Assistant Directors, It Infrastructure

Full time The Chief Technology Branch delivers a range of ICT services to the agency including infrastructure, service operations and architecture. The IT Infrastructure section's vision is to create a resilient and secure IT Infrastructure that seamlessly supports electoral processes. We aim to provide reliable services, enhance accessibility and ensure data integrity, contributing to the democratic process and fostering public trust. The IT Infrastructure section is responsible for the management and problem resolution of the agency's ICT infrastructure, such as ICT on-prem and cloud networks including but not limited to; Azure and AWS networking and solution design, networking LAN/WAN, firewall management and data centre compute and storage. The section is additionally responsible for secure email systems, Windows SOE environments, end-user desktop, management AVDs as well as file storage and management, database administration and provisioning. The Opportunity We are looking for multiple Assistant Directors to join the infrastructure section, across a range of ICT disciplines. The roles report to the Director IT Infrastructure and will manage teams to deliver positive outcomes for the day-to-day management of AEC systems. This is an exciting opportunity to make a significant contribution to the improvement and maintenance of AEC systems, that support delivery of electoral events. These roles are responsible for undertaking complex work that is sensitive in nature, under limited direction, and liaising with other areas across the AEC including Cyber and Assurance. These roles also participate in resource allocation and capacity planning in a 24/7 on call roster for the duration of electoral events, with each section maintaining a roster of on call phone at all other times and may be required for ad-hoc duties after hours on occasion. Database Team Database Performance and Optimisation: The team ensures all databases perform optimally, tuning configurations and managing resources to support high availability and reliability. Backup, Recovery, and Resilience: The team develops and maintains comprehensive backup and recovery plans, aligning with disaster recovery protocols to protect critical data. Capacity and Scalability Planning: Anticipating future growth, the team monitors storage needs and plans for scalability to ensure databases meet evolving agency requirements. Security and Compliance: The team actively implements and maintains security measures aligned with the Essential Eight framework, ensuring databases are protected against unauthorised access and vulnerabilities. Patch Management: Responsible for applying security patches promptly, the team works to keep databases up to date, reducing exposure to potential threats. Technical Support and Troubleshooting: The team provides responsive support to resolve database-related issues, ensuring minimal impact on operations. Infrastructure Server Team Provisioning and Maintenance of On-Premise and Cloud Infrastructure: The team oversees the configuration, management, and maintenance of both on-premise servers and cloud environments, ensuring they meet performance and operational requirements across all platforms. Security and Compliance with Essential Eight: The team implements security practices in alignment with the Essential Eight framework, securing both on-premise and cloud infrastructure against potential threats and vulnerabilities. Patching and Update Management: The team ensures that all servers and cloud resources are promptly patched and updated, reducing security risks and maintaining compliance across the entire infrastructure. Disaster Recovery and Data Protection: Responsible for comprehensive disaster recovery planning, the team ensures that critical data and systems, both on-premise and in the cloud, are backed up and can be restored efficiently to minimise downtime. Resource Allocation and Capacity Planning: The team monitors resource utilisation across on-premise and cloud environments, planning and allocating resources to support current operations and future scalability. Technical Support and Issue Resolution: The team provides responsive support to address and resolve infrastructure-related issues across on-premise and cloud platforms, ensuring consistent, reliable service for the agency. Networking Team Network Architecture and Management: The team is responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining secure and efficient network connectivity, supporting both on-premise and cloud environments to ensure reliable and scalable communication channels. Security and Compliance with Essential Eight: The team implements best practice network security aligned with the Essential Eight framework, protecting both on-premise and cloud networks from unauthorised access and potential threats. Monitoring and Performance Optimisation: The team continuously monitors network performance across all platforms, identifying issues early and optimising configurations to maintain high-speed, reliable connections between on-premise and cloud resources. Patching and Update Management: Ensuring network devices and systems, both on-premise and in the cloud, are regularly patched and updated to mitigate vulnerabilities and maintain compliance with security standards. Incident Management and Response: The team provides swift and effective responses to network disruptions and security incidents, minimising downtime and protecting data across both on-premise and cloud networks. Vendor and Stakeholder Coordination: Collaborating with external vendors and internal stakeholders, the team manages upgrades, maintenance, and troubleshooting across on-premise and cloud networks to ensure alignment with agency goals and operational needs. To excel you'll have: Proven experience in leading a team within an IT infrastructure environment, with the ability to mentor, guide, and develop team members while fostering a positive and inclusive team culture. Ability to prioritise tasks effectively based on the strategic direction, managing team workload to meet deadlines and delivery high-quality outcomes. Experience in planning and coordinating infrastructure-related projects or initiatives with a structured approach to achieving objectives and managing resources. Strong interpersonal skills to build and maintain productive working relationships across the branch and with other key stakeholders, promoting a culture of collaboration and respect. Demonstrated resilience and flexibility in managing change within a complex and fast-moving IT environment, with the capacity to adapt to shifting priorities and agency needs. Demonstrated ability to communicate complex technical information clearly and concisely, both verbally and in writing, to various audiences, including non-technical stakeholders. Understanding of at least one of the following areas – database administration, networking, cloud, or server infrastructure management – and how these areas support the broader IT environment. Experience in analysing complex technical issues, identifying root causes, and developing effective solutions. Commitment to continuous improvement, including identifying opportunities to optimise team workflows, enhance service delivery, and align with best practices. Familiarity with IT governance frameworks (such as ITIL), compliance standards, and security protocols, particularly within an Australian government context. AEC employees must be Australian citizens. Any person who is, and seen to be active in political affairs, and intends to publicly carry on this activity, may compromise the strict neutrality of the AEC and cannot be considered. Applicants are required to consent to, undergo, obtain and maintain a character clearance. Applicants are required to consent to, undergo, obtain and maintain the security clearance required for this role. Due Date: Sunday 24 November 2024, 11:59 PM AEDT The AEC is responsible for conducting federal elections and referendums and maintaining the Commonwealth electoral roll. The AEC also provides a range of electoral information and education programs and activities. #J-18808-Ljbffr