Enterprise Productivity and Collaboration Tool Service Manager

University of California; Santa Cruz (CA); Remote; USD 121,000 - 131,000; Full time

Job summary

University of California, Santa Cruz in California seeks an Enterprise Productivity and Collaboration Tool Service Manager to lead IT service management across a broad portfolio of enterprise SaaS apps. The role partners with campus stakeholders to ensure secure, scalable, and efficient service delivery from ITS.

The successful candidate will bridge clients, vendors, and technical teams while driving governance, transformation, and continuous improvement of service delivery within a fully remote

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• Advanced knowledge of IT Service Management (ITSM) principles including ITIL.
• Comprehensive knowledge of project management methodologies (Waterfall, Agile/Hybrid).
• Experience directing complex enterprise SaaS portfolios and coordinating vendor relationships.
• Excellent communication and relationship management skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage multiple, highly complex service offerings and portfolio components.Develop service lifecycle, catalog, and governance aligned with ITS leadership.Identify and evaluate new technology solutions and strategic opportunities.Oversee vendor relationships, contracts, and escalation pathways.

Skills

ITSM

Project management

Vendor management

Communication skills

Stakeholder engagement

Security/compliance knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Job description

Enterprise Productivity and Collaboration Tool Service Manager

Applicants must have current work authorization when accepting an ITS staff position. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment Visa for staff.

ABOUT UC SANTA CRUZ

UC Santa Cruz is a public university like no other in California, combining the experience of a small, liberal arts college with the depth and rigor of a major research university. It's known as an unconventional place where innovation and experimentation is part of the campus's DNA. That playful, bold spirit still thrives today, all on a campus renowned as among the most beautiful in the world.

DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW

Information Technology Services (ITS) is the center for IT services and support at UC Santa Cruz. We are a team of diverse, enthusiastic people with a mission to deliver exceptional, modern, accessible, and secure technology services and support to nearly 25,000 students, faculty, and staff. We are constantly striving to meet the evolving needs of our campus while fostering a culture that embraces the rich variety of perspectives and experiences within our community.

We are looking for people who are curious, hard-working, resourceful, kind, and committed to inclusion. We strive to continually improve service quality, experience, and value for UC Santa Cruz students and employees, and are in search of people who can help our team continue to meet that goal. ITS is committed to strengthening our internal values of equity, work-life balance, and fostering a supportive culture. Prioritizing career paths is important to us and we devote resources to skill and professional development for our staff. We encourage you to apply, even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position but possess transferable skills and experience.

University of California offers competitive benefits including Medical, Dental & Vision Care Insurance Plans, University of California (UC) retirement, Paid Family Leave, and Paid Holidays plus accrued vacation and sick leave. Visit the UC benefits page for more information at UC Compensation and Benefits.

JOB SUMMARY

This position applies advanced IT professional concepts and campus objectives to identify solutions to highly complex issues and client requirements across multiple areas of information technology specialization. This position independently researches and recommends solutions that require an in-depth evaluation of variable functional, technical, process, and policy factors.

The successful candidate is a versatile IT professional capable of straddling IT service management, technical project management, strategic application oversight, and client engagement. They build strong relationships with stakeholders across all levels of the university, facilitate user communities of practice, serve as a strategic bridge between clients, vendors, and technical teams, and manage services with campus-wide impact. Leveraging deep technical comprehension of application architecture, system configurations, and code modifications, they critically evaluate technical options and direct technical teams in delivering solutions. This role takes independent responsibility for service, project, and application portfolio governance to ensure the stability, security, and functional fit of enterprise SaaS applications while collaborating within a service team to achieve shared portfolio goals.

APPOINTMENT INFORMATION

Budgeted Salary: $121,280 - $130,788/year. Salary commensurate with skills, qualifications and experience.
Under California law, the University of California, Santa Cruz is required to post a reasonable estimate of the compensation for this role. The salary shown above is the budgeted amount the University reasonably expects to pay and the salary extended should not exceed this posted amount.

