Technical Services Director

THIS IS A NEW ASSEMBLED EXAMINATION. The eligible list resulting from this examination will cancel any existing list and may last approximately one year, but can be extended.

Supplemental Questionnaire: A properly completed Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted with each application. Failure to submit the Application or supplemental Questionnaire will result in disqualification.

Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing.

Application and Supplemental Questionnaire will only be accepted on-line.

THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT
The Information Technology Department (ITD) is the central technology support for the County’s agencies and departments who serve our communities. Our more than 1.5 million residents and countless customers around the world depend on the services the County provides. ITD powers those services in ways that our tech savvy constituents have come to expect; giving them access to services when and where they need them. We are a team of technology professionals and evangelists with a wide-range of technological skills and diverse experiences. We provide great customer service and high quality products.

We are passionate about our work and we are proud of the numerous awards we have won. We are very excited about the cultural change in our department. We are transforming the perceptions of government technology and redefining ourselves. We are “staying ahead of the wave” by fostering innovation, pushing the envelope, and taking risks. We have embraced the entrepreneurial spirit of our start-up neighbors in Silicon Valley. We are more than just technologists though. We are also passionate about our communities. We are volunteers, food drive donors, activists, and humanitarians who love the communities we work and live in.

To learn more about the department please visit the Information Technology Website: https://itd.acgov.org/index.page

THE POSITION
Under general direction, to direct the activities of staff in the establishment, implementation, maintenance, and enhancement of  new or revised information technology systems and programs; to supervise and coordinate the work of one or more teams responsible for the technical services provided to a group of customers assuring that those needs are appropriately defined and addressed.

Incumbents in the class of Technical Services Director delegate programming and systems analysis duties to staff and retain the responsibilities of supervision, planning, budgeting, review and evaluation of work and decision making.  Positions in the class of Technical Services Director differ from those in the next lower class of Application Systems Engineer III, in that the latter has the responsibility for only a unit or a project contained within a group, which is composed of these units of applications programmers and systems analyst, while the former has the responsibility for an entire group.  Technical Services Directors are further distinguished from the next higher classification of Assistant Chief Information Officer with the latter having direct supervisory responsibility over several Technical Services Directors including the responsibility for the overall planning, coordination, and direction of all groups.

IDEAL CANDIDATE
In addition to meeting the minimum qualifications, the ideal candidate will also possess the following critical attributes:

• History of providing outstanding customer service by partnering with a variety of business clients.
• Ability to understand business strategy and ensure technology solutions are prioritized and aligned with the business need.
• Proven track record of implementing technology solutions that require ingenuity, innovation, and the application of new technology and platforms. For the Digital Services position, experience building large scale websites for a variety of customers such as Social Services Agency or Registrar of Voters is a highly desired. For the Account Manager position, experience with building and maintaining enterprise applications for public sector is highly desired.

Either I

The equivalent of two years of full-time experience in the class of Application Systems Engineer III, Web Designer III, County Webmaster, or Senior Technology Project Manager in the Alameda County classified service.

Or II

The equivalent of six years of full-time increasingly responsible experience in systems analysis and programming, including three years of the direct supervision and workload management of other systems analysts and programmers.

NOTE:  The Civil Service Commission may modify the above Minimum Qualifications in the announcement of an examination.

NOTE: The most qualified candidates will possess the following competencies.

Knowledge of:

• Project management tools, best practices and procedures.
• Software engineering practices, frameworks, techniques and industry trends.
• Principles and techniques of supervision, personnel management, administration and project management.
• Budgeting methods for estimating revenue and expenditures, and planning.
• Relationship of budgeting to policy-making. Relationship of policies and procedures to staff productivity and morale.
• Principles and techniques of planning, scheduling and control as applied to systems development and maintenance in a large information technology installation.
• Methods for review of systems analysis and programming work.
• Principles of systems analysis and programming techniques.
• Data organizations and access methods in computerized systems.
• Estimating methods for equipment costs, production costs, programming costs, and system benefits.

