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The City of Des Plaines (pop. 56,945) seeks an innovative and energetic professional to provide leadership and counsel in the management of its information technology operations. Located 17 miles northwest of Chicago, Des Plaines is a vibrant community with over 15 square miles of residential, commercial, and industrial uses operating under the City Manager form of government. The city has a total 2008 budget of $127M, an operating budget of $56M, and 360+ full-time employees employed across eight major departments. This position serves as a the organizational leader and key advisor to the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, and other management staff on all information technology matters to include: data applications and database systems, network infrastructure, telephone and other audio/video communication systems, and related technology support services. Reporting to the Assistant City Manager, the Director of Information Technology supervises an immediate staff of 4 employees within the Information Technology Division with a 2008 budget of $1M. Ideal candidates will have at minimum a bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer science, or a closely related field with a master’s degree preferred, and at least seven years of progressively responsible experience. Significant experience with enterprise resources planning (ERP) systems is also desirable. Salary range for 2008 is from $88,368 to $114,878; starting salary is dependant upon qualifications and experience and includes an excellent benefit package. Residency within the City of Des Plaines is preferred but not required for this position. Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume and completed city employment application to: City of Des Plaines, Human Resources, Room #503, 1420 Miner St., Des Plaines, Illinois 60016; fax, 847-827-2292. EOE. This recruitment shall remain open until the position is filled. Recruitment ProfileIntroduction: This recruitment profile provides background information on the City’s information technology operations and outlines the factors of qualification and experience identified as necessary and desirable for candidates for the Director of Information Technology position. In addition, this profile will be used as a guide in the recruitment process, providing specific criteria by which applicants will be screened for interview and selection consideration. Role within the Organization: The Director of Information Technology serves as the organizational leader and key advisor to the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, and other management staff on all information technology matters, to include: data applications and database systems, network infrastructure, telephone and other audio/video communication systems, and related technology support services. Reporting to the Assistant City Manager, the Information Technology Director will head a division that is vital to the success of the overall organization through the effective management of the information and communication systems supporting City services. With a 2008 budget of $1M and a support staff of 4 employees, the Information Technology Division is responsible for providing high quality integrated services and support to City departments in a manner that promotes a strong customer service orientation. Scope of the IT Division: The Information Technology Division supports or assists in the coordination of a variety of data systems, including the following main applications:
The Police Department also uses several smaller custom database systems. The City is a member of the North Suburban Emergency Communications Center and as such provides limited support for public safety dispatch. The City has approximately 200 desktop PCs and 20 laptop PCs, plus approximately 45 PCs mounted in Police and Fire vehicles. Most of these devices are connected to the City network, along with a variety of printers and copiers. PCs are generally on a five-year replacement cycle. PCs use a standard software load and can be maintained remotely. Users of the Permits Plus system also use tablet PCs. Information Technology maintains approximately 15 fileservers. 4 Novell Netware servers are used for directory services and file sharing. The City also maintains several Microsoft Windows servers using the Microsoft SQL Server database, plus a SCO UNIX server for the Pentamation application. The City’s main database platforms are Microsoft SQL Server and Informix Relational Database Engine. The City website is hosted by Municipal Web Services. Information Technology uses TCP/IP network protocols and technologies to include TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, and TFTP. This network includes fiber optic connections within City Hall and the Police Department. T1 links are used to connect to the City’s remote 3 Fire Stations and Public Works Departments. Buildings are networked internally with gigabit technology Category 5 or fiber optic cabling. Communication equipment is standardized with Cisco’s POE (Power over Ethernet) switches and routers. The City provides land-based telephone service through Cisco’s Voice over IP (VoIP) technology and wireless phone service through Nextel. Nextel phone service includes approximately 200 voice phones and 50 voice/data phones. The City is very advanced in its use of GIS technology, which is administered by the outside consulting group MGP Inc. Challenges for the New Director of Information Systems: The next Director of Information Technology for the City of Des Plaines can expect to be involved in these issues: Technology Planning and Budgeting: The Director of Information Technology must work cooperatively with departments to develop a City-wide strategic technology plan. The Director must also develop the Information Technology requested budget and work to ensure that technology expenses across the City are appropriate and project requests from departments are evaluated in an equitable way. Responsiveness to Departments: Like many local governments, the City of Des Plaines performs a wide variety of services. The Director of Information Technology is expected to work closely with City departments to understand their differing