ServiceNow Platform Lead, IT

HUCTW Anti-Racism Group; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 130,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Tuition assistance

Commuter benefits

Generous paid time off

Job summary

Harvard University’s IT Service Delivery team at HBS is seeking a Platform Lead for the ServiceNow enterprise platform. You will drive roadmaps, oversee upgrades, and coordinate work across BA, QA, MSP, and developers to deliver reliable service solutions.

The role combines architecture and hands‑on implementation, focusing on platform stability, security, and continuous improvement in ITSM practices. Hybrid work with onsite Boston presence is expected.

Qualifications

• Minimum of seven years’ post‑secondary education or relevant work experience.
• Hands‑on ServiceNow administration and/or development across ITSM and related products.
• Experience with upgrades, release management, and governance of instances.

Responsibilities

• Provide end‑to‑end Service Ownership for ServiceNow platform including lifecycle management and performance.
• Direct and coordinate BA/QA resources, MSP, and staff for upgrades and support.
• Serve as hands‑on technical authority for ServiceNow administration and development.
• Own platform lifecycle across development, test and production instances.
• Establish engineering practices, code standards, and automated testing (ATF).
• Lead platform architecture improvements and data quality efforts.
• Diagnose complex incidents and coordinate vendor escalation when needed.

Skills

ServiceNow admin

ITSM

Stakeholder relations

Team leadership

Communication

Problem solving

Automation

Education

Post-secondary education or equivalent experience

Tools

ServiceNow

REST/SOAP

IntegrationHub

ATF

MID Server

JavaScript

Source control

Job description

Company Description

By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills and expertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcoming environment where everyone can thrive.

Harvard Business School (HBS) IT is a nimble, innovative, strategic partner who crafts, delivers and supports pioneering technology solutions that connect, enable and inspire the HBS community to educate leaders who make a difference in the world. Visit our website for more information: http://www.hbs.edu/information-technology/about-us.

Job Description

Job Summary

Are you excited by the idea of joining a world-class organization at the intersection of higher education and technology? Are you drawn to leveraging workflow automation tools to ensure outstanding service delivery? Can you see yourself working with staff across the organization to create and manage digital workflows? If so, consider joining our team! The IT Service Delivery team plays a critical role in driving innovative solutions to solve business problems in support of HBS’s mission to educate leaders who make a difference in the world.

The ServiceNow Platform Lead works with the Senior Director, Administrative & Campus Systems to drive service and technology roadmaps, oversee major transformation initiatives, assign and ensure the quality of developer, quality engineering (QE), and business analysis (BA) work, deliver top-notch service solutions, and manage relationships with partners across HBS. The Lead is responsible for the stability and usability of the ServiceNow platform across all production and non-production environments. They collaborate with internal team members, community stakeholders, and third-party vendors to ensure effective planning, development, and deployment of solutions that achieve desired business outcomes. They use automation extensively to design, configure, and manage applications in collaboration with a Managed Service Provider (MSP). This is a hands-on platform leadership role: the Lead is expected to configure, troubleshoot, and improve ServiceNow directly, while setting technical direction and coordinating delivery through the MSP and other resources.

The ideal candidate will be an energetic, quick learner who possesses superior interpersonal and communication skills, can direct and supervise the work of others, and creates an environment that fosters efficient and effective work practices. They will bring experience in service management practices and enabling technology, along with the ability to work collaboratively to design, implement and mature service delivery practices. The candidate will build strong relationships across the organization, provide timely support during critical situations and production incidents, and drive efficient resolution of service issues. They move comfortably between architecture and implementation, diagnose issues at the platform, integration, data, and security layers, and make informed decisions about when to configure, customize, integrate, or retire functionality.

Job-Specific Responsibilities

• Provide end-to‑end Service Ownership for ServiceNow enterprise platform including lifecycle management, budget and operational performance, and service evolution and innovation
• Direct and coordinate the work of BA and QA resources, temporary staff, and an MSP to deliver platform upgrades, projects, and Tier 2 support including troubleshooting, incident remediation, performance monitoring, user/group access management, access control lists and manage support ticket resolution
• Serve as the hands‑on technical authority for ServiceNow administration and development, including instance configuration, application and module design, forms and workflows, business rules, client scripts, UI policies, data policies, notifications, reports, dashboards, roles, groups, and access control lists (ACLs)
• Own the technical lifecycle of the platform across development, test, and production instances, including instance strategy, clones, upgrades, patches, plugin activation, release planning, update sets or source control, deployment validation, rollback planning, and post‑release monitoring
• Establish and enforce engineering practices for ServiceNow, including technical design reviews, coding and naming standards, peer review, automated testing with the Automated Test Framework (ATF), regression testing, performance monitoring, logging, documentation, and knowledge transfer
• Assess and improve platform architecture, data quality, CMDB and Configuration Management practices, service modeling, and alignment with the ServiceNow Common Service Data Model (CSDM), as applicable to HBS priorities
• Lead technical diagnosis and resolution of complex incidents and defects, including root‑cause analysis, remediation, problem management, and coordination of vendor escalation when platform behavior or integrations are at risk
• Design and drive the ServiceNow strategic roadmap and operating budget with the Senior Director, Administrative & Campus Systems to ensure alignment with measurable business outcomes
• Serve as a subject matter expert on IT Service Management (ITSM) best practices and work with partners to understand pain points, prioritize requirements and identify opportunities to improve work practices
• Define and promote best practices including security, quality assurance and DevOps methodologies
• Define, support, and enforce code standards and guidelines to support relevant to the applications and technologies including ServiceNow configuration, scripting, integration, testing, deployment, and documentation standards
• Build trust and collaboration by being present on‑site and engaging directly with colleagues and various constituents
• Complete other responsibilities as assigned

