Head Of Information Technology

About Arc Institute

The Arc Institute is a new scientific institution that conducts curiosity-driven basic science and technology development to understand and treat complex human diseases. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Arc is an independent research organization founded on the belief that many important research programs will be enabled by new institutional models. Arc operates in partnership with Stanford University, UCSF, and UC Berkeley.

While the prevailing university research model has yielded many tremendous successes, we believe in the importance of institutional experimentation as a way to make progress. These include:

• Funding: Arc will fully fund Core Investigator’s (PI’s) research groups, liberating scientists from the typical constraints of project-based external grants.
• Technology: Biomedical research has become increasingly dependent on complex tooling. Arc Technology Centers develop, optimize and deploy rapidly advancing experimental and computational technologies in collaboration with Core Investigators. 
• Support: Arc aims to provide first-class support—operationally, financially and scientifically—that will enable scientists to pursue long-term high risk, high reward research that can meaningfully advance progress in disease cures, including neurodegeneration, cancer, and immune dysfunction.

Arc scaled to nearly 100 people in its first year. With $650M+ in committed funding and a state of the art new lab facility in Palo Alto, Arc will continue to grow quickly to several hundred in the coming years.

About the position

The Arc team is expanding quickly and we are looking for an experienced IT leader to oversee the Institute’s IT systems and projects. The Head of IT will manage all information technology systems at Arc. In addition, the Head of IT will design and implement Arc’s future IT roadmap to best support Arc’s ambitious research goals.

About you

• You connect with people. You know that successful systems are more about the user than the tool. You enjoy building relationships and credibility with your colleagues.
• You enjoy solving problems. Any new project is an interesting puzzle. So is a tricky troubleshooting issue. You get satisfaction from helping someone get to resolution.
• You’re curious. You like to keep track of the latest developments in your field, and to learn about the substance behind your employer’s mission.
• You’re organized. You enjoy bringing order to chaos and helping others wrangle complexity and ambiguity.

In this position you will

• Ensure an exceptional level of IT system performance and support to users in scientific labs and our operations team. 
• Set a long term strategy and roadmap for IT at Arc; set and execute on quarterly goals alongside other functions
• Define and manage technical IT projects through the full lifecycle - from user needs to planning to execution, through to deployment and training.
• Implement and monitor essential IT operations, including servers and cloud computing, operating systems, security tools, applications, email systems, laptops, desktops, software, and hardware.
• Manage IT vendors providing front-end helpdesk support to Arc, eventually managing an in house team of 3-5 full-time employees. 
• Collaborate with other technical support teams including Lab Operations, Facilities, Infrastructure, and others to ensure alignment and shared execution on meeting Arc’s ongoing needs. 
• Develop user communications, user guides, and training programs to increase end user computer literacy and self-sufficiency.
• Develop business continuity procedures, and maintain data backups.
• Develop and manage an overall IT budget that effectively supports Arc’s IT efforts.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Technology, or related field, or equivalent.
• 10+ years of experience in IT, 5+ years of supervisory experience managing IT resources.
• Exceptional written and verbal communications skills and ability to take in and synthesize complex nuanced information from many different perspectives.
• Experience with Windows and MacOS environments, GSuite, and SaaS tools.
• Demonstrated knowledge of technical system management, information security management, computer and network hardware, and desktop and cloud software solutions.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills for troubleshooting and resolving complex systems issues.
• High level of tolerance and flexibility to address complex cross-functional issues and to reach compromises with key stakeholders
• Proven track record for working independently in a fast-paced startup environment.
• ​​Good understanding of lab environments and scientific technology needs is a plus.

The base salary range for this position is $208,425-$257,525. These amounts reflect the range of base salary that the Institute reasonably would expect to pay a new hire or internal candidate for this position. The actual base compensation paid to any individual for this position may vary depending on factors such as experience, internal equity, market conditions, education/training, and skill level, and does not include bonuses, commissions, differential pay, other forms of compensation, or benefits. This position is also eligible to receive an annual discretionary bonus, with the amount dependent on individual and institute performance factors.