needs and implement appropriate technology solutions that work well for each of their different functions. This requires continuing to improve communication and a sense of teamwork between the Information Technology Division and the departments, and building the trust of departments so that they seek the involvement of Information Technology. New Financial and Human Resources System: The City’s Pentamation financial and human resources system is at the end of its useful life, and the Director of Information Technology will be heavily involved in the selection and implementation of a new enterprise-wide system. PC Service/Help Desk Support: The Director of Information Technology is expected to lead efforts to continually improve support for the City’s use of personal computers (PCs) and implement effective help desk tools to aid in the diagnosis and solution of customer problems in a timely and effective manner. A challenge for PC service is to find ways to implement new technology and resolve problems in a timely way, despite possibly limited staff and funding. Technology Infrastructure: The Director of Information Technology must work to maintain and improve the City’s information technology infrastructure, including the computer network and fileservers. A special emphasis is on wireless support for mobile devices. Information Technology Staff Development: The Director of Information Technology is responsible for managing the team of Information Technology staff and building a strong Information Technology Division workforce. The Director is expected to identify the training needs of the existing staff and support opportunities for the staff to enhance their skills. In addition, the Director makes recommendations related to the staffing needs of the Division, the skill sets required, the development of job descriptions, and the Division’s organizational structure. Education and Experience: The following factors of education and experience have been identified as ideal attributes for the Director of Information Technology to possess in order to function effectively and achieve a high level of success in the position. Equivalent combinations of education and experience will be considered. Possess a bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer science, or a related field. Have significant and progressively responsible experience in the management of information technology, public or private sector, and in an organization of similar complexity and budget to the City of Des Plaines. Have experience working in an organization with a diverse base of information technology customers. Have the experience and skills to work with department staff to identify technology needs and successfully implement the resulting projects. Have experience in developing and implementing a long-term technology plan for an organization similar to the City of Des Plaines. Have the strong project management skills needed to successfully manage complex technology projects, bringing about the benefits of information technology for the organization while also managing costs and risk. Possess strong interpersonal skills, with a demonstrated ability to work and interact openly and effectively with people of all types. Have successful experience in building partnerships with internal departments and external organizations. Have the knowledge and experience to explain information technology and related plans and program to policy makers and staff in non-technical language. Have experience in managing support for PC users, including best practices for PC installation and maintenance, help desk management, and policy and procedure development. Have experience overseeing technology procurements. Have skills in using a consensus building, team-oriented approach to managing staff members; have the ability to remain accountable for departmental activities without unnecessary micromanagement of staff. Have a demonstrated record of success in employee supervision and management, treating employees in an open, fair, and supportive manner. Be comfortable working in a collegial environment, knowing when to provide assistance to employees and when to permit employees to work independently. Ideally have experience with and knowledge of enterprise resources (ERP) systems, enterprise networks, system administration, and wireless technology. Management Style/Personal Traits: The following factors of management style and personal traits have been identified as ideal attributes for the Director of Information Technology to possess in order to function effectively and achieve a high level of success in the position. Have a "City-first" orientation and be a person who finds fulfillment in helping to attain the larger strategic goals of the organization rather than merely achieving more narrow technology goals. Be driven by a service orientation; understand both the service nature of the information technology function within an organization and the important role of technology in the delivery of customer service to the City of Des Plaines residents. Be a positive team builder who can bridge the gap between the Information Technology Division and City departments in order to identify the needs of departments and find solutions that meet those needs. Have strong oral and written communication skills. Be a good listener who can understand the needs of people who do not have a technical background. Enjoy teaching and demystifying technology for non-technical City staff. Be skilled at managing multiple priorities. Communicate Information Technology Division goals and directions to departments and keep departments up to date on Information Systems projects. Have an open and collaborative management style. Call on both Information Technology and other City staff to participate in making decisions. Strive to make decisions through consensus, avoiding unilateral decisions. Empower Information Technology Division staff in their interactions with departments. Act as a guide and mentor to staff, delegating responsibility and holding people accountable, yet not micromanaging staff. Understand the importance of safeguarding the City’s data. Understand the importance of policies and procedures on key issues.
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