Data Center Manager

Information Systems ChiefThe Florida Legislature is seeking an experienced and operationally focused Data Center Manager to support the Office of Legislative Information Technology Services (OLITS) Infrastructure and Operations division. This position services as a key operational leader responsible for ensuring the stability, reliability, and effectiveness of day-to-day infrastructure operations. Working under the direction of the Deputy Chief Information Officer for Infrastructure and Operations, this role provides oversight across Customer Support, Systems Administration, Networking, and the Data Center Facilities teams to ensure coordinated execution of operational priorities. The Data Center Manager functions as a trusted second in command of operational activities, leading cross-team coordination, managing escalations, and ensuring that services are delivered efficiently and consistently. This position emphasizes operational discipline, risk awareness, and lifecycle planning while enabling executive leadership to focus on strategic initiatives.Essential Duties/Responsibilities:Provide operational oversight across infrastructure teams, including Customer Support, Systems Administration, Networking, and Data Center FacilitiesCoordinate day-to-day operations to ensure reliability, performance, and service continuity across all infrastructure servicesServe as the primary escalation point for operational incidents and cross-team issuesParticipate in performance evaluations of working managers and assist in aligning team priorities, goals, and workload distributionFacilitate cross-team collaboration to resolve conflicts, improve processes, and ensure consistent service deliveryDevelop, maintain and enforce operational standards, procedures, and runbooksCoordinate maintenance windows, system changes, and infrastructure cutovers to minimize disruptionOwn and manage lifecycle planning activities, including: Maintaining lifecycle schedules Coordinating multi-year reinvestment planning Tracking asset age, risk exposure, and refresh timelines Assist in development of infrastructure lifecycle reinvestment budgets in coordination with leadership Collaborate on infrastructure design decisions impacting the data center and enterprise systemsEnsure readiness and accuracy of backup, disaster recovery (DR), and continuity of operations (COOP) capabilities and documentationSupport cloud integration initiatives, including hybrid and Azure-based environmentsIdentify operational risks and implement mitigation strategies to improve system resilience and reliabilityParticipate in compliance related activities, including alignment with CJIS and NIST frameworks and remediation of audit findingsProvide regular operational status updates and briefing to leadershipMaintain awareness of emerging technologies and operational best practicesMinimum Qualifications:A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in computer science, management information systems, or engineering and six years of progressively responsible information systems experience, two years of which must have been in a managerial or supervisory capacity. Progressively responsible information systems experience can substitute on a year-for-year basis for the required college education. Any combination of progressively responsible information systems experience and post-secondary training in disciplines as described above totaling ten years.Preferred Qualifications:Extensive experience in infrastructure operations leadership across multiple technical domainsExperience overseeing and coordinating cross-functional IT teams in an operational environmentKnowledge of backup disaster recovery (DR), and continuity of operations (COOP) planning and executionExperience supporting hybrid cloud environments, including Microsoft Azure integrationsExperience developing and managing lifecycle refresh and reinvestment planningKnowledge of operational risk identification and mitigation strategiesFamiliarity with CJIS and NIST frameworksExperience developing operational documentation, runbooks, and standardsStrong understanding of enterprise IT operations, including incident management, change coordination, and service deliverySkills and abilities:Strong leadership and decision-making skills in operational environmentsAbility to remain calm and effective under pressure during incidents and escalationsStrong process-oriented mindset with the ability to improve operational efficiencyAbility to coordinate and align multiple teams toward shared objectivesAbility to analyze complex operational issues and implement practical solutionsAbility to communicate technical operational information clearly and effectivelyAbility to establish and maintain effective working relationships across teams and leadershipStrong organizational skills and attention to detail