is currently hiring a Director, IT Operations & Strategy to lead the day-to-day technology operations of the organization. This is not a pure strategy role, nor is it a pure operations role. You will set the technology vision and own day-one execution. You will be equally comfortable presenting a three-year technology roadmap to the executive team and rolling up your sleeves to resolve a critical system issue. We are looking for a proven leader who understands that at a dynamic, growth-oriented company, great strategy and great operations are inseparable. If you are energized by building something meaningful, leading a team, and leaving the technology environment measurably better than you found it, join us!
What's In It for You? In addition to competitive pay, ECI's robust benefits package includes:
- Bonus potential
- 30% rental discount at ECI properties
- Health, dental, vision, and short and long-term disability insurance
- Paid time off and company holidays
- 401k plus 4% company match
- Wellness plans, flexible spending accounts, and dependent care
- Participation in professional development programming
Requirements
What You'll DoThis role carries accountability across two equally important dimensions. You will lead at the organizational level - setting direction, owning the budget, and building the team. And you will operate at the execution level - personally accountable for the reliability, security, and performance of our technology environment.
Technology Leadership & Strategy- Own the organization's technology vision and multi-year roadmap, translating business objectives into a structured plan for platform investments, retirements, and improvements as well as driving executive alignment around it.
- Maintain a current, holistic view of the technology landscape including all applications, integrations, infrastructure, and data flows. Serve as ECI's internal authority on how systems connect and depend on one another.
- Continuously evaluate the technology environment to identify redundancies, gaps, inefficiencies, and integration opportunities; develop and present prioritized, business-case-backed recommendations to senior leadership.
- Establish and enforce architectural standards and principles that guide technology decisions, vendor selections, and system implementations across the organization.
- Lead evaluations of new platforms and vendors, ensuring proposed solutions strengthen the overall architecture and deliver measurable business value.
- Own the full IT budget including annual planning, capital expenditure forecasting, and multi-year investment modeling; present technology financials and strategic recommendations to executive leadership.
- Define the IT organizational structure and staffing model to support current and future business needs; lead hiring, onboarding, and development of IT team members.
- Partner with functional leaders across property operations, accounting, leasing, and HR to understand evolving business needs and proactively surface technology solutions that reduce friction and drive efficiency.
- Document and maintain architectural artifacts including system inventories, integration maps, and technology standards to support planning, compliance, and organizational onboarding.
IT Operations & Service Management- Own daily IT operations across the organization including infrastructure, helpdesk, networking, and all technology platforms - setting standards and holding the team accountable for consistent, high-quality delivery.
- Oversee the full IT service management lifecycle - incident management, problem management, change management, and service request fulfillment - ensuring SLAs are defined, met, and continuously improved.
- Maintain deep working knowledge of the Microsoft 365 environment (Exchange Online, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Intune, Azure AD / Entra ID); provide hands-on oversight and direction for platform administration.
- Oversee and support property management SaaS platforms (Yardi, HappyCo, EliseAI), coordinating with vendors and internal teams on escalations, upgrades, and roadmap alignment.
- Own the organization's information security posture - endpoint protection, identity and access management, email security, data loss prevention, and security awareness - ensuring we operate from a position of strength.
- Ensure business continuity through proactive monitoring, redundancy planning, and rigorously maintained disaster recovery procedures; lead incident response for significant outages or security events.
- Manage IT vendor contracts, software licensing, and hardware procurement; negotiate renewals and hold vendors accountable to service commitments.
- Maintain accurate IT asset inventory and oversee lifecycle management for all hardware and software across the organization.
- Manage, mentor, and develop IT staff and/or managed service provider (MSP) relationships; build a culture of accountability, customer service, and continuous improvement within the team.
What You'll Need- Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business, or a related field.
- 10-15 years of progressive IT experience, with at least 5 years in a director-level or senior leadership role carrying both operational and strategic accountability.
- Willingness to work from our Atlanta office 3 days per week in accordance with our hybrid work schedule.
- Proven ability to operate simultaneously as a strategic leader and a hands-on operator setting organizational direction while maintaining personal accountability for execution quality.
- Deep expertise with the Microsoft 365 ecosystem (Exchange Online, Teams, SharePoint, Intune, Azure AD/Entra ID) and the ability to provide authoritative guidance across all platform components.
- Demonstrated experience owning and managing an IT budget, including capital planning and executive-level financial reporting.
- Demonstrated ability to think and communicate architecturally, understanding how systems interconnect, where data flows, and how technology decisions create downstream risk or opportunity.
- Experience conducting technology assessments or audits and translating findings into actionable, prioritized roadmaps with clear business rationale.
- Proven track record managing IT service management processes at a governance level; ITIL framework knowledge expected.
- Strong cybersecurity knowledge including endpoint security, identity governance, and incident response; experience owning an organization's security posture end-to-end.
- Demonstrated people leadership experience including hiring, developing, and retaining IT talent; building high-performing teams and managing performance with clarity and care.
- Executive presence and communication skills including being able to present technology strategy, risk, and investment decisions credibly to C-suite and ownership audiences.
What'll Set You Apart- Experience in the property management, real estate, or multifamily housing industry.
- Familiarity with property management platforms such as Yardi, HappyCo, and EliseAI.
- Experience scaling an IT function through a period of company growth, technology transformation, or platform consolidation.
- Microsoft certifications (e.g., AZ-104, MS-900, SC-900) and/or ITIL Foundation certification or above.
- MBA or graduate degree is a plus.
