Director, IT Operations

Human Rights Campaign; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 159,000 - 191,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation assistance

On-site work in DC

Job summary

The Human Rights Campaign seeks a Director of IT Operations to lead our technology environment in Washington, DC. Reporting to the VP of IT, you will oversee IT operations, enterprise systems, security, and vendor partnerships to deliver reliable services for a national nonprofit.

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring strong people leadership, strategic planning, and the ability to balance service delivery with mission impact for LGBTQ+ equality. On-site presence is required.

Qualifications

• 10+ years IT experience with 5+ years in IT operations management
• Experience managing across identity, endpoint, cloud, and enterprise applications
• Strong vendor management and contract experience
• Cybersecurity collaboration and incident response knowledge
• Proven leadership and staff development
• Experience with cloud migrations and modernization

Responsibilities

• Develop IT operations roadmap aligned with organizational priorities.
• Serve as the senior technical advisor for IT operations.
• Lead modernization and cloud‑first initiatives.
• Oversee day‑to‑day IT operations and services.
• Establish IT service management practices.
• Drive root‑cause analysis and durable resolutions.
• Plan migrations, integrations, upgrades, consolidations.
• Ensure security, lifecycle management, and disaster recovery.
• Provide AV support for hybrid/board meetings and major events.
• Develop internal IT team and staffing.

Job description

• Location 1640 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20036, United States
• Base Pay $159,000.00 - $190,800.00 / Year
• Job Category Information Technology, IT, Management
• Relocation Expense Covered Yes
• Employee Type Exempt
• Manage Others Yes
• Minimum Experience 10 Years

We strongly encourage people of color, transgender and non-binary people to apply. HRC is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes everyone, including non-LGBTQ+ people, to join our team. Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that people from marginalized communities are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At HRC, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Position Summary

The Human Rights Campaign is a large, national nonprofit civil rights and advocacy organization working to advance equality for LGBTQ+ people. Technology is essential to that work. It enables our staff to organize, advocate, collaborate, and work effectively with partners, volunteers, and communities nationwide.

As Director, IT Operations, you will lead the technology environment that makes that work possible: secure, reliable, well-managed, and easy to use. Reporting to the VP of IT & Data Analytics, who leads enterprise technology strategy and digital transformation, you will serve as HRC’s technical and IT operations leader. You will translate strategy into a practical technology roadmap and lead IT operations, service delivery, enterprise systems, workplace and event technology, operational security, the internal IT team, and our managed service and technology partners.

This is a broad, hands‑on operational leadership role in a lean nonprofit setting, not an infrastructure specialty. Success in this role requires balancing strategy, service delivery, vendor management, operational leadership, and technical decision‑making. While technical credibility is important, the role is not intended to personally perform all engineering, administration, or support work. Instead, the Director is responsible for ensuring successful outcomes through a combination of internal staff, managed service partners, and other technology vendors.

We are looking for a leader who combines technical credibility with strong people leadership, clear communication, sound judgment, and a commitment to excellent service.

We will build trusted relationships with business owners and internal stakeholders, help teams navigate technology and process changes, simplify and modernize our technology environment, strengthen the IT team and its operating practices, and ensure technology effectively supports HRC’s mission.

Position Responsibilities:

IT Leadership & Modernization

• Develop and execute an IT operations and modernization roadmap aligned with organizational priorities, informed by strong partnerships with program owners and internal stakeholders.
• Serve as the senior technical advisor for IT operations, evaluating technical options, dependencies, risks, and vendor recommendations.
• Lead efforts to simplify legacy and overlapping technologies and advance a secure, cloud‑first operating environment.

IT Operations & Service Delivery

• Lead day‑to‑day IT operations across identity and access, endpoints, cloud and infrastructure, productivity and collaboration platforms, and IT‑managed enterprise applications.
• Ensure effective delivery of technology services through a combination of internal staff, managed service providers, security partners, and technology vendors, establishing clear ownership, accountability, and service expectations.
• Establish and mature IT service management practices, including incident, problem, change, knowledge, and asset management, with clear service standards, accountability, and governance. Ensure technology changes are communicated, documented, and managed to reduce operational risk and improve coordination across internal teams and technology partners.
• Drive root‑cause analysis and durable resolution of recurring technical and service issues.
• Lead technical planning and execution for migrations, integrations, upgrades, consolidation, and retirement of legacy technologies.
• Ensure technology services are secure, reliable, and operationally ready, including appropriate lifecycle management, patching, backup, and disaster recovery.
• Ensure reliable technology and AV support for hybrid meetings, Board meetings, and major organizational events through appropriate planning, resourcing, thorough testing, and coordination of internal and external support resources, providing hands‑on support when necessary.

