IT Manager

Software Development Team LeadResponsibilities: Own the full employee lifecycle for the software development team, including recruiting, hiring, onboarding, development, performance evaluation, and retention, in partnership with the IT Director. Manage, mentor, and develop software engineers at all levels, building a team culture of trust, accountability, shared ownership, and continuous learning. Own the management of in-house software development, including scope, quality, and timelines, and coordinate outside consulting resources as needed. Lead agile development practices, including sprint planning, backlog grooming, and retrospectives, with a focus on team autonomy and sustainable delivery. Partner with Product Owners on roadmap planning, backlog prioritization, and requirements definition, serving as the engineering voice on technical constraints, capacity, and trade-offs. Lead team planning sessions and set clear, measurable goals for projects and initiatives, driving progress tracking and status reporting. Partner with corporate stakeholders and end users to understand business needs and lead the delivery of technology solutions that improve service, satisfaction, and efficiency. Engage with engineers on system architecture and design decisions, lead design reviews, and own the technical standards and patterns used across the team. Own the quality of software delivered by the team, establishing standards, code review processes, and testing practices. Lead the response to production issues, coordinating triage, driving resolution, communicating status to stakeholders, and ensuring post-incident reviews drive improvements. Define and track key quality and reliability metrics for in-house systems, using them to guide team priorities and report performance to IT leadership. Collaborate with IT leadership to ensure the security, integrity, availability, and privacy of information systems, and lead team adoption of IT policies, procedures, and system standards. Co-own financial management of the software development area alongside the IT Director, including purchasing, budgeting, budget review, and software vendor contract negotiation and evaluation. Stay current on emerging technologies and translate research into actionable recommendations for the team and IT leadership.Education - Skills - Knowledge - Qualifications & Experience: Bachelor degree in computer science, information systems, or related technical field; Or related software development experience. Minimum of 5 years of experience managing a team of software engineers. Hands-on software development background required; proficiency in one or more modern languages (C#, Java, Python, JavaScript/TypeScript) preferred. Experience with cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, or GCP) and modern DevOps practices preferred. Working knowledge of agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban) and tools such as Azure DevOps or Jira. Proven leadership ability with particular focus on mentoring, developing, and motivating engineers. Ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and prioritize resources across competing demands. Excellent oral and written communication skills, including the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders. Relevant certifications (PMP, SAFe, or cloud certifications) a plus. Willingness to travel occasionally to project sites or branch offices; estimated less than 10%.