Branch Chief

The California Secretary of State's Information Technology Division is hiring a permanent, full-time Information Technology Manager II. Under the administrative direction of the Chief Information Officer (CIO), the IT Manager II (Branch Chief) serves in an executive leadership role, helping set IT policy and long-range objectives while ensuring IT programs align with organizational priorities as a member of the IT Senior Management Team. The incumbent provides full management oversight of the Infrastructure & Administration Branch, leading managers/supervisors and technical teams responsible for SOS enterprise infrastructure engineering and operations (network, servers, storage, backups/technology recovery, email, cloud services, and data center support) and overseeing security and account management, including Active Directory administration, security device operations, monitoring/metrics, incident response, and audit support. The position also directs staffing, budgeting and forecasting, service delivery/SLAs, customer support, and continuous improvement efforts, while supporting organizational change and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion and excellent customer experience.


Duties include:

System Engineering Oversight:

• Manage the System Engineering Section, including network administrators and system administrators supporting switching/routing/perimeter devices, servers (physical/virtual), storage, backups, technology recovery, email, cloud services, data center support, and customer engagement support.
• Oversee performance monitoring and reporting for network, servers, and cloud services; develop strategies to maintain and administer infrastructure.
• Manage infrastructure operational costs and develop near- and long-term financial forecasts.
• Oversee SOS infrastructure services (LAN/WAN/servers/storage/cloud) and security solutions (e.g., firewalls, anti-virus, intrusion detection), ensuring timely IT support.

Security and Account Management:

• Provide strategic oversight for architecture, engineering, operations, and support across the infrastructure life cycle and report on system performance trends and service issues.
• Ensure security of SOS systems/data through policy definition, implementation, and audit; oversee user account/access administration in Active Directory; support security monitoring.
• Oversee administration and maintenance of security devices; collaborate with the Information Security Officer (ISO) on threat management, threat modeling, and security monitoring use cases; establish metrics/monitoring and produce standard reports.
  
  

Personnel Management and Supervision:

• Recruit, hire, train, and manage staff; set priorities and adjust assignments based on changing need.
• Develop staff training plans and support reporting, feasibility/special project reporting, and budgetary/control agency information needs.
• Partner with clients to determine IT needs, communicate changes affecting production systems, and establish service level agreements.

Supplemental Questionnaire: Applicants must submit a Supplemental Questionnaire responding to the questions listed below, it should be no more than two (2) pages typed, using business professional font, font size and formatting. Responses do not need to include the question but must be numbered in the same order. Applications that do not follow the directions as identified above, provide incomplete responses, or do not submit a Supplemental Questionnaire will not be considered.

• Describe your experience leading enterprise infrastructure teams responsible for network (LAN/WAN, routing/switching, perimeter), servers/virtualization, storage, backups/technology recovery, email, cloud services, data center operation and customer service. Include scope (environment size), your role, and outcomes achieved (e.g., availability/performance improvements).
• Provide an example of how you established or improved infrastructure monitoring, metrics, and reporting (network/server/cloud) and used trending/resource data to drive service reliability and customer support improvements. Include what you measured, how often you reported, and the results.
• Describe your experience overseeing user account, permissions, and access rights administration in Active Directory (or equivalent). Include how you reduced access risk (e.g., least privilege, periodic reviews) and supported security monitoring or incident response.
• Share an example demonstrating how you managed infrastructure operational costs and developed near- and long-term forecasts, while also recruiting/training/staffing to meet changing priorities and service needs. Include tools/approaches used and measurable outcomes.

You will find additional information about the job in the Duty Statement .

Working Conditions


This job advertisement indicates whether this position is eligible for telework. All employees who telework are required to be California residents, in accordance with Government Code 14200, and may be required to report to the Secretary of State's Headquarters (Sacramento), when needed, and on short notice. Candidates who reside outside of the state of California may be interviewed; however, the selected candidate must have a primary residency in the state of California prior to appointment (and continue to maintain California residency) as a condition of employment. Failure to meet this requirement may result in the job offer being rescinded.


Minimum Requirements You will find the Minimum Requirements in the Class Specification.

• INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MANAGER II

Additional Documents

• Job Application Package Checklist
• Duty Statement

Position Details Job Code #:
JC-519178


Position #(s):
785-250-1406-002

Working Title:
Branch Chief


Classification:
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MANAGER II $11,388.00 - $13,842.00
New to State candidates will be hired into the minimum salary of the classification or minimum of alternate range when applicable.


# of Positions:
1


Work Location:
Sacramento County


Telework:
Hybrid


Job Type:
Permanent, Full Time


Department Information
The Office of the Secretary of State (SOS) consists of nearly 750 dedicated public servants who uphold the rights of Californians while also striving to make our government, elections, and businesses both accessible and transparent. Led by an elected leader, accountable to the public, we are dedicated to fostering career development opportunities and growing a skilled workforce that embraces inclusion and values diversity.

Located in downtown Sacramento, the SOS building is within walking distance to a variety of eateries and amenities. Light Rail, State Capitol, Downtown Commons (DOCO), and Golden 1 Center, just to name a few. Conveniently located in the SOS building, the Gold Rush Grille offers delicious daily specials for breakfast or lunch and is open to the public. Our on-site childcare incorporates programs for children six weeks to five years old. Priority waitlist access and special discounted rates are available for SOS employees.

