Senior Director, Infrastructure & Security at The Urban Institute in Washington, Washington DC

Job Description:

About the Urban Institute:

The Urban Institute is a research-to-impact institution founded on one simple idea: To improve lives and strengthen communities, we need practices and policies that work. From advancing well-being to fostering shared prosperity, leaders across sectors are working every day to create brighter futures for all people and communities. For more than 50 years, Urban has delivered evidence and solutions that drive meaningful change, and this remains our charge today. 

Our Mission

To drive impact by equipping changemakers with evidence and solutions.

Our Values

Collaboration, Fairness, Inclusivity, Independence, and Integrity

For more information on the Urban Institute, please visit https://www.urban.org.

The Opportunity:

The Office of Technology and Data Science (Tech and Data) is looking for a talented Senior Director to lead our Infrastructure and Security team. 

Urban’s Tech and Data is a team of outstanding technology and data science professionals who provide Urban with solutions that employ state of the art technologies as well as project/product management practices including Lean, Agile, and Design Thinking. 

The Senior Director of Infrastructure and Security will manage the Infrastructure and Security Team and work with Tech and Data colleagues across the Digital Workplace and Research Technology teams, along with other departments in the Technology and Data Science Office and Urban’s existing third-party vendors, to maintain Urban’s infrastructure, ensure high availability and security standards are met, complete major cross team and office initiatives, and work with the CIO to help Urban envision a more tech-enabled workplace.

The Senior Director of Infrastructure and Security will report directly to the CIO but collaborate closely with each of the members of the Technology and Data Science leadership team. 

What You’ll Do:

Responsibilities include:

• Provide strategic vision and expertise in managing highly complex technology systems.




• Develop and execute comprehensive infrastructure and security roadmaps that address immediate priorities and long-term organizational needs and goals.




• Oversee the design, implementation, and maintenance of all infrastructure systems, both on-premise and in the cloud.




• Ensure that all infrastructure systems are reliable, scalable, and secure.




• Manage a team of infrastructure professionals.




• Develop and maintain relationships with vendors and service providers.




• Manage Urban’s security posture with the support of Urban’s Chief Security Engineer and the CIO.




• Work with Urban’s Chief Security Engineer to ensure that all infrastructure systems are compliant with relevant security regulations, such as FISMA (800-171 and 800-53) and related standards.




• Work with Urban’s Chief Security Engineer to manage and report on tradeoffs for security compliance and budget to the CIO.




• Manage multiple infrastructure and security projects simultaneously, ensuring clear communication, timely delivery, and adhere to quality standards.




• Develop and maintain disaster recovery plans.




• Provide hands on systems support and troubleshooting backup as needed.




• Support the needs of each of the teams in the Office of Technology and Data Science.

Who You Are:

The successful applicant will have:

• 10+ years of experience working in infrastructure and security related technology functions.




• Strong leadership and management skills and experience.




• Excellent oral and written communication skills.




• Experience managing large-scale infrastructure projects.




• Experience with cloud-based infrastructure solutions, such as AWS and Microsoft 365.




• Experience securing and managing SaaS products.




• People skills such as communicating with users, stakeholders, and external partners.




• Familiarity with security best practices across a range of infrastructure systems.

The following are welcome but not requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field.




• AWS Experience, and better still a Certification in System Architecture or Developer track.




• Working knowledge of Networking, including Local Area Network (LAN), Storage Area Network (SAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN).




• Knowledge of Linux Operating Environment.




• Windows Server, Active Directory, Microsoft Entra and Intune knowledge.




• VMware and Citrix Virtualization.




• Some knowledge of firewalls.




• Knowledge of Confluence, Jira, Slack, and Teams collaboration tools.




• Knowledge of Identity and Access Management, including Single Sign on and Multifactor Authentication solutions.

What You’ll Experience:

No matter your role with Urban, you will contribute to meaningful work that makes a difference for people and communities across the country. We are committed to working in a manner defined our mission and values.

Position Location
This is a hybrid position, with the expectation of two days in our Washington, DC office and the option of three days of remote work per week. Local candidates will be given preference.

Urban’s greatest asset is our people.

The salary range for this position is minimum $180,000. Salary offered is commensurate with experience and considers internal comparisons. Salaries are just one component of Urban Institute’s total compensation package. Urban is committed to supporting our staff’s physical, emotional, and financial well-being through a robust benefits package for yourself, eligible dependents, and domestic partners. It includes generous paid time off, including nine federal holidays, medical (including prescription), dental and vision insurance, and transit benefits. Urban is unique in that we offer 403(b) retirement plan participation immediately after you’re hired and a generous employer contribution after six months of service and 500 hours, with immediate vesting. You’ll also have access to a health advocate, personal finance coaching, an Employee Assistance Program, and educational assistance for undergraduate and graduate degree programs

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of the work being performed by the people assigned. This posting is not an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and requirements. Urban management reserves the right to amend and change duties, responsibilities, and requirements to meet business and organizational needs as necessary.

The Urban Institute is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified candidates will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender or gender identity, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, veteran status, pregnancy or family responsibilities, matriculation, disability, political affiliation, or any other protected status under applicable law.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and/or mental disabilities. If you have a physical and/or mental disability and are interested in applying for employment and need special accommodations to use our website to apply for a position, please contact Human Resources at humanresources@urban.org.  Reasonable accommodation requests are considered on a case-by-case basis.