The Organization
Lumina Foundation is an independent, private foundation in Indianapolis that is committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available to all. We envision a system that is easy to navigate, delivers fair results, and meets the nation’s need for talent through a broad range of credentials. Our goal is to prepare people for informed citizenship and for success in a global economy.
Lumina is working with partners to design a learning system that gives every person—regardless of race and ethnicity, income, or other socioeconomic factors—the opportunities that only education and training after high school can provide. To achieve our mission, we work with governmental, nonprofit, and private-sector organizations to bring about widespread change. Our work relies on strategic communication, empowering leaders who can bring about change, policy outreach to state and federal officials, investments in proven and promising practices, and targeted efforts to measure and evaluate progress.
Lumina Foundation has a passionate and committed staff and is among the nation’s top private foundations, with an endowment in excess of $1.2 billion.
Position Overview
The IT Application Manager oversees the Foundation’s third-party and internally managed IT applications used to support business processes and services across the Foundation, including technologies hosted on premise or in the cloud. This position will work with the business unit owners to ensure the applications are implemented, maintained, and utilized in accordance with the Foundation’s strategic priorities and industry best practices.
Responsibilities
• Advance Lumina’s commitment to ending systemic racism and barriers to learning beyond high school for Black, Latino and Native American individuals. Further Administration and Partnerships specific practices that promote racial and ethnic diversity in hiring, contracting, grantmaking, inclusive decision making, and achieving fair and just outcomes arising from the department’s exercise of its duties and responsibilities. Effectively communicate Lumina’s commitment to internal and external partners
• Oversee the functionality, stability and security of the Foundation’s applications and systems, which include, but are not limited to, grants management, CRM, financial management, contract management, event management, video conferencing and payroll processing.
• Work with the application vendors to ensure that the Foundation is maintaining the most up to date version and is using it in accordance with the vendor’s terms and conditions and specifications.
• Manage the user and access rights and permission on designated systems and applications.
• Configure and manage sound security protocols on the designated systems and applications and conduct threat and vulnerability assessments against them.
• Evaluate and assess external and internal technology capabilities required to achieve desired organizational priorities and industry best practices.
• Work with the IT Director to ensure the Foundation’s IT operating and capital expenditures are managed within scope and their planned budgets.
• Work with the IT Director to develop and update policies, procedures and best practices that govern the Foundation’s applications and systems.
• Maintain a network of trusted advisors, consultants and vendors to help assess the effectiveness of the Foundation’s application and systems and IT service model and network, and who can provide advice whether they are the most effective means to meet our changing business priorities.
• Establish in-person and virtual training platforms for keeping end users informed of best practices.
• Maintain currency on new technologies and platforms — including artificial intelligence (AI) and edge computing — and provides direction on what emerging technologies should be assimilated, integrated and introduced at the Foundation. This will ensure that IT capabilities respond to the needs of the Foundation’s strategic priorities.
• Provide strategic direction, oversight and take ownership for the design, development, operational and support of IT systems that fulfill the needs of the Foundation’s business units, including the full life cycle of technical architecture, equipment and IT service support.
• Work with and oversee IT consultants and vendors engaged by the Foundation to manage applications or projects.
Education and Experience
• Bachelor’s degree or demonstrated competency required in computer science or other related content area.
• At least five (5) years of information technology systems experience, including oversight and administration of large cloud-based applications.
Qualifications
• Specific technical knowledge or experience with the systems and applications that support the Foundation’s work.
• Knowledge of information infrastructure technologies (e.g., relational databases, report or visualization systems).
• Experience with Microsoft’s collaboration and productivity applications.
• Ability to provide clear direction by fostering common vision, setting priorities, and clarifying roles and responsibilities.
• Ability to coach and develop others, including people that are not direct subordinates.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate concepts and activities accurately, effectively, and in ways that are suited to the Foundation’s varied stakeholders.
• Ability to develop and execute business plans, effectively manage a budged, and lead change management efforts.
• Analytical and problem-solving skills exercised with good judgement; ability to present issues clearly and concisely.
• Exercises sound judgment in handling sensitive or confidential information.
• Ability to work collegially and diplomatically across the organization and various audience groups.
• A facility for resolving conflict among multiple parties.
How To Apply
Applicants should send to the e-mail address below.
• a letter of interest that includes desired compensation, and
• resume as separate attachments outlining experience relevant to the position
Amber Shelton
Human Resources Manager
lfecareers@luminafoundation.org
Equal Opportunity Employer