Chief Information Officer, Section Manager
Annual Salary $215,259 – $303,056

The Chief Information Officer (CIO), Section Manager, will be a proven leader capable of building strong relationships as well as ensuring technology investments are aligned with business goals, strategies, and objectives for Operational Technology (OT) across the enterprise. The CIO, Section Manager, will bring a business perspective to OT and understand how to influence and partner effectively across various constituents. The ideal candidate will be comfortable working within a value-conscious, results-oriented environment. This individual will help elevate the strategic discussion around leveraging OT in the business units by drawing upon a strong business acumen. This executive will also be responsible for developing talent to ensure the organization has a technology team that is equipped to deliver cost-effective, reliable, and innovative OT capabilities.

The CIO, Section Manager, reports to the superintendent of Tacoma Power leading Utility Technology Services (UTS), though it provides services to all of Tacoma Public Utilities (Power, Water, Rail, and Customer Services). UTS maintains a close relationship with City of Tacoma’s IT team to assure consistency of policies and practices, performance, stability, and security across platforms and integrations and sharing of best practices.

UTS supports operational technologies such as extensive microwave communications and network Systems, two data centers, fiber network to all substations, digital mobile radio for utility/rail operations, telephony, utility automation equipment, Sensus Advanced Meter System, Siemens Meter Data Management, OSI Energy Management System, CGI PragmaLine Power Outage Management, GE Generation Plant Control Systems, Siemens Water SCADA, Customer outage map, Customer Call Center, Credit Card Payment System, and Rail Radio and video operations and security, to name a few.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Set the mission and lead the strategic Operational Technology roadmap for TPU ensuring its integration with the overall enterprise strategic plan.
Collaborate with stakeholders across the business to identify and explore innovative technology solutions that can address shared challenges or capitalize on new opportunities.
Collaborate with the Public Utility Board and City Council on policy direction and respond to information requests.
Ensure compliance with all Federal, State, and local laws and regulations in accordance with Tacoma Power, Tacoma Water, and Tacoma Rail policies and guidelines.
Establish performance metrics and reporting mechanisms that measure the impact of operational technology initiatives across multiple business lines.
Foster a culture of innovation by encouraging cross-pollination of ideas, experimentation, and the exploration of emerging technologies.
Lead an effective OT governance process whereby all key stakeholders are brought into the decision process and all ideas are brought forward for discussion highlighting key achievements, challenges, and opportunities for improvement.
Drive prioritization by aligning business goals with technology resources and identifying initiatives that are of the highest value to the business, and gain buy-in for those initiatives. 
Proactively identify, evaluate, and select new and emerging technologies that can be assimilated within TPU to improve the operational technology ecosystem, provide deeper analytics, and foster innovation.
Makes independent evaluation and recommendations on policies, practices, and guidelines within and across UTS.
Manages and directs the section’s financial activities including budget development and procurement; monitors and administers budgets, revenues and expenditures from multiple sources and for multiple activities.

DESIRED OUTCOMES

Develop and communicate an operational technology strategy that supports TPU’s short and long-term goals and objectives.
Develop and maintain comprehensive cybersecurity strategies to identify, assess, and mitigate potential cyber threats, unauthorized access, and breaches that could potentially compromise our assets.
Build a high-performing team by providing leadership, training, and mentorship to enhance employee’s technical expertise that align with the organization’s strategic objectives.
Streamline workflows, reduce costs, improve operational efficiency, and enhance overall business performance by leveraging operational technology systems and partners.
Develop and manage the OT budget ensuring optimal investment prioritization and utilization of resources based on strategic business objectives, business needs, and ROI analysis.
Reduce communication barriers by encouraging open communication and shared decision-making to drive consensus and foster a culture of collaboration and alignment between IT and OT.
Organize forums, workshops, and cross-functional meetings to promote collaboration, share experiences, and leverage collective expertise to drive operational excellence.

CRITICAL LEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES
Strategic Thinking

Champions innovation, fosters a customer-centric approach, and plans for long-term success while remaining agile in a constantly evolving industry and digital landscape.
Uses effective communication skills to articulate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders, ensuring technology investments drive sustainable growth and competitive advantage.
As a forward-thinking leader, uses their strong business acumen to collaborate with other executives to make datadriven decisions.
Anticipates problems, notices trends, and develops plans in advance to prepare for said opportunities or unexpected issues that arise.
Is fluent in emerging technologies that may improve the operation of the utilities.
 
Leading People

Align technology initiatives with business goals, positioning the company for sustainable success in the everevolving digital landscape.
Through clear communication and active listening, the CIO fosters an inclusive and collaborative work environment empowering their team by understanding their individual strengths and providing opportunities for professional growth.
Builds a safe and strong team environment whereby people feel comfortable sharing and seeking feedback about his/her impact on others.
Invests in the growth and development of her/himself as well as the people on their team by setting challenging goals, maintaining positive working relationships, and ensuring employees have necessary resources and tools to be successful.

Driving Results

Cultivating a performance-driven culture that emphasizes accountability and continuous improvement.
Establish efficient processes and workflows to optimize productivity.
Building strong cross-functional collaborations to drive alignment, synergy, and efficiency.
Is confident and effective in identifying opportunities, defining an issue, diagnosing a problem, analyzing causes, and recommending solutions.
Weighs the costs/benefits, risks, and chances for success in making an informed decision in a reasonable timeframe. Toba Consulting PAGE 3

Customer Commitment

Takes a customer first approach when making decisions that could negatively or positively impact the internal /external customers.
Takes an interest in knowing what’s important to Operations and communicates that to the stakeholders.
The CIO, Section Manager, actively collaborates with external partners, vendors, and customers to build strong relationships with and identify opportunities for improvement.
Prioritizes user experience, responsiveness, and reliability of operational technology systems to enhance overall satisfaction including promptly addressing issues, providing user-friendly interfaces, and continuously improving service levels.