GENERAL DESCRIPTIONThe Director of Information Technology provides executive operational leadership for the City of Abilene's enterprise technology organization. The Director plans, organizes, and directs the City's technology operations, services, strategy, resources, and workforce and is accountable for reliable, secure, resilient, cost-effective, and business-aligned technology delivery.
The Director leads the City's transition to a service-based operating model aligned with departmental and community needs. The position oversees applications and data, security services, infrastructure, workplace and mission technology, cybersecurity and resilience, and technology strategy, portfolio, and vendor management.
The Director works closely with the City Manager's Office, vCIO, vCISO, Enterprise Technology Architect, T.R.A.C. program, and other advisors while retaining operational authority and accountability for the Information Technology Department. The Director also performs management and administration as Director of the Abilene/Taylor County 911 District by memorandum of agreement with the City and the 911 Board.
SUPERVISION EXERCISEDExercises direct and indirect supervision over management, supervisory, professional, technical, and clerical staff. Establishes clear leadership, service ownership, role accountability, backup coverage, performance expectations, and escalation paths throughout the department.
IMPORTANT AND ESSENTIAL DUTIES- Provides leadership and accountability for the Information Technology Department and the City's technology service model.
- Develops and executes Citywide technology strategies, standards, roadmaps, budgets, and service plans aligned with City priorities and operational requirements.
- Builds and maintains service-centered technology functions with defined owners, support responsibilities, documentation, service expectations, performance measures, and backup coverage.
- Evaluates workforce and capability needs and develops staff through hiring, coaching, training, performance management, succession planning, cross-training, and appropriate use of vendors, consultants, and managed services.
- Establishes effective practices for incidents, requests, problems, changes, service levels, knowledge, assets, reporting, and continual improvement; ensures critical services receive appropriate monitoring, escalation, resilience, and recovery support.
- Builds trusted relationships across the City and communicates service performance, risks, incidents, resource constraints, investment needs, and decisions in clear operational terms.
- Institutionalizes technology governance and ensures demand and projects follow approved intake, prioritization, architecture, cybersecurity, change-control, execution, and reporting processes.
- Maintains an executable technology portfolio and multiyear roadmap, balancing new demand with operational workload, staff capacity, technical debt, cybersecurity, lifecycle obligations, and available funding.
- Establishes accountable ownership and sustainable support for enterprise and departmental applications, data, reporting, integration, automation, artificial intelligence, geographic information systems, and digital services.
- Ensures reliable lifecycle management of networks, connectivity, voice, identity, infrastructure, cloud, hosting, collaboration, endpoints, workplace technology, and related platforms.
- Ensures appropriate support for mission-critical systems, including Police, Municipal Court, 911/dispatch, CAD/RMS, evidence, records, SCADA, utilities, airport, and traffic systems. Ensures systems that process or access Criminal Justice Information are operated and changed in accordance with applicable CJIS requirements.
- Implements the City's cybersecurity and technology-risk program, including compliance with FBI CJIS Security Policy, Texas Department of Public Safety requirements, and City policies governing Criminal Justice Information. Coordinates with the Police Department, LASO, vCISO, Legal, Risk Management, and vendors to maintain required controls and remediate identified deficiencies.
- Works with the Enterprise Technology Architect to apply architecture, integration, security, data, resilience, operational, and lifecycle standards to material technology decisions.
- Manages technology vendors, contracts, managed services, licensing, renewals, service levels, deliverables, documentation, knowledge transfer, and operational acceptance.
- Develops and administers the department budget and multiyear investment plan and provides transparent reporting on operating costs, commitments, projects, staffing, lifecycle obligations, and future needs.
- Establishes policies, internal controls, documentation, procedures, inventories, diagrams, and knowledge-transfer requirements needed for compliance, continuity, accountability, and reduced dependence on any single employee or vendor.
- Leads implementation of the approved technology transformation roadmap while maintaining operational continuity and department confidence in technology services.
OTHER JOB RELATED DUTIESPerforms other job-related duties and responsibilities as assigned. May visit City facilities and operational sites and respond to significant incidents, service disruptions, or cybersecurity events outside normal business hours.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIESKnowledge of:
- Enterprise technology operations and service management; infrastructure, networks, cloud, identity, endpoints, applications, data, integration, automation, artificial intelligence, geographic information systems, and digital services.
- Cybersecurity, risk management, incident response, disaster recovery, business continuity, privacy, access control, enterprise architecture, governance, portfolio and project management, procurement, contracts, vendors, licensing, and lifecycle planning.
- Municipal and mission-critical environments, including public safety, 911, utilities, operational technology, transportation, airport, and other 24x7 services.
- Personnel management, organizational development, change leadership, budgeting, financial management, internal controls, and long-range planning.
Skill to:
- Lead multiple technology disciplines around service, accountability, measurable outcomes, and City priorities; analyze complex issues and make timely, evidence-based decisions.
- Translate operational needs and risks into practical strategies, roadmaps, architectures, procurements, budgets, and service improvements.
- Communicate clearly with elected officials, executives, department leaders, employees, technical staff, vendors, boards, and advisors.
- Develop staff, direct vendors, build cross-departmental relationships, resolve conflict, and lead organizational change while maintaining service continuity.
Ability to:
- Develop and administer a department budget and multiyear technology investment and lifecycle plan.
- Balance strategic initiatives with operational workload, capacity, cybersecurity risk, technical debt, lifecycle obligations, and financial constraints.
- Maintain confidentiality, transparency, clear accountability, and cooperative internal and external working relationships.
- Follow and embrace the City of Abilene Core Values: Respect, Integrity, Service Above Self, and Excellence in All We Do; lead employees with dignity, courtesy, and respect.
Experience and Training Guidelines:Any combination equivalent to experience and training that provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities may be qualifying. Knowledge, skills, and abilities may be obtained through:
Experience:- Ten (10) years of progressively responsible leadership experience in information technology is required, including managerial and supervisory experience and significant responsibility for enterprise technology operations.
- Experience leading multiple technology disciplines, budgets, vendors, services, and organizational change is expected.
- Demonstrated experience providing executive or operational oversight of regulated technology environments, including CJIS, public safety, critical infrastructure, or comparable security and compliance requirements, is preferred.
- Municipal, public-sector, regulated, critical-infrastructure, public-safety, utility, or comparable 24x7 experience is preferred also preferred.
Education/Training:- A Bachelor's degree is required. A degree in Business, Management, Computer Science, Information Technology, Information Systems, Engineering, Public Administration, or a related field is preferred.
- A relevant master's degree or professional certifications such as ITIL, PMP, CGCIO, CISSP, CISM, CRISC, or COBIT are desirable.
License or Certificate:- A valid Texas driver's license, the ability to obtain one within ninety (90) days of employment, or a military waiver is required.
