Vice President - IT Strategy, Performance, and Value Optimization

Job Description:

This role collaborates closely with the CIO to lead IT towards a business-oriented approach. Reporting to the CIO, it serves as a critical partner, overseeing the OCIO strategy and performance groups and facilitating cross-functional IT strategic alignment within the organization. This position involves strategizing IT initiatives that align with business goals, ensuring an optimal IT operating model, and drives innovation management. The ideal candidate should have extensive experience in technology leadership, strong analytical skills, and the ability to foster collaboration among various departments.

This position oversees activities such as the IT enterprise digital strategy, IT operating model evolution, IT performance management, and ensuring the enterprise architecture is optimized for value within the organization.  

This individual is also responsible strategic supplier management.  Additionally the individual in this position will support the incubation of emerging capabilities that require special focus for a shorter periods of time before being embedded into the overall enterprise solution architecture and platforms.

Essential Job Functions and Responsibilities:

• Enterprise Digital Strategy – Facilitates the creation of the digital strategy and plan for digitization and the use of technology for maximizing the business benefits of data assets and technology-focused initiatives across the enterprise, not just in IT. 

• IT Strategy & Planning - Facilitates the creation of the IT strategy and strategic plan. Partners with the Chief Information Officer (CIO) in providing technology vision and direction for the enterprise. Works with the CIO and the executive business leadership team providing clear direction between company strategy and enterprise execution with respect to IT domains and capabilities.

• IT Performance Management - Define, maintain and report on the metrics used to monitor and optimize IT outcomes necessary to achieve organizational goals and IT objectives.

• IT Portfolio Management - Provide transparency to the total portfolio of investment in IT and enabling key decision makers to prioritize demand based on strategic objectives, risks, dependencies and potential constraints in the supply of IT.

• IT Operating Model Transformation - orchestrates the design and evolution of the IT operating model that is required to successfully execute to strategy. This includes the designing guiding principles for the IT ways of working, the high-level definition of and changes to roles and responsibilities and working closely with IT and business partners organization on selection of standards to be followed. 

• Innovation Management - responsible for creating an innovation charter, running ideation campaigns, identify next steps and establishes an innovation management capability. Also responsible for driving innovation in IT, exploring emerging technologies and identifying opportunities to improve the organization's business processes.

• Strategic Supplier and Contract Management - Analyzing and anticipating future IT procurement needs and ensuring these needs will be met through high-quality strategic relationships with key vendors. This capability also looks across the business ecosystem to ensure there is a strategic perspective for whom the key IT collaborators are and how they should be positioned.   Will also be heavily involved in developing, managing and controlling vendor contracts, relationships and performance for the efficient delivery of contracted products and services. Ensuring strategic partners meet business objectives, minimize potential business disruption, avoid deal and delivery failure, and ensure more-sustainable multisource, while driving the most value from strategic suppliers. 

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Determine appropriate resourcing of staff to achieve goals and objectives. 

• Build an effective team through mentoring and formal education that focuses on management and product management principles. 

• Define annual goals, objectives, and key results aligned with corporate goals. 

• Manage and mentor employees and/or managers on performance gaps, career development opportunities, and strategies. 

• Manage and coach employees and/or managers on all human resource related processes including onboarding, performance management, succession planning, employee relations, selection, terminations, compensation, and rewards. 

• Recognize others’ contributions and share credit for success. 

• Own attainment of high employee satisfaction and retention; lead development of program and initiatives within group to attain high employee satisfaction.

• Prepare, support, and manage budget as assigned; analyzes variances and initiates corrective actions to maximize operational performance. 

• Exhibit strong leadership, with the ability to lead large projects and oversee ongoing processes.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Strong executive leadership capability with proven track record of successful team development and working effectively with all organizational levels

• Expertise in budget planning, financial management and workforce management

• Broad knowledge of current and emerging technologies, technology directions, and strategic applications to business needs, including the ability to differentiate between a relevant trend and hype

• Proven track record of innovation, both in internal problem solving and in fostering innovative uses of technology in the organization

• Ability to improve operational efficiency, service delivery and information management across the IT organization

• Excellent oral, written and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to explain technology solutions in business terms, establish rapport and persuade others

• Ability to effectively drive business, culture and technology change in a dynamic and complex operating environment

• Expert in IT strategic planning, IT governance formulation, and organizational change management

• Strong Customer and User Experience Focus

• Ability to adapt to a wide range of activities without losing focus in order to handle the diverse nature of tasks within the Office of the CIO effectively.

Education and Training:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Business Administration, Information Systems, Computer Science or related field. 

• Fifteen (15) plus years of experience in IT

• Seven (7) plus years of experience with team management and leadership responsibilities

• Five (5) plus years of experience in business applications relevant to the Vertex application landscape (Salesforce, Workday, integrated business applications). 

• Or equivalent combination of education and/or experience

Other Qualifications:The Winning Way behaviors that all Vertex employees need in order to meet the expectations of each other, our customers, and our partners.

• Communicate with Clarity - Be clear, concise and actionable. Be relentlessly constructive. Seek and provide meaningful feedback.

• Act with Urgency - Adopt an agile mentality - frequent iterations, improved speed, resilience. 80/20 rule – better is the enemy of done. Don’t spend hours when minutes are enough.

• Work with Purpose - Exhibit a “We Can” mindset. Results outweigh effort. Everyone understands how their role contributes. Set aside personal objectives for team results.

• Drive to Decision - Cut the swirl with defined deadlines and decision points. Be clear on individual accountability and decision authority. Guided by a commitment to and accountability for customer outcomes.

• Own the Outcome - Defined milestones, commitments and intended results. Assess your work in context, if you’re unsure, ask. Demonstrate unwavering support for decisions.

Comments:

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals in this position. Other functions may be assigned, and management retains the right to add or change the duties at any time.