Lead Infrastructure Management

Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); Pretoria; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hybrid work arrangement

Learning and development opportunities

Competitive remuneration packages

Total guaranteed salary package with a

Job summary

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria seeks a Lead: Infrastructure Management to oversee the Infrastructure Management Division and drive the cloud transformation program, ensuring value delivery to CSIR’s business needs. The role focuses on strategic IT infrastructure, service delivery, and staff development within a dynamic ICT portfolio.

You will lead teams, manage budgets, and ensure alignment with CSIR objectives, delivering robust infrastructure solutions

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field and eight+ years in infrastructure and application management.
• At least five years in a management role in large organisations.
• Experience migrating from physical data centres to public cloud infrastructure.
• Experience with virtualization and data centre management.
• Knowledge of IT infrastructure services, cloud technologies, and cost reduction.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Infrastructure Management Division and develop its overall plan.
• Drive infrastructure roadmap and cloud adoption strategy to create value for CSIR.
• Oversee staff performance, resource allocation and contract management.
• Ensure compliant IT policy alignment and risk management across infrastructure.
• Manage budgets, procurement, and SLA/contract governance.
• Oversee data centre operations, security, and incident response.

Skills

Leadership

Vendor management

Stakeholder management

Cloud adoption

Performance management

Staff development

Strategy planning

Automation awareness

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Microsoft 365 services

Oracle databases

Windows/Linux servers

Cloud platforms (Public cloud)

Network/storage/backup management tools

Job description

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is a leading scientific and technology research organisation that research, develops, localises and diffuses technologies to accelerate socio-economic prosperity in South Africa. The organisation's work contributes to industrial development and supports a capable state. The CSIR has a vacancy for a Lead Infrastructure Management.

Lead: Infrastructure Management

The CSIR has a vacancy for a Lead: Infrastructure Management in the ICT Service Portfolio who will be responsible for overseeing the Infrastructure Management division, ensuring value realisation for CSIR with a focus on the infrastructure evolution towards cloud capabilities. Manage ICT infrastructure operations to ensure the availability, accessibility and utilisation of infrastructure in line with CSIR business needs. The incumbent will be tasked with defining the target infrastructure landscape, articulating the roadmap and overseeing the delivery plans to support business processes and services across the enterprise. This position is based in Pretoria.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership

• Manage the Infrastructure Management Division;
• Develop and drive implementation of the Infrastructure Management Division overall plan;
• Lead the development of the IT infrastructure technology and associated execution roadmap;
• Define the Cloud adoption strategy and lead the cloud transformation program in a manner that creates value for CSIR;
• Oversee Infrastructure Management team leaders and teams, allocating resources to ensure that staff deliver robust solutions to the CSIR¿s requirements;
• Manage and develop staff to ensure high calibre personnel who achieve performance; objectives in support of the CSIR mission and vision as they pertain to IT Infrastructure;
• Conduct performance management contracting and reviews for all staff at the recommended periods, for the purpose of managing & improving service delivery.

