security fundamentals: firewalls, VPN, access control lists (ACLs), network segmentation; basic understanding of zero-trust principles.
- Experience managing IT incident, problem, and change management processes (ITIL-aligned); comfort with ITSM tools and service delivery platforms.
- Minimum of 4 years managing technical teams in IT operations or infrastructure roles including hiring staff, direct supervision, and evaluation of work and performance. May supervise student employees as assigned.
- Demonstrated ability to establish and track performance metrics; experience building SLAs and ensuring compliance.
- Experience with vendor management, contract negotiation, and multi-vendor environments.
- Stakeholder communication skills; ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical audiences (faculty, administrators, students).
Preferred Qualifications:
- Secure IoT connectivity, governance, device onboarding, inventory, segmentation, monitoring, and lifecycle management.
- Hybrid cloud networking across on-premise and public cloud environments.
- Enterprise networking and communication architecture and strategy experience; ability to develop 3–5-year roadmaps aligned with institutional goals.
- Experience in higher education IT or comparable matrix-driven organization managing infrastructure supporting diverse, distributed user populations.
- Familiarity with higher education regulatory landscape (FERPA, accreditation requirements, research data governance).
Application Instructions: In order to be considered for this position, please complete the online application and attach your resume.
Compensation: The salary range for this position is $98,940 to $102,000 annually, commensurate with experience.
Application Deadline: November 29, 2026.
FLSA Status (exempt/nonexempt):
United States of America (Exempt)
Union Affiliation (if applicable):
For assistance with your application or attachments, please contact the Human Resources representative listed:
Natasha Kuzmina
nkuzmina@uakron.edu
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