For more information about the SOS, please visit sos.ca.gov .

Personal Leave Program: Effective July 1, 2025, state employees are subject to temporary wage reductions in exchange for Personal Leave Program (PLP) accruals. The specific rate and hours earned were negotiated and agreed upon by each bargaining unit. The salary range(s) included in this job advertisement do not reflect the temporary salary reduction.


Special Requirements
Examination Information

• Candidates new to state service or those seeking a promotional opportunity must take the online examination to establish eligibility. The examination can be found at the following link: Exam Bulletin - Information Technology Manager II
  
  

• There is also a Limited Examination & Appointment Program (LEAP) exam available for this classification. Information on the LEAP certification process is available on the Department of Rehabilitation LEAP Certification website .

Application Instructions
Completed applications and all required documents must be received or postmarked by the Final Filing Date in order to be considered. Dates printed on Mobile Bar Codes, such as the Quick Response (QR) Codes available at the USPS, are not considered Postmark dates for the purpose of determining timely filing of an application.
Final Filing Date: 6/8/2026
Who May Apply
Individuals who are currently in the classification, eligible for lateral transfer, eligible for reinstatement, have list or LEAP eligibility, are in the process of obtaining list eligibility, or have SROA and/or Surplus eligibility (please attach your letter, if available). SROA and Surplus candidates are given priority; therefore, individuals with other eligibility may be considered in the event no SROA or Surplus candidates apply.


Applications will be screened and only the most qualified applicants will be selected to move forward in the selection process. Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications stated in the Classification Specification(s).


How To Apply
Complete Application Packages (including your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) and applicable or required documents) must be submitted to apply for this Job Posting. Application Packages may be submitted electronically through your CalCareer Account at When submitting your application in hard copy, a completed copy of the Application Package listing must be included. If you choose to not apply electronically, a hard copy application package may be submitted through an alternative method listed below:


Address for Mailing Application Packages


You may submit your application and any applicable or required documents to:


Secretary of State
Attn: Paul Parham
1500 11th St - 4th Floor - Suite 475


Sacramento , CA 95814


Address for Drop-Off Application Packages


You may drop off your application and any applicable or required documents at:


Secretary of State


1500 11th St - 4th Floor - Suite 475


Sacramento , CA 95814
Drop off applications in the 1st floor Lobby Rotunda in the secured bin marked Human Resources.
08:00 AM - 05:00 PM


Required Application Package Documents


The following items are required to be submitted with your application. Applicants who do not submit the required items timely may not be considered for this job:

• Current version of the State Examination/Employment Application STD Form 678 (when not applying electronically), or the Electronic State Employment Application through your Applicant Account at All Experience and Education relating to the Minimum Qualifications listed on the Classification Specification should be included to demonstrate how you meet the Minimum Qualifications for the position.
• Resume is optional. It may be included, but is not required.
• Supplemental Application - Please submit your responses to the supplemental questions as indicated in the Supplemental Questionnaire section above.

Applicants requiring reasonable accommodations for the hiring interview process must request the necessary accommodations if scheduled for a hiring interview. The request should be made at the time of contact to schedule the interview. Questions regarding reasonable accommodations may be directed to the EEO contact listed on this job posting.


Desirable Qualifications In addition to evaluating each candidate's relative ability, as demonstrated by quality and breadth of experience, the following factors will provide the basis for competitively evaluating each candidate:

• Demonstrated success improving infrastructure availability, performance, and reliability using monitoring, trending, metrics, and regular performance reporting across network/server/cloud environments.
• Experience developing and managing infrastructure operational budgets/cost controls and conducting near- and long-term financial forecasting for growth/expanded functionality.
• Strong knowledge of enterprise security tools/controls (e.g., firewalls, anti-virus, intrusion detection systems) and experience overseeing their effective operation.
• Experience collaborating with an Information Security Officer (ISO) or security leadership on threat management, threat modeling, threat vectors, and security monitoring use cases, including production of standard security/performance reports for leadership.
• Experience establishing and enforcing IT/security policies, processes, procedures, and driving continuous process improvement to meet operational and security objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to build service partnerships with customers, communicate production-impacting changes, and establish/maintain service level agreements (SLAs).
• Experience leading through organizational change, mentoring supervisors/managers, and promoting a strong customer experience and inclusive workplace practices.

Benefits Benefit information can be found on the CalHR website and the CalPERS website.



Contact Information
The Human Resources Contact is available to answer questions regarding the position or application process.
Human Resources Contact:
Paul Parham
View phone number on click.appcast.io
View email address on click.appcast.io


Please direct requests for Reasonable Accommodations to the interview scheduler at the time the interview is being scheduled. You may direct any additional questions regarding Reasonable Accommodations or Equal Employment Opportunity for this position(s) to the Department's EEO Office.
EEO Contact:
Sarah Bielski
View phone number on click.appcast.io
View email address on click.appcast.io
California Relay Service: View phone number on click.appcast.io (TTY), View phone number on click.appcast.io (Voice) TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.


Equal Opportunity Employer
The State of California is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.


It is an objective of the State of California to achieve a drug-free work place. Any applicant for state employment will be expected to behave in accordance with this objective because the use of illegal drugs is inconsistent with the law of the State, the rules governing Civil Service, and the special trust placed in public servants.