Benefits Level Eligibility: Full benefits

Schedule Information

• Full-time, Fixed
• Percentage of Time: 100%, 40 Hours per Week
• Days of the Week: Mon-Fri
• Shift Includes: Day

Job End Date: None

Work Location: Remote

Union Representation: TX Union

Travel: Never or Rarely

JOB DUTIES

35% - Service Management

• Independently manage multiple, highly complex service offerings and portfolio components using professional judgment and expertise to plan, execute, and evolve services in alignment with organizational vision and goals.
• Develop and manage the service lifecycle and roadmap in consultation with ITS leadership and functional specialists to deliver value for clients, including service definition and design, service catalog management, user experience research, service benchmarking, service transition, and service retirement activities.
• Identify, evaluate, and recommend new technology solutions and service capabilities, drafting proposals, reports, and strategic recommendations for ITS and campus leadership to drive campus-wide adoption.
• Manage vendor relationships, including coordinating contract reviews, researching new vendors and technologies for a service, and managing vendor escalation pathways for complex issues.
• Ensure compliance with information security policy, FERPA, ADA, and other higher-education regulations affecting IT services and user data.
• Manage service delivery activities to produce desirable outcomes for clients, as measured by client satisfaction.
• Act as a strategic bridge, engaging clients and stakeholders across all levels of the organization to maintain a broad understanding of evolving campus needs, proactively identify service gaps, and build collaborative communities of practice.
• Manage service levels and capacity, including establishing, updating, and monitoring Service Level Agreements (SLAs), Operational Level Agreements (OLAs), and business continuity plans for critical services.
• Monitor service performance and drive continuous improvement by defining, reviewing, and reporting key metrics and conducting regular strategic and operational reviews with stakeholders and the Service Desk.

35% - Project Management

• Serve as technical project manager for multiple, complex projects with campus-wide scope and impact, leveraging established project methodologies (e.g., Agile, Hybrid, Waterfall).
• Lead cross-functional technical and client teams, defining roles, fostering collaboration, and maintaining momentum to assure successful project outcomes.
• Develop comprehensive project plans, including work breakdown structures (WBS), financial forecasts, and resource requirements.
• Define, manage, and communicate project deliverables and priorities derived from technical, functional, and process requirements.
• Proactively identify, analyze, and mitigate project risks and dependencies to minimize impact on scope, schedule, and budget.
• Apply industry project management standards, department policies, and governance frameworks.
• Report to project leadership, create and present project charters for approval, set stakeholder expectations, and escalation key issues or scope changes requiring leadership action.
• Align activities and expectations among clients, project leadership, engineers, and vendors through transparent and timely communication throughout the project lifecycle.
• Plan and direct key project stages from needs assessment and solution evaluation through design, implementation, quality assurance (QA), user acceptance testing (UAT), and release.
• Ensure smooth transition of new services or features into the ongoing Service Management framework, including operational readiness reviews and operational handoffs.

20% - Application Management

• Provide strategic application management and technical oversight for a portfolio of complex and evolving enterprise SaaS applications, partnering with technical teams to direct configuration strategies, access models, and operational workflows.
• Proactively monitor and evaluate evolving application feature sets, vendor release roadmaps, and emerging SaaS capabilities to assess functional/technical viability, determine adoption strategy, and guide phased feature rollouts.
• Leverage a deep, foundational comprehension of complex system configurations, application architecture, and code modifications to critically evaluate technical options, anticipate cross-system dependencies, and drive strategic decision-making.
• Ensure system administration, application configuration, data integrations, and administrative documentation comply with institutional standards.
• Evaluate technical implications, security risks, and data impacts of proposed system configuration and code changes before authorizing production deployments.
• Define governance standards and quality expectations for Quality Assurance (QA), User Acceptance Testing (UAT), and release management, guiding technical teams through testing frameworks and release approvals.
• Serve as the senior technical consultant and escalation resource, guiding technical teams through complex problem analysis, root cause diagnosis, and multi-system integration challenges.

