Infrastructure and Optimization Section Manager (IT Policy and Planning - Senior Manager)

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

The Department of Ecology is hiring an Infrastructure and Optimization Section Manager (IT Policy and Planning - Senior Manager)

within the Information Technology Services Office.

Location:

• Headquarters Office in Lacey, WA.
• Upon hire, you must live within a commutable distance from the duty station.

Schedule:

• A minimum of one day per week is required in the office. 
• This position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options.
• Schedules are dependent upon position needs and are subject to change.

Application Timeline:

• Apply by October 8, 2025
• This position will remain open until filled. The agency reserves the right to make a hire at any time after application review begins. Applications received after the date above may not be considered.

Duties

In this role, you will carry significant responsibility in balancing the demands of enterprise-level strategic leadership with the complexities of modern infrastructure management. This role require that you navigate rapid technology evolution—cloud, AI, automation, and DevOps—while ensuring stability, security, and compliance in a highly regulated environment. A major challenge lies in driving innovation and transformation at scale, particularly during migrations from legacy platforms to hybrid and multi-cloud environments, without disrupting mission-critical services. The position must also anticipate and respond to emerging risks, such as cybersecurity threats and escalating operational costs, while sustaining a resilient and responsive IT ecosystem.

Another complexity is the need to simultaneously lead people, processes, and technology while fostering a culture of collaboration, inclusivity, and high performance. In this role you will be required to balance competing priorities from business-interests, governance bodies, and operational teams while ensuring strategic alignment with agency goals. It also involves managing scarce resources and budgets in a way that delivers modernization, operational excellence, and innovation. Success demands visionary leadership, deep technical expertise, and the ability to influence across the organization to achieve lasting outcomes.

What you will do:

• Provide strategic leadership to the section, setting direction aligned with ITSO’s mission and supervising IT managers. 
• Lead enterprise infrastructure, cloud, and AI strategies, including hybrid/multi-cloud adoption, automation, and cost optimization. 
• Drive service management and operational excellence by ensuring reliability, scalability, and continuous improvement of IT services.
• Engage in governance, planning, and stakeholder collaboration to align infrastructure initiatives with agency goals.
• Partner with security leadership to ensure compliance, risk management, and business continuity.
• Contribute as a key member of the ITSO leadership team in strategic planning, budgeting, staffing, and policy development.
• Promote a DevOps and innovation culture, advancing automation, collaboration, and proactive technology adoption across the enterprise.

Qualifications

For detailed information on how we calculate experience, please visit our Recruitment website.

Required Qualifications:

Eleven (11) years of experience and/or education as described below:

• Experience: in one or more of the following IT disciplines: consultation, systems development, systems analysis, database management, technical support troubleshooting, project management, server management, IT supervisor or team lead. 
• Education involving an Information Technology program or a closely related field.

Examples of how to qualify:

• 11 years of experience.
• 10 years of experience AND 30-59 semester or 45-89 quarter college credits.
• 9 years of experience AND 60-89 semester or 90-134 quarter college credits (Associate’s degree).
• 8 years of experience AND 90-119 semester or 135-179 quarter college credits.
• 7 years of experience AND a Bachelor’s degree.
• 5 years of experience AND a Master’s degree or higher.

Note: At least two (2) years of recent (within the past 5 years) experience as an IT supervisor or team lead, which may be attained concurrently with experience listed above. 

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience designing and/or leading modernization of hybrid cloud environments using Azure and AWS services.
• Proficiency in VMware migration strategies, including alternatives like Azure Stack HCI, Kubernetes, and containerization.
• Knowledge of modern data platform technologies (e.g., Azure Synapse, Data Factory, data lakes, tiered storage).
• Demonstrated success in managing M365 tenants at scale, including Exchange, SharePoint, Teams, and Intune.
• Organizational Change Management (OCM) or equivalent experience leading team transformation in technical environments.
• Familiarity with FinOps practices for cloud cost governance.
• Knowledge of enterprise AI operations tools (AIOps), such as Azure Monitor, Splunk ITSI, or Dynatrace.
• Experience in Zero Trust Architecture and modern identity and access management frameworks (e.g., Conditional Access, MFA, RBAC, Just-In-Time access).

If you are excited about this role but not sure if your experience aligns perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply. Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At the Department of Ecology, we are dedicated to building a diverse and authentic workplace centered in belonging. You may just be the needed candidate for this or other roles.

Supplemental Information

Ecology does not use the E-Verify system; therefore, we are not eligible to extend STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT). For more information, please visit www.uscis.gov.

Application Process

Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified job seekers from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

How to Apply

Click “Apply” at the top of this page. Complete the entire application, including full work history and responses to all supplemental questions, and attach:

• Cover letter, describing your interest in and qualifications for this position
• Resume

Because we base our selection on the information you provide, it is in your best interest to complete the application thoroughly. A resume will not substitute for the “work experience” section of the application or vice versa. Applications with blank fields or supplemental question responses with comments such as “see resume” may be considered incomplete.

For detailed application information, please visit our Recruitment website.

Application Attestation: By submitting an application, you are affirming that the information contained in your application and on all attachments is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information, and any false or misleading answers may result in rejection of your application or dismissal if employed.

Need an Accommodation?

If you need reasonable accommodation during the application and/or screening process, including this job announcement in an alternate format:

• Please contact us at 360-407-6186 or careers@ecy.wa.gov
• If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you may call through the Washington Relay Service by dialing 711 or 1-800-833-6384.

Questions?

• For specific questions about the position location options, schedule, or duties, please contact Kristy Schreiner at: Kristy.Schreiner@ecy.wa.gov
• If you need assistance applying for this job, are inquiring about the status of your application, would like to request the full position description, or have any other questions, please contact the Recruitment Team at careers@ecy.wa.gov

The Information Technology Services Office leverages technology solutions that support a modern, mobile workforce to allow us to be more adaptive and responsive to communities, customers, and employees.

About the Department of Ecology

As the State of Washington’s environmental protection agency, we are deeply committed to protecting, preserving, and enhancing Washington’s environment for current and future generations. Joining Ecology means becoming part of a team dedicated to protecting and sustaining healthy land, air, water, and climate in harmony with a strong economy. A career in public service at Ecology allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Respect (DEIR) are core values central to Ecology's work. We strive to be a workplace where we are esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations.

We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued.

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following: Medical/Dental/Vision for employee & dependent(s), Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), Vacation, Sick, and other Leave*, 11 Paid Holidays per year*, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Tuition Waiver,  Long Term Disability & Life Insurance, Deferred Compensation Programs, Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP),  Flexible Spending Arrangement (FSA), Employee Assistance Program, Commute Trip Reduction Incentives (Download PDF reader), Combined Fund Drive, SmartHealth *Click here for more information 

To learn more about Ecology, please visit our website, explore Working at Ecology, check out our Strategic Plan, and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or our blog.

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.

Note: This recruitment may be used to fill other positions of the same job classification across the agency.

Ecology Job Opportunities | Careers at Ecology