Director of Information Technology

The Director of IT & Security provides strategic direction and hands‑on leadership for the company's technology environment, cybersecurity posture, enterprise applications, and business systems supporting manufacturing and corporate operations across a global footprint.

The role is accountable for IT governance, infrastructure reliability, application enablement, information security, vendor oversight, AI strategy and governance, and continuous improvement of business processes. The Director partners closely with Finance, Operations, Sales, Quality, Supply Chain, Human Resources, and executive leadership to align technology investments with business priorities while maintaining secure, resilient, and efficient operations.

This is a working leadership position. The incumbent must balance executive-level strategy with direct technical involvement across infrastructure, cybersecurity, ERP, enterprise applications, and business systems.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Develop and execute the IT strategy, technology roadmap, cybersecurity priorities, and tactical initiatives aligned with business objectives.
• Establish, maintain, and improve IT policies, standards, and procedures covering architecture, security, disaster recovery, business continuity, procurement, service management, access control, AI use, and acceptable use of technology.
• Lead, coach, and develop the IT team by establishing goals, performance expectations, development plans, and succession planning as appropriate.
• Manage IT budgets, capital planning, vendor relationships, contracts, service agreements, and third-party technology resources.
• Oversee IT infrastructure and operations, including servers, networks, cloud systems, endpoints, Microsoft 365, remote access, backups, disaster recovery, and business-critical system availability.
• Manage the company's enterprise application portfolio, including ERP, CRM, quality, analytics, financial, productivity, and manufacturing support systems.
• Support ERP modernization, system upgrades, integrations, reporting, and application lifecycle management in partnership with business leaders and outside consultants as needed.
• Establish and maintain an information security program and incident response plan to protect company systems, data, intellectual property, and confidential information.
• Coordinate security assessments, penetration testing, vulnerability reviews, cybersecurity awareness activities, and timely remediation of findings.
• Lead technology due diligence, integration planning, and IT-related transition activities for acquisitions, carve-outs, and organizational changes.
• Partner with department leaders to identify process improvement opportunities and technology solutions that improve efficiency, reporting, quality, and decision-making.
• Maintain awareness of emerging technologies, including AI, and evaluate appropriate tools, policies, training, and governance for responsible business use.
• Ensure compliance with software licensing, technology contracts, audit requests, and applicable IT controls.
• Perform other duties and special projects as required or assigned by management.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS

Educational/Training Requirement:

• Bachelor's degree in information technology, computer science, information systems, cybersecurity, engineering, or a related field.
• Advanced degree such as an MBA or MS is a plus.

Experience:

• 10+ years of progressively responsible IT experience, including leadership of infrastructure, cybersecurity, enterprise applications, and IT service delivery.
• Demonstrated experience implementing and supporting ERP systems in a manufacturing environment, such as Aptean Axis, SAP, Oracle, or similar platforms.
• Experience leading IT operations within a multi-site, multinational manufacturing organization.
• Experience supporting business growth through acquisitions, carve-outs, and post-merger IT integration, including cross-border environments in Europe and Asia.
• Experience implementing analytics platforms such as QlikView, Power BI, Tableau, or similar solutions, as well as financial planning tools such as Jedox or comparable platforms.
• Hands-on experience administering Microsoft 365, including Entra ID, Conditional Access, MFA, Defender, Purview, and DLP at scale.
• Experience leading SOX and audit IT controls, IT financial risk assessments, ITFRA questionnaires, and related compliance activities.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• AI Strategy & Governance (Required): Working knowledge of enterprise AI concepts, tools, and use cases, including Microsoft Copilot 365, generative AI assistants, retrieval-augmented generation, and basic prompt engineering.
• Serve as the organizational owner of AI strategy by evaluating, approving, and governing AI tools for security, intellectual property protection, and data governance suitability.
• Demonstrated ability to define and enforce AI usage policies, including approved tools, prohibited data classes, human-in-the-loop review, and EULA/terms and conditions review.
• Ability to ensure AI activity remains within trusted and contractually protected systems, lead cross-functional AI enablement initiatives, and coach teams on responsible and productive AI adoption.
• Strong understanding of cybersecurity frameworks, identity and access management, endpoint protection, network security, and incident response.
• Strong understanding of enterprise applications, process controls, and data flows within a manufacturing environment.
• Change-agent leadership skills with the ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
• Strong financial, analytical, and problem-solving skills with the ability to prioritize initiatives based on business risk and value.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex technical issues for non-technical executives and stakeholders.
• Strong vendor management, contract negotiation, and project management skills.
• High degree of judgment, professionalism, discretion, and commitment to protecting company systems, data, and intellectual property.