Sr. Director, IT Business Relationship Management

Apogee Services Inc.

The Large Scale Optical segment is part of Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: APOG), founded in 1949 and headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.  Apogee is a growing, profitable company with annual revenues approaching $1.5 billion.  It provides distinctive metal and glass solutions for enclosing commercial buildings, and glass and acrylic solutions for picture framing and display applications.  To learn more visit www.apog.com.

The Large Scale Optical (LSO) segment, has grown from $100M to $200M in revenue through a recent acquisition.  Our brands in the LSO portfolio develop and manufacture high-performance coated materials for a variety of applications, including wall décor, museums, graphic design, architectural interiors, digital display, and industrial flooring markets.  We are the global leader in anti-reflective, conservation grade electrostatic dissipative, high-definition, and abrasion resistance coatings, that provide protection, innovative designs, and exceptional durability.

Position Summary

The segment IT leader will act as the strategic partner for the LSO Segment, ensuring technology solutions align with business objectives, drive efficiencies and support growth.  This position plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between business stakeholders and IT, fostering collaboration and delivering effective technology solutions that provide business value.    

Reporting directly to the Chief Information Officer and dotted line to the LSO segment President, the incumbent will act as a business partner for the segment president and management team, by anticipating business issues, providing technology insights and vision for manufacturing where R&D and product development are critical to the business within the Apogee Enterprise digital roadmap. 

Responsibilities

Strategic Planning.   Working directly with the LSO segment leadership team and Enterprise IT Leadership to develop, align and enable an IT roadmap for the segment. 

• Develop an in depth understanding of the segment strategy.

• Collaborate with LSO Segment President, leadership team, and Enterprise IT to develop an IT strategy that aligns with the overall business strategy and supports the segment initiatives.  Identify opportunities for process improvements and leverage technology to drive operational efficiency and effectiveness.

• Support the annual operating plan (AOP) development ensuring reconciliation of ideas and initiatives as inputs for the technology roadmap and infrastructure needs and ensures the Segment needs are visible and aligned with overall Enterprise IT planning.

Solution design and evaluation.  Partner with LSO segment leaders and Enterprise IT to design and evaluate technology solutions that address the identified business needs and requirements.

• Collaborate and partner with Enterprise IT to represent the LSO segment needs and rationalize the applications for the growing segment.

• Plan and align the segment application portfolio against the business objectives to ensure they can be met with a focus R&D, product development, business development, sales, and marketing.

• Support robust requirements gathering to drive improved solution development.

• Ensure that solutions are aligned with industry best practices, scalability, security and compliance standards.

• Act as the primary partner to assist the business stakeholders in evaluating enterprise technology solutions and applicability for the LSO segment to serve the business. 

Manage the business relationship. Act as liaison to and advocate for the segment within the Apogee Enterprise IT organization. 

• Develop strong working relationships within the segment leadership team.

• Understand the business needs, goals, and challenges and translate them into technology opportunities with special focus on M&A (due diligence and integration).

• Help the business become better consumers of IT, be a champion for IT within the business to leverage the IT resources most effectively. 

Segment IT Leadership.  Lead the IT team of business analysts and ensure the needs of the segment are met by Enterprise IT resources.

• Provide functional supervision to dedicated Segment staff (business analysts).  This includes a workforce plan, hiring, performance management, coaching and career development.

• Establish and manage the Segment IT budget.  Responsible for capital projects, forecast, vendor management, invoice processing and overall control of technology spend across the LSO Segment. 

• Participate in the oversight of technology service suppliers and delivery of their services at the segment level.  This includes providing regular customer feedback, oversight of services agreements and commitments being met, and corrective action plan with providers if not meeting their commitments.

• Responsible for the ‘facilities technical health’.  The LSO Segment has approximately 8 locations ranging from offices to manufacturing facilities.  This role will partner with IT infrastructure to plan and execute the overall support of the footprint including infrastructure requirements for office/manufacturing location moves, etc.   

Personal Attributes

The successful candidate will be expected to be a high-energy, creative and resourceful self-starter who demonstrates leadership skills, instincts, and significant capacity for work.  He/she is highly intelligent and enthusiastic with a commitment to excellence.  In terms of personal competencies, the successful candidate must be a hands-on leader who possesses the best combination of strategic thinking and drive to achieve tangible business results.  In addition, he/she should possess the following competencies:

• Ethics: Highest level of professional integrity and honesty as well as personal credibility. 

• Leadership Development Skills:  Deep understanding and experience with the ability to practically apply, as well as coach others to do so.

• Functional Leadership:  A confident, mature person with the ability to connect and inspire others.  A proven track record of leading complex projects and teams that successfully achieve milestones and complete deliverables.

• Operational/Functional Excellence.  Experience managing in an environment that continuously prioritizes operational excellence.

• Results-Oriented:  A driver who possesses the ability to take actions and implement effective solutions in a timely manner often while influencing across different functions and levels of the organization.

• Problem Solver:  A creative yet pragmatic problem solver.  Methodical and hands-on as well as detail-oriented

• Strategic Thinking and Decision-Making:  A “conceptualizer” of business strategies and objectives who can then integrate that thinking into initiatives.  Excellent planning, execution and project-management skills.  Strong business acumen and an in-depth understanding of the business and financial implications of business decisions.

• Teamwork and Interpersonal Skills:  A team player and builder, receptive to ideas from others.  Shares information and keeps team members and partners informed. Works effectively with others to identify and resolve issues. Excellent interpersonal skills and an ability to interact successfully with all levels of management as well as a diverse work force. Ability to understand and add value to high-level management interactions.

Education & Experience

Minimum requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in MIS, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field. 

• A minimum of 10+ years broad-based business experience, with prior experience in a similar role partnering with a business leadership team.

• At least 5 years progressive experience effectively leading and managing teams.

• Demonstrated experience in mergers and acquisitions, specifically around IT due diligence and integration.

• Experience managing activity/relationships in multiple manufacturing facilities.

Preferred:

• Work experience with an organization that had significant business development functions.

Benefits & Compensation

We care about and invest in our employees. We are proud to offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support their well-being and foster professional development. Here is a glimpse of what you can look forward to if you join our team.

• Incentive Plans
• Competitive Benefits Package for employees and their dependents (Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Disability)
• 401(k) with employer contribution and match
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan with employer match
• Paid Time Off (Vacation and Sick Time)
• Paid Holidays
• Tuition Reimbursement Program
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Wellness Program
• Training and Career Progression

Pay Range

• $180,000 - $200,000

#LI-TV1

Apogee and our brands are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law.