Director of Research IT

The University of California, Berkeley, is one of the world’s most iconic teaching and research institutions. Since 1868, Berkeley has fueled a perpetual renaissance, generating unparalleled intellectual, economic and social value in California, the United States and the world. Berkeley’s culture of openness, freedom and acceptance—academic and artistic, political and cultural—make it a very special place for students, faculty and staff.

Berkeley is committed to hiring and developing staff who want to work in a high performing culture that supports the outstanding work of our faculty and students. In deciding whether to apply for a staff position at Berkeley, candidates are strongly encouraged to consider the alignment of the Berkeley Workplace Culture with their potential for success at http://jobs.berkeley.edu/why-berkeley.html.

Departmental Overview

Reporting to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Teaching and Learning and Chief Academic Technology Officer (AVC-CATO), the Director of Research IT (RIT) provides campus-level leadership and vision for enterprise research IT services that support faculty and other researchers in all disciplines. The position is responsible for the services outlined below as well as the development of new RIT services based on developing researcher needs and new technologies and leveraging them to support to the campuses strategic vision particularly as they relate to the campus strategic plan https://strategicplan.berkeley.edu and the Reimaging IT strategic plan https://technology.berkeley.edu/strategic-plan/goals.  

Through the Research IT unit (https://research-it.berkeley.edu/) within the Research, Teaching and Learning Services organization (RTL), this position oversees the following services and programs 1) Berkeley Research Computing - services which include high-performance computing, cloud computing support, and virtual research environments on demand; 2) Research Data Management – which, in conjunction with the library, supports current and emerging data management issues, compliance with policy requirements imposed by funders and by the University, and reduction of risk associated with the challenges of data stewardship; 3) Support for Digital Humanities; and 4) Museum informatics including the development and support for CollectionSpace which catalogs over two million objects and images in the UC Berkeley museums’ research collections. These services all offer extensive consulting support for researchers and staff using their knowledge of the research enterprise to tailor services for their unique needs. 

Possessing a high level of political acumen and strong communication skills, the Director advocates for and manages a complex set of funding resources that support RIT operations that currently include direct funding from the Vice Chancellor for Research, the Chancellor, and the Office of the CIO. The Director is also responsible for securing and managing grants to support the groups’ work by leveraging their extensive knowledge of the research support funding landscape and actively monitors opportunities including governmental grants (NSF, NIH, DOE, etc.) as well as foundation support and for fostering collaborations with with UC-wide partners and other national universities to help improve services and remain abreast of national trends. 

One of the key new opportunities of this position is to work collaboratively within a broader organizational structure, Research Teaching and Learning Services (RTL) to provide researchers with innovative and seamless support as they move through their teaching and research responsibilities. The Director of RIT works with the other RTL Directors to ensure that services provided across the organization leverage one another including technical infrastructure and support and consulting services. They also work with the RTL leadership team to ensure that we maintain a positive culture that is committed to inclusion, diversity, and investment in staff by providing training and opportunities for professional development and growth and fostering a sense connectedness to the campus mission and priorities.

Responsibilities

The position is responsible for providing strategic leadership to the research technology space, advising senior management including AVC-CATO, CIO and Vice Chancellors for Undergraduate Education and Research. The Director manages activities of RIT through using standard Service Management practices and leads subordinate managers having overall responsibility for functional programs and ensuring service delivery, continuity and quality. The position has significant responsibility and autonomy to achieve broadly stated goals for the department and for the campus research technology enterprise including to identify objectives, launch and direct programs, and develop overall departmental strategies and policies. Works with key campus stakeholders, including ladder and non-ladder ranked faculty, academic partners, department chairs, school/college deans, ORU directors, and senior leadership, to advance research through IT innovation and by leveraging RIT staff skills and expertise as part of researcher engagement efforts more broadly. 

This position also uses their influence by working collaboratively to build community and gain buy-in for strategic investment decisions across the various other organizations on campus that provide research support and expertise (e.g. D-Lab, the Library, BIDS). The position also actively engages in researching, tracking, and applying for grant funding opportunities and looking for other potential revenue generation opportunities. In that role the Director looks for appropriate relationships with institutions and funding agencies to provide services for a fee and can serve as key personnel on faculty grants and in some cases as PI and/or co-PI and directly related grant opportunities.

Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to communicate with, understand the needs of, and build trust with faculty across all research disciplines.

• Proven service management experience leading research or related services at a research institution utilizing standard service engagement techniques and practices, 

• Broad advanced knowledge of the local and national research computing space (e.g. shared HPC, VM and cloud computing, data storage infrastructure, research data management, digital humanities, visualization services, etc.) as demonstrated by publications, presentations, and/or related work in at least one research discipline.

• Demonstrated success working in and managing research computing functions and services and deep understanding of researcher needs regarding secure research data and computation.

• Demonstrated expertise with program building within a leading academic institution and administrative, budgetary, human resources and financial principles and practices.

• Strong organizational and people management skills and ability to establish training and development goals and objectives through directing and developing staff members.

• Thorough understanding of the academic culture of a research-intensive university and the relationship between central services and research services within schools and colleges.

• Proven experience with research grants at all stages--that may include acting as PI or Co-PI or a named contributor and experience producing interim reports and managing research funds. 

• Demonstrated ability to build collaborative partnerships to improve, enhance or launch new services and support across an institution.

• Excellent interpersonal communication skills to develop and maintain professional relationships with campus leadership, department chairs, school/college deans, and faculty at all ranks as well as other directors and managers in academic partner units.

• Understands and values diversity and the importance of inclusion as demonstrated through a commitment to apply and incorporate the differences, complexities, and opportunities that diversity brings to an organization and ability to work with a dynamic diverse faculty, staff and students.

• Strong ability to handle sensitive and/or confidential situations with diplomacy and tact.

• Bachelors degree in related area and/or equivalent experience/training

• Advanced degree preferred 

• ITIL Foundations Certification desired

Salary & Benefits

For information on the comprehensive benefits package offered by the University visit: 

http://ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu/compensation-and-benefits/index....

How to Apply

Please submit your cover letter and resume as a single attachment when applying.

Application reviews will begin in mid/late January 2019.