10% - Client Support

• Oversee incident and request fulfillment processes for the service portfolio, ensuring operational alignment with SLAs and serving as an escalation point for complex or multi-system issues.
• Define new service request types and optimize workflows to streamline client request fulfillment.
• Direct operational change management and problem management processes, coordinating major incident responses, root cause governance, and post-incident reviews in collaboration with technical teams and the Service Desk.
• Draft, publish, and manage knowledge base articles and feedback loops, ensuring content is accurate, effective, and accessible for client self-service and Service Desk staff.
• Provide direct training, knowledge transfer, and coaching to Service Desk personnel and service team members across IT service management disciplines.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training.
• Advanced knowledge of IT Service Management (ITSM) principles, including the ITIL framework and Service Lifecycle components (Incident, Request, Change, and Problem Management governance).
• Comprehensive knowledge of project management methodologies (e.g., Waterfall, Agile/Hybrid), including WBS, resource planning, and risk management techniques.
• In-depth knowledge of techniques for service analysis, functional needs assessment, vendor release roadmap evaluation, and emerging SaaS capability assessment.
• Knowledge of best practices for managing vendor relationships, coordinating contract reviews, and monitoring service level performance.
• Direct experience overseeing complex enterprise SaaS portfolios (e.g., DocuSign, Qualtrics, Google Workspace, or similar platforms) and guiding technical teams in solution delivery.
• Skill in translating organizational goals into service roadmaps, lifecycle plans, and formal solution proposals for executive leadership.
• Proven experience planning and executing the operational handoff of new services or features from project phase into ongoing ITSM operations.
• Experience directing and overseeing technical documentation, knowledge base content, and operational training/coaching for Service Desk and technical staff.
• Advanced analytical skill to evaluate how complex system configurations, code changes, and data integrations affect connected systems, data security, and operational workflows.
• Skill in defining, negotiating, monitoring, and reporting on Operational Level Agreements (OLAs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
• Proven skill in directing and guiding technical teams, delegating execution tasks, serving as a senior technical escalation resource, and leading cross-functional teams without direct reporting authority.
• Outstanding communication and relationship management skills to serve as a strategic bridge across technical, administrative, and executive audiences.
• Skill in designing and modifying complex operational processes and procedures for continuous service improvement and workflow optimization.
• Skill in managing the full change lifecycle, including impact analysis, risk mitigation, and production deployment authorization for projects and operations.
• Track record of proactively engaging campus clients and leaders to identify service gaps and translate evolving business needs into technical solutions.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced understanding of SaaS and cloud-native application deployment, configuration, system architecture, code modification impacts, security, SSO/SAML/LDAP protocols, and integration principles.
• Knowledge of key higher education regulations and policies impacting IT services and data, such as FERPA, ADA, and institutional Information Security Policies.
• Proven experience defining testing strategy and overseeing Quality Assurance (QA) and User Acceptance Testing (UAT) executed by technical teams for system deployments or major upgrades.
• Agile.
• Project Management Certification.
• Technical Classes or Certifications.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

• Selected candidate will be required to pass a pre-employment criminal history background check.
• Selected candidate must pass the employment misconduct disclosure process.
• Ability to work long periods of time at a computer with or without accommodation.
• This is a fully remote position, and the selected candidate must be able to work successfully from a home/remote office and be able to fulfill the requirements of the UCSC telecommuting agreement.
• Selected candidate will be required to complete training within established time frames as directed including UC compliance training.
• The University of California has implemented a Vaccination Policy covering all employees. Employees, including new hires, are required to comply with any applicable policies relating to the University of California vaccine program.
• Per the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA), this position has been identified as a Mandated Reporter. The selected candidate will be required to report known or suspected child abuse or neglect as defined by CANRA and will be required to sign a Statement Acknowledging Requirement to Report Child Abuse prior to commencing employment. CANRA Penal Codes, and related definitions, requirements, and responsibilities may be obtained here .

MISCONDUCT DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT

As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

• "Misconduct" means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant's previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies or laws prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment, discrimination, dishonesty, or unethical conduct, as defined by the employer. For reference, below are UC's policies addressing some forms of misconduct:
  • UC Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy
  • UC Anti-Discrimination Policy
  • Abusive Conduct in the Workplace

All UCSC employees must understand and follow job safety procedures, attend required health and safety training, proactively promote safety at work, and promptly report actual and potential accidents and injuries.

This report is published by October 1st of each year and includes current institutional policies and procedures concerning campus safety and security; fire safety and evacuation policies; sexual misconduct and relationship violence reporting and response protocols; and crime and fire statistics for the three previous calendar years. A paper copy of the ASFSR is available upon request by contacting the UCSC Police Department at 114 Carriage House Rd., Santa Cruz, CA 95064, or by calling 831-459-2231 Ext. 1.

EEO/AA

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status or other protected categories covered by the UC Anti-Discrimination Policy .

It is the policy of the University of California to undertake affirmative action and anti-discrimination efforts, consistent with its obligations as a Federal and State contractor.