Director of IT Infrastructure and Operations

We have an exciting opportunity for a Director of IT Infrastructure and Operations at UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement based in our Northbrook, IL office.

The Director of IT Infrastructure and Operations establishes and leads our infrastructure engineering and operations organization, which will consist of network design, cloud engineering, telecom, conferencing services, and enterprise technologies. This individual will also be responsible for building a cloud engineering team that will design and build cloud artifacts to support the needs of our two nonprofit organizations: UL Research Institutes (ULRI) and UL Standards & Engagement (ULSE).

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At UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement (UL), we wake up every day with a common purpose: to make the world a safer, more secure and sustainable place. Science is in our DNA; we are endlessly curious and passionate about seeking and speaking the truth. We take delight in knowing that our work makes a meaningful contribution to society, and we are proud that our culture is centered on integrity, collaboration, inclusion and excellence. UL stands at the forefront of technological advancement, and we are continually challenged to find new ways to foster innovation and positive change. Satisfying? Yes. Exciting? Absolutely!

As the Director of IT Infrastructure and Operations, you will play a key role in the rapid growth of UL as you:

• Establish and lead an infrastructure engineering and operations organization that includes network design, cloud engineering (Azure, AWS, and GCP), telecom, and conferencing services, and Enterprise technologies (such as Office 355, email, active directory, etc.) and End User Computing
• Accountable for IT Infrastructure to ensure all systems are designed and implemented following standards, industry best practices, and regulatory requirements
• Establish the monthly operations review cadence and define the KPIs and metrics to monitor and manage team and service performance levels.
• Build and lead a cloud engineering team that will design and build cloud artifacts to support the needs of ULRI and ULSE's workloads.
• Provide leadership and direction to the IT infrastructure and cloud engineering teams, including hiring, training, coaching, and mentoring team members.
• Participate in the development of the company's IT strategy, ensuring that it aligns with its mission and strategic goals and objectives.
• Develop and manage the annual budget for IT infrastructure and operations.
• Establish a service desk to deliver service management across corporate and remote sites.
• Own the vendor relationship and deliver expected results with multiple vendors providing IT operations support.
• Develop and implement policies, procedures, and standards to ensure that our IT infrastructure is secure, reliable, and compliant with all applicable laws and regulations.
• Collaborate with other IT teams to ensure that our IT infrastructure is integrated with our business processes and applications.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring that they are completed on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards.
• Contribute to and/or lead other department specific and cross-functional initiatives.

While no one candidate will embody every quality, the successful candidate will bring many of the following professional competencies and personal attributes:

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively communicate with technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and deliver on-time, within budget, and to the required quality standards.
• Strong vendor management skills, with the ability to manage relationships with multiple vendors providing IT operations support.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to quickly identify and resolve complex technical issues.
• Proven ability to work collaboratively with other IT teams and stakeholders to achieve common goals and objectives.

Professional education and experience requirements for the role include:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in IT infrastructure and operations management, with at least 5 years of experience in a leadership role.
• Strong cloud engineering experience, with experience in designing and building cloud artifacts to support organizational workloads.
• Experience running a service desk and delivering service management across corporate and remote sites.
• Site operations experience, with a proven track record of managing IT infrastructure in a complex, multi-site environment.
• Management experience leading teams, developing strategy, and executing plans.

UL has COVID-19 protocols and policies in place to ensure the safety of our employees, customers and clients. Effective November 1, 2021, the company mandates that employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment (except where prohibited by law), subject to reasonable accommodation as required by law.

• Mission: For UL, corporate and social responsibility isn’t new. Making the world a safer, more secure and sustainable place has been our business model for the last 128 years and is deeply ingrained in everything we do.
• People: Ask any UL employee what they love most about working here, and you’ll almost always hear, “the people.” Going beyond what is possible is the standard at UL. We’re able to deliver the best because we employ the best.
• Interesting work: Every day is different for us here as we eagerly anticipate the next innovation that our customers’ create. We’re inspired to take on the challenge that will transform how people live, work and play. And as a global company, in many roles, you will get international experience working with colleagues around the world.
• Grow & achieve: We learn, work and grow together with targeted development, reward and recognition programs as well as our very own UL University that offers extensive training programs for employees at all stages, including a technical training track for applicable roles.
• Total Rewards: All employees at UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagementare eligible for bonus compensation. We offer comprehensive medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans. a generous 401k matching structure of up to 5% of eligible pay. Additionally, we invest an additional 4% into your retirement saving fund after your first year of continuous employment. Depending on your role, you can work with your manager on flexible working arrangements. We also provide employees with paid time off including vacation, holiday, sick and volunteer time off.

UL Research Institutes and UL Standards & Engagement are nonprofit organizations dedicated to advancing safety science research through the discovery and application of scientific knowledge. We conduct rigorous independent research and analyze safety data, convene experts worldwide to address risks, share knowledge through safety education and public outreach initiatives, and develop standards to guide safe commercialization of evolving technologies. We foster communities of safety, from grassroots initiatives for neighborhoods to summits of world leaders. Our organization employs collaborative and scientific approaches with partners and stakeholders to drive innovation and progress toward improving safety, security, and sustainability, ultimately enhancing societal well-being.

Our wholly owned subsidiary, UL Solutions, advances our shared public safety mission. We fund our work through grants, the licensing of standards documents and the business activities of UL Solutions, which conducts testing, verification and certification, and provides training and advisory services, along with data-driven reporting and decision-making tools for customers around the world.

To learn more, visit our websites UL.org and ULSE.org.