Director of Information Technology

Dr. Tavel Optical Group; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care in Indianapolis, IN is seeking a Director of Information Technology to lead and shape the technology strategy across 29 sites.

The role combines hands-on leadership with enterprise IT oversight for infrastructure, security, and critical apps. You will manage a small IT team, partner with application owners, and ensure HIPAA-compliant operations while leveraging AI to improve service delivery.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive IT experience with leadership roles.
• Proven track record developing people, not just managing them.
• Strong judgment on when to build process versus act
• Excellent written and verbal communication for senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Own core IT operations including identity management, collaboration tools, and security posture.
• Lead a multi-site network and hybrid infrastructure, including cloud and on-premises.
• Manage relationships with business applications and cross-team collaboration.
• Coach a four-person IT team and drive professional growth.
• Oversee vendor relationships, budgeting, and technology governance.
• Identify and deploy AI tools to generate measurable IT value.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic thinking

Project management

AI tools

Azure cloud

HIPAA experience

Communication

Tools

Entra ID

SSO

Zscaler

Microsoft 365

Windows Server

Job description

Director of Information Technology

Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care | Indianapolis, IN | Reports to General Manager

Brief Description

Director of Information Technology

Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care | Indianapolis, IN | Reports to General Manager

About Us

Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care is Indiana's largest independent eye care provider, with 20+ locations and approximately 325 team members serving patients across the state. We are a growth-oriented, operationally complex business that moves fast and we need an IT leader who moves with us.

The Opportunity

This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who genuinely loves both sides of the job: solving hard technical problems and building a team that delivers. You will report directly to the General Manager and sit on our senior leadership team alongside peers who collectively oversee the full operation of the company.

You will own all of core IT including infrastructure, systems, networking, end-user support, security, backup, and DR across a hybrid environment spanning on-premises infrastructure and Azure. The networking environment is substantial: 29 separate sites connected via site-to-site VPNs through SonicWall gear, with Zscaler providing secure remote access.

You will also own IT's relationship with critical business applications across the organization. You do not own the configuration of those applications, but you are expected to know them well enough to troubleshoot effectively and be a reliable resource when things go wrong.

There is a parallel world of software engineering and solution development at Dr. Tavel that intersects this role. That team owns its own cloud environment on AWS and is responsible for its configuration and security. IT owns the identity foundation including Entra ID, SSO, and group propagation that both organizations depend on. Collaboration and clear ownership at those boundaries matter.

You will inherit a capable team of three senior systems administrators and a help desk technician, and you will play a direct role in their continued growth and development.

If you have thrived in environments where direction evolves, priorities shift, and no two weeks look alike, you will feel at home here. If you need everything perfectly defined before you can move, this probably is not your role.

What You Will Own

• Core IT operations: Entra ID, Microsoft 365, Windows server environment, networking, desktops, backup, and disaster recovery
• A serious multi-site network: 29 locations connected via site-to-site VPN over brand new Ubiquiti firewalls, switches, and WAPs infrastructure, with Zscaler for remote access
• Organization-wide ticketing and first-line user support across all locations
• IT support for critical business applications, partnering with application owners on troubleshooting even where IT does not own configuration
• Identity and access management as a shared service across both IT and software engineering environments
• Coaching and developing a four-person IT team
• Hybrid infrastructure roadmap: three-node cluster with SAN today, with Azure as our cloud platform of choice going forward
• Vendor relationships, licensing, and technology budgeting
• Security posture and HIPAA compliance
• Identifying and deploying AI tools that generate measurable value in IT operations and service delivery
• Driving process and structure where it creates value, without creating bureaucracy for its own sake

Who You Are

You are deeply curious. You read widely, think carefully, and are genuinely energized by hard problems. You do not wait for someone to hand you a solution; you go find one. Your communication is clear, direct, and polished, and you can adapt your message for a help desk technician, a department head, or the executive team without losing the thread.

You are a technologist who became a leader, or you have always been both. You do not need to be in the weeds on every ticket, but you can be when it matters. You understand that IT exists to serve the business and you hold yourself and your team accountable to that standard.

You are an active user of AI tools, not as a novelty but as a genuine capability you have woven into how you work. You think carefully about where AI can reduce friction, accelerate resolution, or surface insights, and you know how to bring your team along with you.

When things change and they will, you adapt and help your team do the same. You leave environments more capable than you found them.

What You Bring

• 10 or more years of progressive IT experience, including meaningful time in a leadership or management role
• A genuine track record of developing people, not just managing them
• Strong judgment about when to build process and when to just get things done
• The ability to work effectively across organizational boundaries, including with technical peers who own adjacent environments
• Exceptional written and verbal communication and the presence to operate on a senior leadership team
• Demonstrated use of AI tools in your day-to-day work and genuine enthusiasm for deploying them strategically
• Comfort with Azure and a readiness to lean further into cloud as our environment evolves
• Healthcare IT or HIPAA experience is a plus, not a requirement

What We Offer

A seat at the table on a senior leadership team with real influence over how the company operates and grows. A capable team ready to continue growing. Competitive compensation and benefits. And a role where your work visibly impacts the experience of 325 colleagues and thousands of patients across Indiana.

A Note on Fit

We are a dynamic organization that is growing and evolving. The ideal candidate sees that as energy, not instability. We value intellectual curiosity, creative problem solving, and the drive to keep pushing forward. If you are someone who is always looking for a better way and brings others along with you, we want to talk.