IT Infrastructure Manager

About the California Academy of Sciences

The California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, research center, and natural history museum—all under one living roof—our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.

Our extensive collections span plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. We are a diverse team of leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who work collaboratively to advance knowledge and inspire action through science and storytelling.

When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation. Whether you're working behind the scenes in research or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.

About the Opportunity
Reporting to the Director of Information Technology, the Infrastructure Manager is responsible for the maintenance, security, and enhancement of the Academy's infrastructure systems.  In addition, the position supervises a team of employees, helping each reach their highest potential. 

The Infrastructure team is part of the Department of Information Technology and oversees all network and shared infrastructure. In addition, the group oversees organizational-wide information security practices and provides end-user support. The Infrastructure team department works alongside the Business Applications team, supporting the  Academy’s business systems and reporting functions. 

Organizational Culture
Join a team dedicated to the Academy’s mission, vision and values! Currently, the Academy has a new strategic plan including three initiatives – Hope for Reefs, Thriving California, and Islands 2030 – that leverage biodiversity science, environmental learning, and collaborative engagement to regenerate fragile ecosystems around the world. Learn more at https://www.calacademy.org/about-us/major-initiatives.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are excited to contribute to our mission. The mission of the California Academy of Sciences is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.

This position is based in San Francisco, California. Staff are currently expected to work from the Academy offices at least 2-3 times per week, which may fluctuate based on business needs. Please do not apply if you are not able to work onsite. 

POSITION DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Demonstrates a deep understanding of The Academy’s technology, including hardware, software, networking, telephony, and the interrelation of these systems
• Ensures information security best practices are implemented and followed while actively participating in continuous improvement

• Identify infrastructure needs and create, prioritize, and manage projects assigned by management
• Actively participates in overall IT management at The Academy, assisting in decision making and developing strategic plans, standard policies and procedures, and service level agreements
• Interacts with business leaders to understand their needs and concerns related to systems, translating those discussions into system improvements

• Provides insight into new technologies that focus on supporting business requirements and coordinates the procurement and configuration of those technologies
• Establishes trusted partnerships with vendors that play a vital role in supporting the department and fosters new relationships when relevant opportunities arise
• Rapidly discover the root cause of system issues through abnormal log entries, system behavior, or console errors
• Serves as the final escalation point for infrastructure systems, providing Level III system support
• Performs system maintenance and provides technical support to maintain system availability and to achieve schedule demands.
• Performs annual audits for infrastructure licensing, user accounts, data storage, hardware, and other matters, enforcing compliance with all established IT standards, policies, and procedures
• Recognizesk system deficiencies and implements effective solutions, including extending existing technologies and researching and procuring new technologies
• Follow all Academy safety regulations
• Other duties as assigned

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES: 

• Advanced knowledge of the following:
• Enterprise Server Hardware (Dell, HP, Cisco UCS)
• Network Storage (NetApp, Synology, Brocade SMB/NFS/iSCSI/FC/NDMP/LTO Tape)
• VMware vSphere and ESXi
• Windows Server Administration and Engineering
• Active Directory Administration and Engineering
• Microsoft Clustering
• Enterprise databases (SQL Server)
• Experience in installing load balancing, application, database, and queuing servers
• Experience with an enterprise NMS such as Solarwinds.
• Experience with the administration/use of security software (e.g. Trellix/FireEye, Tenable, Tanium,Sophos) EDR systems (e.g. FireEye), and enterprise logging frameworks, like Splunk
• Experience with Cisco networking a plus
• Strong working knowledge of the processes, tools, and techniques of information security management, ability to deploy and monitor information security systems, as well as detect, resolve, and prevent violations of IT security, to protect organizational data
• Experience leading and managing large IT projects and rolling out IT infrastructures across various technologies
• Firm grasp on IT infrastructure and operations best practices
• Experience managing and developing a team of employees
• Strong analytical and communication skills; recognized as a subject matter expert and thought leader
• Excellent documentation and knowledge management skills

Other Skills:

• Collaboration: Ability to work as part of a team or collaborate well with team members, and external collaborators (if applicable) to accomplish mutual goals.
• Communication: Ability to work efficiently and communicate with staff, cross-functional teams, and external customers from different identities and experiences.
• Innovation: Ability to bring new ideas, create inventive solutions and find efficiencies to transform manually or detailed processes.Demonstrated commitment to equity and inclusion.
• Ability to transport 25 lbs.  

EXPERIENCE and/or EDUCATION:
A qualified candidate will possess a combination of the following education and/or equivalent experience 

• A minimum of seven years of IT experience in supporting hardware, software applications, operating systems, and local area networking
• 2-5 years of experience working in IT operations, including management of direct reports
• BS Degree in Computer Science or related engineering field or commensurate experience

Physical Environment:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Compensation and Benefits:
The salary range for this position is $130,000-$140,000. Actual compensation will be commensurate with experience, skills/knowledge set, and internal equity. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.

Schedule: Full-Time, 40 hours per week

How to Apply: Interested candidates should submit a resume and optional cover letter through our Careers Page portal.

The California Academy of Sciences will give full consideration for employment to all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (SF Police Code, Article 49).