Working Conditions

• Additional support outside of regularly scheduled hours, including early mornings, nights, weekends, and holiday breaks, may occasionally be required

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications

• Minimum of seven years’ post‑secondary education or relevant work experience

Additional Qualifications and Skills

The following are preferred:

• Hands‑on ServiceNow administration and/or development experience, ideally across ITSM and one or more additional products or applications such as ITOM, CSM, HRSD, FSM, SPM, or custom scoped applications
• Experience with ServiceNow upgrades, release management, instance governance, application scoping, update sets or source control, and technical documentation
• Working knowledge of ServiceNow integrations and web services, including REST/SOAP, IntegrationHub, import sets, transform maps, and MID Server concepts
• Experience with ServiceNow scripting and platform APIs, including JavaScript, Glide APIs, business rules, script includes, client scripts, and flow or workflow automation
• Relevant experience administering, configuring, developing, or engineering ServiceNow in an enterprise environment, with demonstrated responsibility for production platform stability and delivery
• Experience with ServiceNow implementations, including familiarity with ServiceNow Field Service Management (FSM)
• Experience with supervising or directing the work of others
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders across the organization
• Dedicated to sharing knowledge and expertise to elevate organizational capacity
• Strong commitment to quality, innovation, and continuous improvement
• Foundational knowledge and hands‑on experience with generative AI platforms such as ChatGPT and Claude
• Demonstrated ability to build and manage effective relationships with third‑party vendors
• Effective communication skills, with the ability to educate others and clearly convey complex technical concepts to varied audiences
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and adapt effectively in fast‑paced environments
• Strong analytical mindset and problem‑solving skills

Certificates and Licenses

The following are preferred:

• ServiceNow certifications
• ITIL certifications or similar

Additional Information

• Standard Hours/Schedule: 40 hours per week
• Compensation Range/Rate (including Shift Differential if applicable): $130,000 - $140,000, salary commensurate with experience
• Visa Sponsorship Information: Harvard University is unable to provide visa sponsorship for this position
• Pre‑Employment Screening: Identity, Education, Criminal
• Other Information:
• This role is a hybrid position which we consider to be a combination of remote and onsite work at our Boston, MA‑based campus. HBS expects all staff to be onsite at least three days per week and for departments to provide onsite coverage Monday - Friday. Specific hours and days onsite will be determinedby business needs and are subject to change with appropriate advancednotice.
• We may conduct candidate interviews virtually (phone and/or via Zoom) and/or in‑person for this role.

#LI-MM1

Work Format Details

This position has been determined by school or unit leaders that some of the duties and responsibilities can be effectively performed at a non‑Harvard location. The work schedule and location will be set by the department at its discretion and based upon operational needs. When not working at a Harvard or Harvard‑designated location, employees in hybrid positions must work in a Harvard registered state in compliance with the University’s Policy on Employment Outside of Massachusetts. Additional details will be discussed during the interview process. Certain visa types and funding sources may limit work location. Individuals must meet work location sponsorship requirements prior to employment.

Salary Grade and Ranges

This position is salary grade level 059. Please visit Harvard's Salary Ranges to view the corresponding salary range and related information.

Benefits

Harvard offers a comprehensive benefits package that is designed to support a healthy work‑life balance and your physical, mental and financial wellbeing. Because here, you are what matters. Our benefits include, but are not limited to:

• Generous paid time off including parental leave
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage starting on day one
• Retirement plans with university contributions
• Wellbeing and mental health resources
• Support for families and caregivers
• Professional development opportunities including tuition assistance and reimbursement
• Commuter benefits, discounts and campus perks

Learn more about these and additional benefits on our Benefits & Wellbeing Page.

EEO/Non-Discrimination Commitment Statement

Harvard University is committed to equal opportunity and non-discrimination. We seek talent from all parts of society and the world, and we strive to ensure everyone at Harvard thrives. Our differences help our community advance Harvard's academic purposes.

Harvard has an equal employment opportunity policy that outlines our commitment to prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, religion, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law or identified in the university's non-discrimination policy. Harvard's equal employment opportunity policy and non-discrimination policy help all community members participate fully in work and campus life free from harassment and discrimination.