Position Description:
Position Summary
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) is a prestigious research and development organization that plays a vital role in the study of the universe. Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI) is a nonprofit organization that manages and operates the NRAO under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation. The Observatory is a hub for technological and scientific collaboration, operating state-of-the-art radio telescope facilities for use by the international scientific community. The Observatory has been instrumental in the study of black holes, galaxies, and the early universe.
The NRAO Enterprise Infrastructure Technology (EIT) is seeking a Group Lead/Manager for their Network & Data Center Services to join the team. The manager is responsible for the leadership, management, operational performance, and strategic development of enterprise Network Services and Data Center Services. This position provides direct supervision of technical staff while establishing standards, procedures, service-level objectives, and performance metrics that ensure reliable, secure, and efficient delivery of infrastructure services across all organizational locations. The Manager is accountable for operational excellence, team performance, budget planning, resource allocation, service reliability, operational governance, and continuous improvement initiatives.
The position is based preferably at the NRAO headquarters in Charlottesville, Virginia or Albuquerque, NM.
What You Will be Doing:
Directly supervise Network Services and Data Center personnel, including performance management, coaching, and professional development.
Establish operational goals, service-level objectives, and team performance expectations.
Develop, maintain, and enforce SOPs for network and data center operations.
Standardize operational practices and documentation across organizational locations.
Oversee plans to re-architect network services.
Oversee enterprise network operations including routing, switching, wireless, WAN, internet connectivity, and network security infrastructure.
Oversee data center operations including facilities coordination, rack management, power, cooling, capacity planning, and infrastructure lifecycle management.
Develop and maintain service metrics, KPIs, dashboards, and performance reporting frameworks.
Conduct monthly and quarterly service reviews and present results to leadership.
Coordinate incident, problem, and change management activities.
Develop annual operating budgets and participate in capital planning.
Manage vendor relationships and contracts.
Drive operational maturity and continuous improvement initiatives.
Supervisory Responsibilities
Provides direct supervision of Network Engineers, Network Administrators, Data Center Technicians, Data Center Engineers, contractors, and related technical personnel.
Work Environment
Work is mission driven, team oriented and typically performed in an office setting within a research or development environment. There may be periodic visits to network and data center facilities. Occasional travel between organizational locations may be required. Participation in major incident reviews and maintenance activities may occur outside normal hours.
Who You Are:
You have:
a bachelor’s degree in related field or equivalent experience
a minimum seven years of progressively responsible infrastructure experience
a minimum of three years of supervisory experience managing technical teams
experience supporting enterprise network and/or data center environments
experience developing operational standards, service metrics, and reporting frameworks
Technical Knowledge:
Network Operations
Data Center Operations
Infrastructure Management
IT Service Management (ITSM)
Incident Management
Problem Management
Change Management
Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
Capacity Planning
Service Delivery Management
Operational Metrics and KPIs
Budget Planning and…