Ability to:

• Learn, follow, and enforce the Information Technology Department Project Lifecycle (PCL).
• Analyze major information processing problems.
• Direct the development of advanced computer-based systems, and the evaluation and modification of complex existing systems for optimum use.
• Formulate systems and programming section strategy to meet departmental goals, developing schedules, work plans and cost controls.
• Direct, assign, coordinate, and evaluate the work of programming and systems analysis staff for maximum productivity.
• Communicate technical concepts in a timely and understandable fashion to non-technical policy makers in the County.
• Understand and consider the impact of organizational, management, administrative and personnel aspects of information systems design.
• Resolve problems and make appropriate recommendations.
• Gather and analyze data, draw sound conclusions and prepare clear, concise reports.
• Work effectively with subordinate staff, other managers and user department representatives.
• Build consensus; influence and execute plans.

THE EXAMINATION WILL CONSIST OF THE FOLLOWING STEPS:
1) A review of candidates' applications to verify possession of minimum requirements. Those candidates who possess the minimum requirements for the class will move on to the next step in the examination process.

2) A review of candidates’ Supplemental Questionnaires to select the best qualified applicants to continue in the process.

3) An oral examination which will be weighted as 100% of the candidate's final examination score. The oral examination may contain situational exercises.

CANDIDATES MUST ATTAIN A QUALIFYING RATING ON EACH PORTION OF THIS EXAMINATION.
***We reserve the right to make changes to the announced examination components***

Alameda County utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad recruitment efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to test in an examination process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, the eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments many be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.

To learn more about our recruitment and selection process, please visit the “What You Need to Know” section of our website, www.acgov.org/hrs. 

Applicants will be informed via email with reasonable notice in advance of any examination process which will require their attendance. The following dates are tentative and subject to change based on the needs of the Agency:

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ANNOUNCED RECRUITMENT & SELECTION PLAN

Alameda County and the Human Resource Services Department will make reasonable efforts in the examination and/or selection process to accommodate qualified individuals with disabilities and/or medical conditions in accordance/compliance with the State Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Alameda County’s Reasonable Accommodation Policy and applicable statues. To request an accommodation due to a disability/medical condition during this or other phases of the examination/selection process, please contact the assigned Human Resources Representative listed on the job announcement before the last date of filing. Alameda County requires applicants to provide supporting documentation to substantiate a request for reasonable accommodation. In order to qualify for a reasonable accommodation, applicants must have a disability/medical condition pursuant to the ADA, FEHA and applicable statutes. 

For more information regarding our Reasonable Accommodation procedures, please visit our website, www.acgov.org/hrs  

Alameda County offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package that affords wide-ranging health care options to meet the different needs of a diverse workforce and their families. We also sponsor many different employee discount, fitness and health screening programs focused on overall well being. These benefits include but are not limited to*:

For your Health & Welfare Benefits

• Medical – HMO & PPO Insurance
• Dental – PPO & DHMO Insurance
• Vision
• Basic Life Insurance
• Supplemental Life Insurance (with optional dependent coverage)
• County Allowance
• Health Flexible Spending Account
• Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account
• Accident, Critical Illness & Hospital Indemnity
• Employee Assistance Program

For your Financial Future

• Short-term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Retirement Plan – (Defined Benefit Pension Plan)
• Deferred Compensation Plan

For your Work/Life Balance

• 11 paid holidays
• Vacation and sick leave accrual
• Vacation purchase program
• Management Paid Leave**
• Group Auto/Home
• Commuter Benefits Program
• Guaranteed Ride Home
• Employee Wellness Program (e.g. At Work Fitness, Incentive Based Programs, Gym Membership Discounts)
• Employee Discount Program (e.g. theme parks, cell phone, etc.)
• Child Care Resources
• 1st United Services Credit Union

*Eligibility is determined by Alameda County and offerings may vary by collective bargaining agreement. This provides a brief summary of the benefits offered and can be subject to change.

** Non-exempt management employees are entitled to up to three days of management paid leave. Exempt management employees are entitled to up to seven days of management paid leave.