DIRECTOR, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT)

Job Description

Job Description

POSITION SUMMARY

The Director, Information Technology leads all technology operations for a St. Louis based healthcare center, keeping clinical and business systems secure, available and aligned with patient-care goals. The role owns the electronic medical record (EMR) environment, along with infrastructure, cybersecurity, IT staff and vendor relationships.

The Director partners with clinical leadership, revenue cycle, compliance and administration to plan the technology roadmap. They ensure HIPAA compliance, support regulatory reporting and lead system upgrades, integrations and new implementations. Success is measured by system uptime, clinician satisfaction, security posture and delivery of projects on time and on budget. This is a player coach role. You will set the direction then roll up your sleeves and lean in with the internal team along with outsourced partners.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy and Leadership

• Develop and execute a multi-year IT strategic plan that supports clinical quality, patient experience, growth and regulatory requirements.
• Serve as the senior technology advisor to the executive team and present IT performance, risks and investment cases to leadership and the board.
• Establish IT governance, project prioritization and change-management processes with clinical and operational stakeholders.
• Track and evaluate emerging healthcare technology, including telehealth, patient engagement tools, analytics and AI-enabled clinical tools
  

Protect the Organization

• Run the information security program: policies, access reviews, security awareness training and incident response.
• Lead HIPAA Security Rule compliance, including the annual security risk assessment and a documented remediation plan.
• Partner with the Privacy/Compliance Officer on PHI safeguards, breach investigation and notification.
• Maintain Business Associate Agreements and review vendors' security before they handle PHI.
• Align controls to a recognized framework such as NIST CSF or CIS Controls, then close gaps on a documented schedule.
• Coordinate incident response with outside forensics, legal counsel and insurers when needed.
• Complete cyber-insurance applications, payer and partner security questionnaires, and vendor risk reviews.
• Maintain and regularly test backup, disaster recovery, business continuity and EMR downtime plans.

Support Clinical Systems and the EMR

• Own the EMR environment (Epic preferred), including upgrades, user access and security templates, uptime and vendor support.
• Work with clinical and front-office leaders to improve EMR workflows for scheduling, documentation, billing and the patient portal.
• Oversee interfaces between the EMR and labs, imaging, pharmacy, billing and health information exchanges (HL7/FHIR).
• Support EMR reporting for quality programs and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure clinicians and staff get timely EMR training and support.

Manage Partners and Vendors

• Decide, with leadership, which services stay outsourced and which move in-house over time.
• Negotiate contracts and renewals with software vendors, carriers and service providers.

REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Health Informatics or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 7+ years of IT experience across systems administration, infrastructure and security, including 2–3 years in a lead, manager or ownership role.
• 3+ years of IT experience in a healthcare setting, such as a clinic, physician group, FQHC or ambulatory network.
• 2+ years supporting or managing an EMR (preferably Epic) including at least one upgrade, implementation or optimization project.
• A senior security certification such as CISSP or CISM, or willingness to earn one within the first year (the client covers the cost).
• Healthcare credentials such as HCISPP, CHPS or CPHIMS.
• Working knowledge of HIPAA, HITECH and safeguarding protected health information (PHI).
• Strong hands-on skills with Microsoft 365, Active Directory, Entra ID, Intune (or similar) and Windows; macOS experience is a plus.
• Solid multi-site networking knowledge, including TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, Wi-Fi, VPN and network segmentation.
• Practical security experience covering access management, patching, vulnerability management, backup and recovery, and incident response.
• Experience managing or contributing to an IT budget, including licensing and vendor negotiation.
• Clear communicator who can explain technical trade-offs to executives, clinicians and non-technical staff.
• Self-directed and organized, able to set priorities without close supervision.
• High integrity and discretion with protected health information (PHI) and confidential business data.
• Deep understanding of clinical and revenue-cycle workflows and how EMR configuration affects them.
• Sound judgment under pressure during outages, cyber incidents and go-live events.

PREFERRED SKILLS

• Experience with Epic Community Connect or a hosted EMR model.
• Epic certification or proficiency in one or more modules (for example Ambulatory, Cadence, Prelude, Resolute or MyChart).
• Microsoft certifications such as SC-300, AZ-104 or Microsoft 365 Enterprise Administrator Expert.
• Experience implementing a security framework and guiding the organization through a HIPAA audit, insurer review or payer security review.
• Experience bringing new clinic locations onto company IT standards.
• PowerShell scripting or other automation experience.

• Ability to translate technical issues into plain language for physicians, nurses, executives and board members.
• Strong project and program management skills, including scope, timeline, budget and risk control across concurrent initiatives.
• Analytical skill with data, dashboards and KPIs such as uptime, ticket resolution time and user satisfaction.
• A track record of owning an IT environment end to end: making the platform decisions and being accountable for the results.
• Skilled negotiator and vendor manager.
• Coaching-oriented leader who builds accountable, service-focused teams.
• Working knowledge of business AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT Enterprise or Claude, including admin settings and data protection.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

• Based primarily at the client's St. Louis-area headquarters
• Regular local travel to company sites for projects, support and maintenance
• Available after hours for outages, security incidents and planned maintenance windows.

COMPENSATION

Competitive Annual Salary Based on Experience

Medical, Dental, Vision Insurance

401(k) with employer match

PTO and paid holidays

Company Paid Certification and Training

Work-Life Balance with Opportunity for Career Growth

Equal Opportunity Employer