Director - IT Infrastructure - Remote - Crum & Forster

Crum & Forster (C&F)  with a proud history dating to 1822, provides specialty and standard commercial lines insurance products through our admitted and surplus lines insurance companies. C&F enjoys a financial strength rating of "A" (Excellent) by AM Best and is proud of our superior customer service platform. Our claims and risk engineering services are recognized as among the best in the industry.

Our most valuable asset is our people: more than 2000 employees in locations throughout the United States. The company is increasingly winning recognition as a great place to work, earning several workplace and wellness awards, including the October 2023 Great Place to Work® Award for our employee-first focus and our steadfast commitment to diversity, equity and Inclusion.

C&F is part of Fairfax Financial Holdings, a global, billion dollar organization.  For more information about Crum & Forster, please visit our website: www.cfins.com.

The Director of IT Infrastructure is responsible for overseeing the organization’s IT infrastructure, ensuring the reliable, scalable, and secure operation of all IT systems, networks, and platforms. This role involves strategic planning, team management, vendor negotiations, and cross-departmental collaboration to ensure the infrastructure aligns with business goals. The ideal candidate will bring a blend of technical expertise, leadership, and innovation to drive efficiency, security, and resilience across all infrastructure components.

What you will do for C&F:

• Strategic Planning & Management: Develop and execute a strategic roadmap for the IT infrastructure that aligns with the organization’s objectives, including scaling, cost management, and new technology adoption.
• Team Leadership: Lead and mentor a team of network engineers, systems administrators, and support staff. Foster a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and technical excellence.
• Infrastructure Operations: Oversee daily operations of the organization’s IT infrastructure, including data centers, servers, network systems, storage, and cloud services, ensuring optimal uptime, performance, and availability.
• Cloud & On-Premises Integration: Design and implement a hybrid IT strategy, balancing on-premises and cloud resources. Oversee cloud migration efforts and manage cloud infrastructure on AWS platform.
• Security & Compliance: Ensure all infrastructure systems meet security best practices and compliance requirements. Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to implement robust data protection measures and mitigate risks.
• Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity: Develop and maintain disaster recovery plans and backup strategies to ensure resilience and continuity in the event of a disruption. Conduct regular DR testing and updates.
• Vendor Management: Negotiate contracts and manage relationships with hardware, software, and service vendors. Assess vendor performance and ensure adherence to service-level agreements (SLAs).
• Budget & Cost Optimization: Develop and manage the infrastructure budget, including forecasting, cost allocation, and monitoring expenses. Identify and implement cost-saving opportunities without compromising quality.
• Monitoring & Performance Management: Implement monitoring solutions to proactively identify and resolve issues. Analyze system performance and implement improvements to meet performance targets and SLAs.
• Project Management: Lead infrastructure projects from concept through execution, ensuring timely delivery, stakeholder communication, and alignment with company goals.

What you will bring to C&F:

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or related field (Master’s degree preferred).
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in IT infrastructure management (15 years preferred), with at least 5 years in a leadership role.

Skills & Competencies

• Technical Expertise: Deep understanding of data centers, networking, virtualization, cloud computing (AWS, Azure, GCP), and cybersecurity practices.
• Leadership: Proven experience managing, mentoring, and motivating technical teams.
• Strategic Planning: Ability to align IT infrastructure with business objectives and plan for future growth and technology adoption.
• Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills. Ability to communicate complex technical issues to non-technical stakeholders.
• Project Management: Proficiency in project management principles (PMP certification preferred).
• Problem Solving: Skilled in troubleshooting and resolving infrastructure-related issues, with a proactive approach to identifying and mitigating risks.

Certifications (Preferred but not required)

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect or other cloud certifications.
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) or Certified Information Security Manager (CISM).
• ITIL Foundation or higher.

Competitive compensation package

Generous 401K employer match

Employee Stock Purchase plan with employer matching

Generous Paid Time Off

Excellent benefits that go beyond health, dental & vision. Our programs are focused on your whole family’s wellness, including your physical, mental and financial wellbeing

A core C&F tenet is owning your career development, so we provide a wealth of ways for you to keep learning, including tuition reimbursement, industry-related certifications and professional training to keep you progressing on your chosen path

A dynamic, ambitious, fun and exciting work environment

We believe you do well by doing good and want to encourage a spirit of social and community responsibility, matching donation program, volunteer opportunities, and an employee-driven corporate giving program that lets you participate and support your community.

At C&F you will BELONG

We value inclusivity and diversity. We are committed to equal employment opportunity and welcome everyone regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. If you require special accommodation, please let us know.

For California Residents Only:  Information collected and processed as part of your career profile and any job applications you choose to submit are subject to our privacy notices and policies, visit https://www.cfins.com/onlineprivacypolicy/ca/noticeatcollection/ for more information.

Crum & Forster is committed to ensuring a workplace free from discriminatory pay disparities and complying with applicable pay equity laws. Salary ranges are available for all positions at this location, taking into account roles with a comparable level of responsibility and impact in the relevant labor market and these salary ranges are regularly reviewed and adjusted in accordance with prevailing market conditions. The annualized base pay for the advertised position, located in the specified area, ranges from a minimum of $86,600.00 to a maximum of $162,900.00. The actual compensation is determined by various factors, including but not limited to the market pay for the jobs at each level, the responsibilities and skills required for each job, and the employee’s contribution (performance) in that role. To be considered within market range, a salary is at or above the minimum of the range. You may also have the opportunity to participate in discretionary equity (stock) based compensation and/or performance-based variable pay programs.

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