Chief Technology Strategist Jobs (NOW HIRING)

About Us
Georgia Highlands College is a multi-campus, state college member of the University System of Georgia. Founded in 1970 as Floyd Junior College, it now serves more than 6,000 students in Northwest Georgia and Northeast Alabama across its five locations in Rome, Cartersville, Marietta, and Dallas. GHC currently offers over 30 areas of study with associate degree and bachelor's degree options both in the classroom and online.
We are a growing and progressive institution with opportunities for great employees to grow in a fast-paced and challenging work environment that encourages employee wellness and overall success. Our combined efforts at GHC have led to numerous awards, honors, and countless stories of success for students and employees. This includes our most recent honor of being recognized as one of the semifinalists for the 2023 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.
Job Summary
The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) serves as a senior leader within the Division of Information Technology, reporting directly to the Chief Information Officer (CIO). The CTO is responsible for driving the institution's digital transformation strategy and overseeing the design, implementation, and support of GHC's network infrastructure and enterprise technology systems. This role directly manages the Enterprise Application Services, Web Support Services, and Network Support Services units, ensuring that services are aligned with the institution's mission of access and student success. This position works closely with the CIO to build and mentor high-performing IT teams with a focus on service excellence and continuous improvement. The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) serves as a senior leader within the Division of Information Technology, reporting directly to the Chief Information Officer (CIO). The CTO is responsible for driving the institution's digital transformation strategy and overseeing the design, implementation, and support of GHC's network infrastructure and enterprise technology systems. This role directly manages the Enterprise Application Services, Web Support Services, and Network Support Services units, ensuring that services are aligned with the institution's mission of access and student success. This position works closely with the CIO to build and mentor high-performing IT teams with a focus on service excellence and continuous improvement.
This is an on-site position.
Responsibilities
Strategic Planning

• Is responsible to understand, support, and carry out the college's mission, vision, and values and comply with mandates and regulations of government and accrediting bodies
• Leads digital transformation initiatives to modernize academic and administrative systems, improve service delivery, and enhance student engagement
• Develops and executes strategic plans for cloud computing, virtualization, and scalable infrastructure to support flexible and remote learning environments
• Collaborates with the CIO and institutional leadership to align technology investments with institutional priorities

Network and EAS

• Oversees the Network Support Services unit, ensuring reliable, secure, and high-performance campus-wide networking, wireless access, and internet connectivity
• Manages the Enterprise Application Services unit, including student information systems (SIS), learning management systems (LMS), customer relationship management (CRM), and enterprise resource planning (ERP) platforms
• Ensures integration and interoperability of systems across departments and campuses
• Supports faculty and instructional designers in adopting and integrating educational technologies that promote inclusive and accessible learning
• Facilitates the use of data analytics and reporting tools to support institutional research, student success initiatives, and operational decision-making

Key Roles

• Assists CIO and CISO with IT policy development, ensuring policies align with federal and state regulations (e.g., FERPA, HIPAA, GLBA) and the University System of Georgia IT Handbook
• Supervises and mentors IT staff, fostering a culture of innovation and service excellence
• Serves as a key advisor to the CIO on emerging technologies and strategic IT initiatives
• Assists the CIO in developing and managing budgets for assigned units, ensuring cost-effective procurement and lifecycle management of technology assets
• Oversees vendor relationships and contracts for enterprise applications and network infrastructure
• Performs assigned duties.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field; Master's degree preferred. Equivalent professional experience may be considered in lieu of formal education.
• Minimum of five (5) to seven (7) years of leadership experience in IT, preferably in higher education
• Proven experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP), virtualization (VMware, Proxmox, OpenShift, etc.), and Linux
• Experience with or strong interest in learning ERP/SIS systems (Banner, Workday, PeopleSoft), IAM protocols (SAML, OAuth), and enterprise networking technologies (Palo Alto, Cisco)
• Demonstrated success in leading digital transformation and cloud infrastructure initiatives
• Possession of or ability to readily obtain a valid driver's license for the type of vehicle or equipment operated.

Proposed Salary
Annual salary of $108,099
Required Documents to Attach

• Cover Letter
• Resume
• Transcripts

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

• Ability to effectively lead employees and manage projects from ideation to implementation, ensuring that they are completed on time, within budget, and to the desired quality
• Strong understanding of the unique challenges and opportunities within access institutions
• Excellent communication, strategic planning, and team-building skills
• Knowledge of relevant local, state and federal laws
• Knowledge of administrative management and planning
• Knowledge of the preparation and interpretation of statistical, technical, and narrative reports
• Skill in planning, organizing, directing and coordinating the work of others
• Skill in the analysis of problems and the development and implementation of solutions
• Skill in the preparation of clear and precise reports
• Skill in oral and written communication.

Apply Before Date
Applications will be accepted until position is filled.
Contact Information
For more information or questions about a job posting, please contact Human Resources by email at jobs@highlands.edu
For technical support, please call the USG Service Desk at (877) 251.2644, or email support@usg.edu .
USG Core Values
The University System of Georgia is comprised of our 26 institutions of higher education and learning as well as the System Office. Our USG Statement of Core Values are Integrity, Excellence, Accountability, and Respect. These values serve as the foundation for all that we do as an organization, and each USG community member is responsible for demonstrating and upholding these standards. More details on the USG Statement of Core Values and Code of Conduct are available in USG Board Policy 8.2.18.1.2 and can be found on-line at https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section8/C224/#p8.2.18_personnel_conduct .
Additionally, USG supports Freedom of Expression as stated in Board Policy 6.5 Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom found on-line at https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section6/C2653 .
Conditions of Employment
Offers of employment are contingent upon completion of a background investigation including a criminal background check demonstrating your eligibility for employment with Georgia Highlands College, as determined by Georgia Highlands College in its sole discretion, confirmation of the credentials and employment history reflected in your application materials and, if applicable, a satisfactory credit check.
Offers are made expressly subject to the applicable federal and state laws, to the statutes, rules and regulations of this institution and to the Bylaws and Policies of the Board of Regents (BOR) of the University System of Georgia (USG), which are available for your inspection upon request.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Georgia Highlands College provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
Other Information
This is a supervisory position. This position supervises IT employees within the Enterprise Application Services (EAS), Network Support Services (NSS), and Web Support Services (WSS) units of Information Technology. In addition, the CTO assists the CIO in overall divisional oversight of employees. The Chief Information Officer assigns work in terms of department goals and objectives and reviews work through conferences, reports, and observations of college activities.
The work consists of varied management duties. Frequent technology changes contribute to the complexity of the position.
This role is considered a position of trust.