Job Specifications
IT Manager
Summary:
The IT Manager of Infrastructure & Security is responsible for leading, managing, and maintaining the organization's hardware, networks, and core infrastructure systems in a secure, high-availability, and scalable manner. This role focuses exclusively on infrastructure and security (not business software or application development). The person in this role ensures robust, resilient, and secure operations that support all business functions.
Key Responsibilities
Oversee the design, deployment, and maintenance of all physical and virtual infrastructure, including Servers, storage, network devices (Switches, Routers, Firewalls), and datacenter equipment (racks, UPS, cooling)
Manage procurement, setup, configuration, and life cycle (installation, maintenance, replacement) of hardware assets
Ensure redundant and fault-tolerant architecture (failover, clustering, backups)
Oversee virtualization (eg, VMware, Hyper-V) and/or containerization infrastructure (if applicable)
Manage connections to cloud infrastructure (if hybrid environment) or network links (VPNs, WAN links, MPLS, direct circuits)
Monitor and tune system performance; capacity planning and forecasting
Coordinate with power, cooling, and facilities teams for data center environment
Network & Connectivity
Design, implement, and maintain LAN, WAN, wireless, and remote access infrastructure
Configure and manage network security devices (Firewalls, IDS/IPS, VPNs)
Ensure high availability, resilience, and load balancing of network services
Monitor network traffic, detect anomalies, address congestion or performance bottlenecks
Maintain network diagrams, documentation, and change logs
Security & Compliance
Define, implement, and enforce infrastructure and network security policies and best practices
Manage Firewall rules, intrusion detection/prevention, vulnerability scanning, security audits, and patch management
Oversee system hardening and secure baseline configurations for Servers, network devices, and hardware
Lead threat detection, incident response, and forensic investigations when infrastructure is implicated
Ensure compliance with regulatory or industry security standards (eg, PCI, HIPAA, GDPR, ISO 27001) as applicable
Work with external security vendors or auditors on penetration tests, security assessments, and remediation plans
Backup, Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity
Develop, manage, and test backup, restore, and disaster recovery strategies (offsite backups, replication)
Establish and validate recovery time objectives (RTO) and recovery point objectives (RPO)
Plan and execute infrastructure failover and disaster recovery exercises
Ensure ongoing data integrity, redundancy, and availability
Leadership & Collaboration
Lead and mentor infrastructure/operations staff and contractors
Collaborate with software and business systems teams to ensure infrastructure meets their needs (even though you don't own those systems)
Serve as the escalation point for infrastructure outages, performance issues, or security incidents
Maintain vendor relationships (hardware vendors, network providers, security tool vendors)
Define budgets, forecasts, and capital expenditures for infrastructure-related investments
Produce regular reports on infrastructure health, security posture, capacity, and performance
Documentation & Standards
Maintain up-to-date documentation (network diagrams, infrastructure inventories, configurations, troubleshooting guides)
Define and enforce infrastructure change control, patch, and maintenance windows
Set standards for naming conventions, IP schemes, hardware configurations, and standard operating procedures
Qualifications & Experience
Required
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or equivalent experience
7+ years of experience in IT infrastructure, network, or systems operations
3+ years of direct leadership/management experience
Strong hands-on experience with Servers, storage systems, network devices (Routers, Switches, Firewalls), virtualization, and datacenter operations
Deep knowledge of networking protocols (TCP/IP, OSPF, BGP, VLANs, MPLS, VPNs, etc.)
Proven experience in infrastructure security, Firewalls, IDS/IPS, network segmentation, vulnerability management
Experience with backup, replication, disaster recovery planning, and execution
Familiarity with cloud connectivity or hybrid infrastructure setups
Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills
Excellent communication skills (verbal, written) and ability to interface with non-technical leadership
Preferred
Certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CCNP/CCIE, VMware VCP, or similar
Experience with infrastructure as code, automation tools (Ansible, Terraform)
Prior experience operating in regulated industries or compliance frameworks
Experience with hybrid or multi-cloud setups
Experience with monitoring, alerting, logging (eg Nagios, Zabbix, Prometh