Planned Gift Director - Higher Ed. jobs in Illinois

Itasca, IL FULL_TIME

• Lead and mentor a team of applications developers, data analysts, and support staff, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Develop and communicate a clear vision and strategy for the applications development and data analytics teams, with a focus on optimizing ERP applications to meet business requirements.
• Collaborate with other IT leaders and stakeholders to prioritize projects, allocate resources, and ensure alignment with organizational priorities.

• Oversee the design, configuration, customization, and optimization of systems to support key business processes such as finance, supply chain, operations, and human resources.
• Work closely with business stakeholders to understand requirements, identify opportunities for process improvement, and implement solutions within the applications environments.
• Ensure the integrity, security, and availability of data and applications, implementing best practices for system administration, user access control, and data governance.

• Oversee the end-to-end software development lifecycle for all applications, including ERP systems, from requirements gathering and analysis to design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance.
• Drive the adoption of best practices, standards, and methodologies for software development, ensuring high-quality, scalable, and maintainable solutions.
• Stay abreast of emerging technologies and trends in applications development, evaluating their potential impact on the organization and making recommendations for adoption as appropriate.

• Manage the data analytics team responsible for gathering, analyzing, and interpreting data to inform business decisions and drive operational efficiency.
• Oversee the development and implementation of data analytics solutions, including data visualization, predictive modeling, and machine learning algorithms.
• Collaborate with business stakeholders to identify data analytics opportunities  and develop actionable insights to support strategic initiatives.

• Manage relationships with external vendors and partners involved in applications development, implementation, and support, ensuring adherence to contractual agreements, service level agreements (SLAs), and quality standards.
• Evaluate vendor products and services, making recommendations for procurement or renewal based on business needs and value proposition.

• Collaborate with infrastructure and enterprise architecture teams to ensure seamless integration and interoperability between applications and other systems.
• Identify opportunities to streamline processes and improve efficiency through automation and integration, leveraging APIs, middleware, and other integration technologies.

• Ensure compliance with relevant regulations, standards, and industry best practices, particularly in areas such as data privacy, security, and accessibility within the application environments.
• Implement and enforce policies, procedures, and controls to safeguard sensitive data and mitigate security risks.

• Monitor the performance and availability of applications and systems, proactively identifying and addressing issues to minimize downtime and disruption to business operations.
• Continuously optimize applications and infrastructure to improve performance, scalability, and reliability, leveraging performance monitoring tools and techniques.

Qualifications

The following identifies the minimum education and training required to perform the essential functions of the job:

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field (Master's degree preferred). 

Experience and Skills Required

• Proven experience leading and managing a team of applications developers, data analysts, and support staff.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to inspire, motivate, and mentor team members.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with stakeholders at all levels of the organization.

• In-depth knowledge and hands-on experience with ERP systems, such as Microsoft Dynamics, NetSuite, Sage, Accumatica, SAP, or Oracle.
• Demonstrated proficiency in configuring, customizing, and optimizing applications to meet business requirements.
• Experience with implementation projects, including requirements gathering, design, testing, and deployment.

• Comprehensive understanding of the software development lifecycle, including requirements analysis, design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance.
• Proficiency in software development methodologies.
• Experience with programming languages and technologies commonly used in applications development.

• Strong background in data analytics, with the ability to gather, analyze, and interpret data to derive actionable insights.
• Experience with data visualization tools such as PowerBI or Tableau.
• Familiarity with statistical analysis and predictive modeling techniques.

• Proven ability to manage relationships with external vendors and partners involved in applications development, implementation, and support.
• Experience negotiating contracts, service level agreements (SLAs), and pricing with vendors.
• Strong vendor evaluation and selection skills, with a focus on identifying vendors that align with business objectives and deliver value.

• Expertise in systems integration and interoperability, including the integration of applications with other systems and platforms.
• Familiarity with integration technologies such as APIs, web services, ETL tools, and middleware.
• Ability to design and implement scalable and reliable integration solutions to streamline business processes.

• Thorough understanding of data privacy, security, and compliance requirements.
• Experience implementing and enforcing policies, procedures, and controls to safeguard sensitive information and mitigate security risks.
• Familiarity with relevant regulations and standards such as NIST 800-171, GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2, and ISO 27001.

• Strong strategic thinking and planning skills, with the ability to develop and execute a roadmap for applications development, data analytics, and ERP initiatives.
• Experience aligning IT strategies with overall business objectives and priorities.
• Ability to prioritize initiatives, allocate resources effectively, and drive results in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.

• Excellent problem-solving skills with the ability to analyze complex issues, identify root causes, and develop practical solutions.
• Strong decision-making abilities, with the capacity to make informed decisions based on data, analysis, and stakeholder input.
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity and adapting to changing priorities and requirements.

The policy of Gift of Hope Organ and Tissue Donor Network is to promote equal employment opportunity through a positive and continuous program of specific practices designed to ensure the full realization of equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, or status as a disabled veteran, recently separated veteran, other protected veteran, or Armed Forces service medal veteran designated under the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act, as amended (VEVRAA).  This reaffirms our commitment to this policy.