Come work at a place where we take pride in creating a workplace environment that values hard work, commitment, and growth.
This role leads the support and maintenance of a portfolio of IT applications and services, ensuring operational excellence and alignment with business goals. The position oversees internal teams and external vendors, manages service levels, and drives continuous improvement. It requires strong leadership, technical expertise, experience in managed services, and a customer-focused mindset within a fast-paced retail environment.Job Description:Education:
- Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field of study or equivalent years of related work experience required.
Work Experiences:
- 8+ years of experience in Information Technology Systems and Application Support, preferably within the retail industry.
- 5+ years of management experience
- Experience working in a customer service environment with an understanding of KPIs.
- Proven success in IT project management.
Skills:
- Effective communicator on both technical and non-technical levels
- Solid understanding of ITIL or equivalent service management frameworks.
- Proficiency with service management tools (e.g., ServiceNow), observability platforms, and automation technologies.
- Demonstrated experience supporting high-volume software environments.
- Ability to define technical standards aligned with SLA requirements.
- Skilled in managing third-party vendor relationships.
- Experience mentoring and leading application support teams.
- Capable of managing multiple functional areas within a managed services structure.
- Strong people management, performance oversight, team-building, and conflict resolution skills.
- Adept at facilitating cross-team agreements.
- Ability to perform effectively under pressure.
- Self-motivated with excellent problem-solving abilities.
- Quick to assess business impact from technology issues.
- Effective communicator across technical and non-technical audiences.
- Skilled in tailoring communication styles to suit different audiences.
Responsibilities:
- Oversee support for a portfolio of applications, software components, integration tools, and releases.
- Manage internal and external managed services teams responsible for maintenance, break-fixes, business requests, minor enhancements, and lifecycle support.
- Govern vendor relationships, including SLA management, service improvement, and contractual delivery.
- Support the VP of Solutions Delivery and Application Support in aligning IT strategy with business objectives.
- Direct application support programs to reduce risk and enhance system stability and availability.
- Collaborate with vendors and internal stakeholders to define and execute operational excellence initiatives.
- Work with business customers, vendors, consultants, and management to establish service levels.
- Produce and report key metrics related to application capacity and performance.
- Act as a general contractor across platforms, coordinating internal and external technology and service support.
- Handle all associate relations functions, including hiring, termination, performance management, development, and training.
- Partner with application development teams and stakeholders to identify user requirements and explore system innovation opportunities.
Physical Requirements & Attendance
- Acceptable level of hearing and vision to perform job duties
- Adhere to company work hours, policies, procedures, and rules governing professional staff behavior
- Regular in-office attendance is required
Academy is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate with regard to employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other category protected by law.
Top Skills
What We Do
At Academy Sports + Outdoors, we believe in the power of fun. And we believe in helping our customers have more of it. With a wide assortment of sporting and outdoors gear, Academy offers the best brands under one roof — curated to make the most of every budget. Day in and day out, our 20,000+ Team Members bring a sense of adventure, energy, and passion to work. Understanding our people and the things that matter to them has been at the core of Academy culture for over 80 years. We take pride in creating a workplace that values hard work, commitment, growth, and of course, FUN.
Academy — headquartered in Katy, TX, a suburb of Houston — is one of the nation’s largest sporting goods and outdoor stores. We offer a broad assortment of quality hunting, fishing, and camping equipment and gear, as well as sports and leisure products, footwear, apparel, and much more.
Originally founded in 1938 as a family business in Texas, Academy has grown to a wide network of stores across many states, with $6.8 billion in annual revenue.
