Director of IT & AI

Job Description

Job Description

Position Summary

This role supports all three of our organizations: Great States Construction, Great States Development, and Collective, offering a diverse and rewarding opportunity to make a broad impact across the construction, real estate development, and property management sectors.

The Director of IT & AI owns technology strategy, security, and AI adoption across all three entities and our five-state footprint. You will be our first dedicated technology leader, operating through a managed IT service provider rather than an internal team — directing that provider and our technology vendors, holding them accountable to defined service standards, and ensuring our people, properties, and data stay secure, connected, and productive. Beyond core IT, this role leads our AI strategy — governance, tool evaluation, staff enablement, and a practical roadmap that moves us from everyday AI assistants toward deeper automation. The Director of IT & AI reports directly to executive leadership.

Key Responsibilities

IT Strategy & Vendor Management (Lead)

• Own the technology roadmap and multi-year IT budget across all three entities, planning spend proactively rather than reactively
• Direct the managed IT service provider relationship: lead quarterly business reviews, enforce defined service standards and response times, and hold the provider accountable for help desk, network, and multi-site support performance
• Serve as the single internal owner for all IT-related vendor relationships, contracts, and escalations, including internet/telecom carriers and the business phone system (RingCentral)
• Ensure IT costs are allocated and reported by entity and property for accounting and ownership reporting
• Maintain ownership of company data, licenses, accounts, and documentation, with clean exit terms from any provider

AI Strategy & Enablement (Lead)

• Build and own the company AI roadmap: identify where AI can streamline property management, construction, and development work — leasing, maintenance, resident communications, project workflows, and reporting — and pilot and roll it out safely
• Establish and evolve AI usage and data-protection governance that keeps tenant, resident, and company data secure and compliant as adoption expands
• Evaluate, secure, and integrate new AI tools as the landscape shifts, moving from assistants toward deeper automation and AI agents over time
• Train staff, share best practices, and keep the organization current on AI capabilities that genuinely help

Security & Compliance (Lead)

• Own the company security posture: endpoint protection (EDR/XDR), MFA everywhere, patching, email security, and secure remote access across our Microsoft 365 / Entra / Intune environment
• Protect tenant and resident PII and payment data (AppFolio; ACH payments) and align practices with applicable privacy, payment-handling, and multi-state data-breach notification requirements
• Maintain a documented, periodically tested incident-response plan and dark-web monitoring
• Oversee security awareness training for all staff and a business password/credential management program that survives staff turnover

Infrastructure & Property Technology Oversight (Lead)

• Oversee our cloud-first environment (Microsoft 365, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, Entra/Intune-managed devices) and office/property networks through the managed service provider
• Own the new-property standup and teardown playbook — network, Wi-Fi, workstations, phones, and access — when we acquire or exit a building or open a jobsite
• Ensure first-call triage and vendor coordination standards are met for property technology: door access and key FOBs, cameras, intercom/video entry, package systems, smart-building devices, EV charging, and resident Wi-Fi
• Treat physical-security and life-safety connectivity as urgent: door-access failures, camera outages, elevator phones, and fire-panel connections, including planning for copper/POTS line retirement
• Own business continuity: internet failover at key sites, tested and recoverable backups, and clear recovery-time expectations so leasing, payments, and operations keep running during an outage

End-User Experience (Oversee)

• Ensure every new hire is set up end-to-end (email, computer, phone, apps, access) before day one and fully offboarded the same day they leave, in partnership with HR
• Oversee help desk performance and serve as the internal escalation point when staff issues stall
• Maintain shared and role-based mailboxes and distribution lists so access stays with the role, not one person
• Oversee hardware lifecycle: sourcing standards, replacement planning, and spares

Business Applications (Support)

• Ensure secure access and first-call troubleshooting standards for key business applications, including AppFolio, BambooHR, RingCentral, Procore, and check scanner / remote deposit systems
• Partner with department leaders on application selection, integration, and data flow between systems

What Success Looks Like in the First 12 Months

• Our managed service provider is operating under a defined service standard, with regular business reviews and transparent reporting on tickets, response times, and spend
• An AI usage and data-protection policy is adopted, staff are trained, and the first AI workflow improvements are live in at least one entity
• The security baseline — MFA everywhere, endpoint protection, tested backups, and a documented incident-response plan — is verified and documented
• IT cost reporting by entity and property is live and feeding accounting and ownership reporting

Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive IT experience, including 3+ years in an IT leadership role owning strategy, budget, and vendor relationships
• Experience managing a managed service provider (MSP) or outsourced IT relationship required
• Hands-on experience administering a Microsoft 365 cloud environment (Entra ID, Intune, SharePoint, Teams) required
• Demonstrated fluency with AI tools and a track record of practical adoption strongly preferred
• Multi-site or multi-entity IT experience strongly preferred; property management, real estate, or construction technology exposure a plus
• Bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer science, or a related field preferred, or equivalent experience

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Required

• Strong knowledge of security frameworks, identity management, and data protection practices
• Ability to translate business needs into technology decisions and hold vendors accountable to measurable outcomes
• Strong project management, budgeting, and communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences
• Ability to handle sensitive information with confidentiality

Benefits and Perks

• Health, dental, and vision insurance with HSA and FSA options
• Supplementary insurance
• 401(k) with 3% match
• Flexible time off with 9 paid holidays
  
• Paid volunteer hours
• Professional development opportunities

Physical Demands

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Must be able to lift and/or move 20 pounds

Work Environment

This is an in-office role based at our Fargo, ND support office, with a willingness to travel periodically to properties and jobsites across our footprint. Availability for occasional after-hours escalations is expected.

Why Join Us

This is a rare mandate: you will be the first technology leader in an ownership group that has already committed — in writing — to adopting AI ambitiously. You get greenfield authority to shape how three growing companies use technology, a direct line to ownership instead of layers of approval, and a real budget managed your way through a service provider you hold accountable. Most IT leaders spend years convincing leadership to invest in technology. Here, leadership is asking you to move faster.

WE ARE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER