DSHS FTAA Senior IT System Administrator

Are you a hands-on technical leader ready to direct and elevate the technology that powers 24/7 care? Join our team as the Senior IT System Administrator and Supervisor for the State Operated Living Alternatives (SOLA) program within the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). In this critical, high-impact role, you will serve as both a hands-on technical authority and a working supervisor, overseeing the 24/7 mission-critical IT infrastructure that supports specialized disability services across Washington State.

Reporting directly to the Deputy IT Director, you will manage a distributed team of IT professionals across three regions, ensuring the reliability, security, and continuity of networks, servers, and systems for 11 field offices and 80 plus residential adult and children's homes. You will act as the vital bridge between SOLA facility operations and enterprise technology partners (including Division of Information Technology (DIT), Finance, Technology and Analytics Administration (FTAA), and Watech ), directly impacting the safety of staff, residents, and the community by keeping vital clinical and administrative operations running seamlessly.

You will lead and supervise State Operated Living Alternatives (SOLA) IT staff covering systems administration, networking, telecommunications,user account management, and computing services across all field offices and residential homes statewide for (Region 1: Spokane and Yakima); (Region 2: Lynnwood and Everett) and; (Region 3: Bremerton and Tumwater) The official workstation for this position is in Tumwater and offers limited flexible hybrid remote work.

You can be based anywhere in Pierce, Kitsap, Thurston, or Lewis counties. This position will require travel to each of the field office locations lited above to understand technical challenges unique to each location. This position is a working supervisor. Some of What You’ll Do: Senior Technical Authority: Supervise and guide local IT staff supporting systems administration, networks, telecommunications, end-user accounts, and computing services.

Personnel Leadership & Supervision: Provide comprehensive supervision, workload prioritization, and performance management for a statewide, geographically distributed team of IT professionals and systems administrators. 24/7 System Reliability & Security: Ensure all architecture and configurations deliver high availability, resiliency, and performance standards appropriate for 24/7/365 secure clinical environments. Enterprise Liaison & Advocacy: Act as the primary point of contact between SOLA operations and external or enterprise entities (including Home and Community Living Administration (HCLA), Facilities, (FTAA), (DIT), WaTech) to align with enterprise standards while advocating for program-specific needs.

Incident Response & Service Delivery: Oversee service request and incident queues, directing troubleshooting efforts for complex or high-impact technical issues to minimize customer downtime and ensure exceptional customer service. Platform Operations & Compliance: Manage the deployment, imaging, patching, configuration, and capacity monitoring of server and workstation environments in strict compliance with DSHS and OCIO security policies.

Identity & Access Administration: Administer identity services (Active Directory), group policies, shared storage, and access controls to secure sensitive data while ensuring seamless local and remote access for authorized staff. Lifecycle Management & Procurement: Identify technology needs based on system lifecycles, develop technical justifications for executive procurement approvals, and oversee the strategic rollout and tracking of IT assets.

Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery: Lead system resiliency planning, vulnerability mitigation, and hands-on service restoration efforts during extended outages, emergencies, ensure local technology frameworks meet strict security, operational continuity, and compliance requirements tailored for round-the-clock care environments. What we are looking for Professionals with a bachelor’s degree or above with major emphasis in IT system/network administration and programming and seven years of consultative, administrative, or leadership experience in IT, network administration, programming, system maintenance, or IT systems troubleshooting/problem resolution experience.

Or, Eleven years* of IT system/network administration and programming, in addition to consultative, administrative, or leadership experience in IT, network administration, programming, system maintenance, or IT systems troubleshooting/problem resolution experience. *Additional education or experience may substitute for the other experience on a year by year basis. Preferred Knowledge, skills, and abilities: A Master’s degree in computer science or closely allied field.

Experience supporting information technology systems in healthcare, behavioral health, correctional, or other secure residential environments. CompTIA Network+ certification CompTIA Security+ certification Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL current version) We are seeking a calm, focused, and action-oriented individual who excels at critical thinking and multi-tasking. As a skilled communicator, you will be driven to help peers and customers resolve technical issues, leveraging your curiosity and experience to overcome environmental and product challenges.

In this role, you will collaborate with the team to deliver high-quality, timely, and thoroughly tested system enhancements, ensuring our products and applications connect seamlessly and function perfectly. If this is your area of expertise and interest, come partner with us in doing this meaningful and critical work. We encourage you to apply! To be considered for this opportunity please include the following: Current chronological resume Cover letter Three professional references with current contact information The Department of Social and Health Services’ (DSHS) vision that people find human services to shape their own lives requires that we come together with a sense of belonging, common purpose, shared values, and meaningful work.

It is crucial to our agency’s vision that you bring a fairness, access, and social justice commitment to your work with DSHS. We strive to support all Washingtonians, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, people with physical, behavioral health, and intellectual disabilities, elders, LGBTQIA+ individuals, immigrants and refugees, and families building financial security. Questions? Contact the recruiter, Reema Goyal at [email protected] and reference job number 09238 Supplemental Information Prior to a new hire, a background check including criminal record history may be conducted.

Information from the background check will not necessarily preclude employment but will be considered in determining the applicant's suitability and competence to perform in the job. This announcement may be used to fill multiple vacancies. Employees driving on state business must have a valid driver's license. Employees driving a privately owned vehicle on state business must have liability insurance on the privately owned vehicle.

Washington State Department of Social and Health Services is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in any area of employment, its programs or services on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, marital status, race, creed, color, national origin, religion or beliefs, political affiliation, military status, honorably discharged veteran, Vietnam Era, recently separated or other protect­ed veteran status, the presence of any sensory, mental, physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability, equal pay or genetic information.

Persons requiring accommodation in the application process or this job announcement in an alternative format may contact the Recruiter at (360) 725-5810. Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call through Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6384. Relationship and Reporting Structure (Nepotism) Disclosure: If you are selected for hire, you must disclose whether you have a relative, household member, close friend, or romantic partner within your potential supervisory chain of command.

DSHS has a Relationships and the Reporting Structure policy that prohibits nepotism and can be reviewed here . Applicants whose appointment would result in a prohibited reporting relationship are not eligible for appointment to that position. E-Verify® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.