Director, Information Technology

Director, Information Technology

Location: Norwalk, Connecticut
Work Model: Hybrid, with a preference for 4 days in office

Position Overview

An established North American business within a global organization is entering a significant modernization phase as part of a broader business transformation. The business is evolving from a historically volume-driven model toward a more value-driven, brand-focused growth strategy, and technology is being repositioned from a reactive support function to a strategic enabler across the enterprise.

This is a hands-on, player-coach leadership opportunity for an experienced IT leader who can modernize business systems, reduce reliance on legacy platforms, and bring stronger structure, governance, and ownership to the technology environment. While ERP transformation is a critical near-term priority, the broader mandate is to assess the current ecosystem, define a practical future-state roadmap, improve operational resilience, and build a more scalable and business-aligned IT function.

The ideal candidate will be comfortable operating in a lean environment, staying close to execution, and driving outcomes through influence, structure, and accountability. This role requires a leader who can partner effectively with global IT counterparts, external vendors, and cross-functional stakeholders across finance, supply chain, logistics, manufacturing, and commercial functions.

Key Responsibilities

Technology Strategy and Modernization

• Lead the strategy and roadmap for modernizing business systems and the broader technical ecosystem

• Assess the current state of applications, integrations, documentation, data flows, technical debt, process maturity, and operational risk

• Define a pragmatic target-state architecture aligned with enterprise governance, cybersecurity, and compliance standards

• Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, standardize processes, and increase data transparency and reporting capabilities

• Develop a practical multi-year roadmap that supports scalability, resiliency, and business growth

ERP Modernization, Integration, and Adoption

• Lead business-side ERP deployment readiness, adoption, and post go-live stabilization

• Ensure ERP capabilities are effectively integrated across finance and operational processes, including surrounding systems and applications

• Coordinate with global stakeholders and external implementation partners to manage handoffs, maintain accountability, and define sustainable support models

• Drive user adoption through change management, process harmonization, training, and stakeholder engagement

Systems Ownership and Governance

• Establish clear ownership, lifecycle management, and governance across ERP and other critical business applications

• Implement structure around testing, integrations, access controls, data management, security alignment, and documentation

• Clarify local versus enterprise decision rights and define how systems will be owned, supported, and governed over time

• Strengthen discipline around change control, support processes, and long-term platform sustainability

Operational IT Leadership and Vendor Management

• Maintain stable day-to-day IT operations while modernization efforts are underway

• Evaluate the current vendor landscape and recommend improvements related to service quality, cost control, performance, and strategic alignment

• Build a sustainable operating rhythm for IT, including service expectations, escalation paths, issue management, communication standards, and accountability mechanisms

• Reduce operational friction and improve responsiveness across the business

Team Leadership and Organizational Change

• Lead, coach, and develop a small IT team while building credibility with long-tenured employees and preserving continuity during change

• Foster a culture of curiosity, continuous improvement, ownership, and accountability

• Assess skills, coverage gaps, and succession risks to reduce single points of failure and improve organizational resiliency

• Serve as a calm, steady leader who can guide the organization through change without unnecessary disruption

Ideal Candidate Profile

This role is well suited for a pragmatic, business-oriented IT leader who combines strategic thinking with a hands-on approach. The successful candidate will be able to assess a complex environment quickly, build trust across functions, and translate modernization goals into clear and achievable actions.

The right candidate will bring:

• Strong curiosity, humility, and structured problem-solving skills

• A willingness to stay close to execution and operate as a true player-coach

• The ability to communicate complex technical concepts in a clear, practical, business-friendly way

• Strong cross-functional partnership skills across finance, operations, supply chain, logistics, and manufacturing

• Confidence working in a global, matrixed, and cross-cultural environment

• Experience leading change in organizations with long-tenured employees and legacy processes

• A track record of creating governance, ownership, and accountability where structure may be limited

• The ability to balance modernization efforts with day-to-day operational stability

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive experience in IT leadership roles

• Proven experience leading ERP or enterprise business systems modernization or implementation initiatives

• Experience serving as a system owner, application owner, or product owner for business-critical platforms

• Cross-functional IT experience supporting finance and operational environments

• Experience in areas such as manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, or distribution

• Strong vendor management experience, including performance oversight and delivery accountability

• Demonstrated success driving change management, user adoption, and organizational readiness for large-scale systems initiatives

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Infor M3 strongly preferred, though not required

• Experience modernizing environments built on legacy platforms, including AS400 or similar systems

• Familiarity with cloud-based ERP environments and modern integration approaches

• Experience in manufacturing, food production, consumer products, or distribution settings

• Exposure to federated IT models and enterprise governance frameworks

• Formal project delivery or program leadership background such as PMP, PRINCE2, Agile, Scrum, or SAFe

• Base salary starting at $160,000K+ depending on experience.

• Hybrid work model with a strong preference for candidates able to work primarily from the Norwalk, Connecticut office