Vendor Management & Cybersecurity

• Serve as the primary owner of managed service and key technology partner relationships, establishing clear service expectations, governance processes, reporting, escalation paths, and accountability for outcomes.
• Evaluate vendor performance, service quality, and value realization, making recommendations regarding service improvements, scope changes, or provider transitions when appropriate.
• Manage IT contracts, licensing, renewals, and technology operating expenditures within approved budgets.
• Partner with fractional CISO and cybersecurity service providers to operationalize security controls, incident response, vulnerability remediation, data protection, and risk‑reduction priorities.

People Leadership & Communication

• Lead, coach, and develop the internal IT team, setting clear expectations for ownership, technical quality, customer service, and follow‑through.
• Assess team capabilities and recommend appropriate staffing, role design, training, and use of external expertise.
• Communicate technical issues, risks, options, and changes clearly to staff, leadership, and non‑technical stakeholders to reduce change management challenges

Perform other related duties as required to support organizational operations, major initiatives, and events.

Position Qualifications:

• At least 10+ years of progressive IT experience, including 5+ years managing IT operations, service delivery, or comparable enterprise technology functions.
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing across multiple IT domains, including identity and access, endpoint management, cloud/infrastructure, enterprise applications, and end‑user technology services.
• Strong working knowledge of modern identity and endpoint management, including experience supporting both Windows and macOS environments.
• Experience managing cloud‑based productivity, collaboration, and SaaS environments, including Microsoft 365 and/or Google Workspace.
• Strong IT service management experience, particularly incident, problem, change, knowledge, and asset management, with demonstrated success improving service quality and resolving recurring issues.
• Proven experience managing MSPs and technology vendors, including service levels, escalations, root‑cause analysis, remediation, contracts, and performance accountability.
• Experience working with cybersecurity teams or providers to implement security requirements and address operational risks, including identity and endpoint security, vulnerability remediation, incident response, and data protection.
• Demonstrated experience managing and developing IT staff, setting clear expectations, building accountability, and improving team performance.
• Experience implementing technology roadmaps and managing complex migrations, modernization efforts, or other significant technology initiatives, including stakeholder engagement, communication, and organizational adoption.
• Strong technical judgment and troubleshooting skills, with the ability to assess cross‑platform issues, identify root causes, evaluate technical recommendations and tradeoffs, and make sound technical decisions.
• Ability to build trusted relationships with senior management on technical options, risks, dependencies, and operational implications to inform technology planning, prioritization, and investment decisions.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain technical issues, risks, decisions, and expectations clearly to technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Ability to balance hands‑on technical involvement with staff management, delegation, vendor oversight, operational priorities, and longer‑term initiatives in a lean IT organization.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience modernizing complex or hybrid environments toward simplified, cloud‑based services.
• Familiarity with Microsoft Entra ID, Intune, Azure, AWS, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or comparable technologies.
• Familiarity with recognized cybersecurity frameworks such as NIST CSF or CIS Controls.
• Experience supporting distributed workforces and external stakeholders such as contractors, volunteers, or partners.
• Experience in nonprofit, advocacy, or other mission‑driven organizations.
• Knowledge of or interest in LGBTQ+ issues, and a demonstrated commitment to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace.

Work Environment & Availability

This position is located at HRC Headquarters in Washington, DC, and requires regular on‑site presence of at least four days per week. The role is generally performed during standard business hours but requires flexibility to support organizational events, critical system needs, and operational priorities that may occur in the evenings, on weekends, or on holidays. While the Director is expected to be available for significant incidents and major organizational events, day‑to‑day operational coverage is shared across internal staff, managed service providers, and established support processes.

All positions at the Human Rights Campaign and/or the Human Rights Campaign Foundation may require regular or periodic travel. Where business travel is required, appropriate compensation as outlined by the Fair Labor Standards Act will apply.

Employer is the Human Rights Campaign, Inc., an I.R.C. 501(c)(4) non‑profit entity.

No phone calls or emails, please. Due to the volume of applications we receive, we are unable to respond to queries about application status.