IT Infrastructure

• Participate in the review and development of IT policy and strategy to ensure alignment between the IT systems and strategic business requirements;
• Schedule and manage infrastructure and applications releases to ensure proper implementation in compliance with release authorization;
• Manage centralised software implementation to ensure optimal and effective utilisation of software;
• Manage business enablement systems: email, telephony, backup, storage, network infrastructure, internet connectivity, directory services, endpoint and network security services;
• Manage back-office administration to ensure proper server administration, backup management and job scheduling according to business needs and ICT best practice standards;
• Review and analyse current and future capacity requirements and recommend appropriate ICT infrastructure to meet business requirements;
• Manage the provision of technical analysis and support to ensure effective internal and external services;
• Manage projects to ensure project delivery within given time and cost constraints;
• Monitor and evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of infrastructure service delivery methods and procedures;
• Monitor business critical processes and systems;
• Install, configure and support new and existing servers and network infrastructure;
• Plan and implement upgrades needed to maintain service levels;
• Implement vulnerability management processes;
• Develop and lead the replacement of infrastructure at end of life;
• Conduct testing and analysis of all components of network and server infrastructure components;
• Manage and oversee data centre operations;
• Manage and oversee the adherence to all SHEQ requirements & standards;
• Stay abreast of new IT technology developments;
• Enable innovation and seek to leverage the relevant technology trends (e.g. Robotic Process automation (RPA), artificial intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), blockchain, edge computing) that can create value consistent with the strategic goals of CSIR;
• Manage third-party contracts and relationships with external service providers;
• Provide implementation leadership working with the other IT teams on the plans and the governance required to prioritize resources (including budget), optimise returns on investments (e.g. via automation, cost optimisation and quality management) and ensure the delivery of the agreed outcomes;
• Provide strategic direction, guidance and oversight for the infrastructure architecture, engineering, and operations (incl capacity planning) activities;
• Provide evidence to audit requirements;

Financial management

• Develop and manage Infrastructure Management Department¿s budget;
• Ensure cost effective service delivery;
• Ensure compliance with financial legislative requirements.

Qualifications, Skills And Experience

• A bachelor¿s degree in computer science or any other related field with at least eight years¿ experience in infrastructure and application management,
• At least five years in a management role, particularly in large organisations and a proven track record in:
  • Experience managing vendors and contract management
  • Experience migrating organizations from physical data centres to public cloud infrastructure
  • Experience with Virtualization: Virtualization Server, Storage, Desktop, Network; Reducing Sprawl
  • Experience with Infrastructure-Based Processes: Monitoring, Capacity Planning, Facilities Management, Performance Tuning, Asset Management, Disaster Recovery, Data Centre Management
  • Experience with Servers, Infrastructure, Platform Sizing, Infrastructure Cost Reduction
  • Experience with legacy system engineering assessments, discovering the build and details surrounding the system to re-build it in a new hosted environment
• Influencing stakeholder acceptance of appropriate IT infrastructure improvements and corrective actions
• Knowledge of and competence in the provision of IT Infrastructure services including:
  • Familiarity with Cloud Technologies
  • Knowledge of various systems development models and frameworks
  • Familiarity with Oracle (or similar) Databases
  • Familiarity with Microsoft 365 services
  • Experience with Microsoft and Linux Operating Systems
  • Experience with system automation processes and solutions
  • Knowledge of costing models
  • Working knowledge of multiple programming languages
  • Familiarity with load balancing technologies
  • Advanced Working knowledge of IT service management, metric management, SLA performance management
  • Expert knowledge of IT Escalation and triage management expertise.

What’s in it for you?

The CSIR Offers

• Flexible hybrid work arrangement;
• Learning and development opportunities.
• Competitive and market-related remuneration packages.
• Total guaranteed salary packages which encompass contributions to the pension fund, risk insurance and medical scheme.
• We openly acknowledge and reward our employees' contributions and accomplishments through our esteemed CSIR Excellence Awards.

Closing date: 05 November 2026

PLEASE NOTE THAT FEEDBACK WILL BE GIVEN TO SHORTLISTED CANDIDATES ONLY.

For more info, please email us at [e-mail] Please do-not send application to this mailbox, it is only for inquiries.

The CSIR is an equal opportunity employer. As such, it is committed to the employment Equity Act and will through the filling of this vacancy, give preference to candidates from designated groups in terms of the Employment Equity Act. By applying for this position at the CSIR, the applicant understands, and agrees that the CSIR may solicit a credit and criminal report from registered credit bureau and/or South African Police Services (in relation to positions that requires trust and honesty and/or entail the handling of cash or finances), and may also verify the applicant’s educational qualification and employment history. The CSIR reserves the right to remove the advertisement at any time before the stated closing date and it further reserves the right not to appoint if a suitable candidate is not identified.