Systems Infrastructure Operations Manager

Travel + Leisure Co.•Orlando, FL

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Manager, Systems Infrastructure Operations leads day-to-day operations for the enterprise Windows, Linux, Active Directory, DDI (DNS, DHCP, and IP Address Management), Certificate Services (PKI), and VMware environment. This role owns operational execution and stability of the WINTEL platform, delivered by a hybrid team made up of full-time operations staff and a managed services provider (MSP), and is accountable for availability, performance, incident management, and operational compliance. This position partners with the Systems Infrastructure Engineering team and the Technical Architect, who own platform engineering strategy, design, and standards, to ensure the team executes operations reliably against those standards. This role also partners with Security, Network, Application, and Project Management teams, and drives adoption of automation across the team to reduce manual effort and improve consistency. This role carries direct people management responsibility for the Systems Infrastructure Operations team and is accountable for hiring, performance management, mentoring, vendor and managed services relationships.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related technical field preferred.
Equivalent professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirement.
At least one current or previously held certification, formal training credential, or equivalent demonstrated experience in IT operations, Windows Server, Active Directory, virtualization, or infrastructure operations leadership.
ITIL 4 Foundation or higher ITIL certification preferred
Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate or equivalent Windows Server / Active Directory credential a plus
VMware Certified Professional - Data Center Virtualization (VCP-DCV) preferred
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate preferred
Training or hands-on experience with enterprise PKI / certificate lifecycle management platforms preferred
Project Management certification (e.g., PMP or equivalent) or comparable project delivery experience a plus
Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and develop a hybrid team made up of full-time operations staff and managed services resources.
Ability to set team objectives, manage performance, and build a positive, accountable working environment.
Demonstrated ability to run 24x7 operations, including monitoring, alerting, and incident command for business-critical platforms.
Strong working knowledge of ITIL-aligned incident, problem, and change management processes.
Ability to execute change, patch, and maintenance operations in alignment with standards defined by an engineering or architecture function.
Strong working knowledge of Windows Server, Linux, Active Directory, DDI (DNS, DHCP, IPAM), Certificate Services (PKI), and VMware virtualization sufficient to direct operational execution.
Ability to connect platform-level operational issues to business risk, availability, and security requirements.
Ability to identify manual, repetitive, or error-prone operational processes and drive the team toward automation that improves speed, consistency, and accuracy.
Ability to champion adoption of scripting and automation tooling (such as PowerShell, Python, Bash, Terraform, or Ansible) across the team.
Ability to own the quality and currency of operational documentation, including knowledge base articles and runbooks.
Ability to manage the managed services provider (MSP) relationship, including SLA management, performance reviews, and escalation handling, as part of leading one team.
Ability to manage additional vendor relationships to ensure quality, cost-effective delivery.
Ability to serve as a key steward and advisor for an operations budget, including tracking and providing input on contract costs, tooling, and licensing spend.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Ability to partner with an engineering or architecture function to translate designs and standards into operational execution.
Ability to work with cross-functional teams, business stakeholders, and outsourced vendors to align operations with business needs.
Windows Server infrastructure
Linux
Active Directory (multi-forest, multi-domain) and Group Policy
DDI (DNS, DHCP, IP Address Management)
Certificate Services (PKI, certificate authority hierarchy, certificate lifecycle management)
VMware ESXi / vSphere
ServiceNow (incident, problem, and change management)
Monitoring and alerting platforms
PowerShell
Python
Bash
Terraform
Ansible
Minimum of 12 years of experience in IT infrastructure operations, engineering, or administration in a mid-size to large environment.
Minimum of 5 years of experience leading, coordinating, or managing a technology operations team.
Experience managing a hybrid team made up of full-time operations staff and a managed services provider (MSP) in a 24x7 operations environment, including SLA management and performance oversight.
Working knowledge across Windows Server, Linux, Active Directory, DDI (DNS, DHCP, IPAM), Certificate Services (PKI), and VMware virtualization sufficient to direct operational execution.
Experience with ITIL-aligned incident, problem, and change management processes.
Experience executing infrastructure changes, patching, and maintenance in partnership with an engineering or architecture function.
Experience with capacity planning, infrastructure resource right-sizing, and budget stewardship.
Experience supporting compliance and audit requirements such as SOX, PCI, and PII.
Experience championing automation and process improvement across an operations team.
Experience working in a multiple-site, multiple-vendor team environment.
Experience equivalent to the education requirement may be accepted in lieu of the education requirement.

Nice To Haves

ITIL 4 Foundation or higher ITIL certification preferred
Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate or equivalent Windows Server / Active Directory credential a plus
VMware Certified Professional - Data Center Virtualization (VCP-DCV) preferred
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate preferred
Training or hands-on experience with enterprise PKI / certificate lifecycle management platforms preferred
Project Management certification (e.g., PMP or equivalent) or comparable project delivery experience a plus

Responsibilities

Own day-to-day operational execution for the Windows, Linux, Active Directory, DDI, Certificate Services (PKI), and VMware environment, delivered by the team. This includes patching and maintenance windows, standard changes, service requests, and P3/P4 ticket resolution. Hold the team accountable for completing this work on schedule, within SLA, and in compliance with approved standards and change processes.
Drive continuous improvement across day-to-day operations, including identifying manual, repetitive, or error-prone processes and championing automation to reduce effort and improve consistency. Own the quality and currency of operational documentation, including knowledge base articles and runbooks, so that recurring issues and routine tasks can be resolved quickly and consistently across the team.
Lead forward-looking planning for the operations organization, including capacity planning, infrastructure resource right-sizing, and budget stewardship, including contract costs, tooling, and licensing spend. Partner with the Systems Infrastructure Engineering team and Technical Architect to ensure operational input feeds their longer-term platform planning.
Own escalation and exception handling for anything outside the normal day-to-day, including P1/P2 incidents as well as other non-standard operational issues that fall outside routine BAU work. Serve as incident command for business-critical issues, directing the team through detection, triage, and resolution. Escalate design-level or architectural root causes to the Systems Infrastructure Engineering team and Technical Architect, and drive post-incident review and remediation tracking.
Perform additional operational or cross-functional duties as assigned by IT leadership, including support for audits and compliance activities such as SOX, PCI, and PII, and special projects outside the standard scope of this role.