Director, Enterprise Services & Innovation

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you’re committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career.Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.The Director, Enterprise Services and Innovation is part of a forward-thinking team that leverages innovative technology, data-driven insights, and personalized learning pathways to create a truly life-changing educational experience.  The Director will lead the transformation of the university’s enterprise services ecosystem.  In this role, they will oversee the architecture, engineering, and operational excellence of our common, core services, including SaaS (Software as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), and IaC (infrastructure as code). The Director will partner with the Infrastructure, Security, Engineering, and Product teams to drive the adoption of innovative technologies and practices that improve scalability, resilience, and automation across all enterprise platforms, creating a seamless digital experience for internal and external stakeholders.  They will lead multiple engineering teams responsible for delivering enterprise common and core services including identity management and Salesforce solutions.  The Director will also lead a ‘Beyond’ team focused on innovation, POC’s, and partnering with business and executive stakeholders on truly out-of-the-box ideas and transformational technology solutions.Primary ResponsibilitiesDefines and leads the vision and roadmap for common and core services that support the organization’s operational needs, including identity management, collaboration platforms, and cloud solutions architecture.  Ensures these services are highly scalable, secure, and aligned with business objectives and the long-term architecture.Identifies opportunities to automate manual processes within enterprise services, from infrastructure management to software deployment, code generation, and service monitoring, leads initiatives to incorporate cutting-edge technologies like AI/ML, advanced analytics, and serverless architectures to enhance operational capabilities and support innovation across the organization.Drives the transition to and ongoing evolution of SOA, establishing best practices for scalable, modular services.Collaborates with business, executive leadership, Engineering, Infrastructure, Security, DevOps, and product teams to understand their needs and ensure that enterprise services support organizational objectives.  Provides a clear vision and roadmap for enterprise services that address both current and future business requirements.Leads the design and development of high-performance, scalable core services using SOA principles, ensuring modular and maintainable architecture.Oversees the integration of core services with internal and external systems, fostering interoperability and seamless data flow across platforms.Partners with Infrastructure and Cloud teams to drive the development and design of PaaS environments that enable rapid application development, deployment, and scalability.  Ensures that PaaS offerings are optimized for developer productivity and operational efficiency, allowing teams to focus on delivering business value.Optimizes the use of cloud platforms (AWS) to deliver flexible, cost-effective, and scalable services, ensuring that the organization is maximizing the value of its cloud investments.Ensures that SOA implementations adhere to architectural standards, including design patterns, APIs, security practices, and data integrity protocols.Manages, mentors, and grows a team of software engineers and architects, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and technical excellence.Drives continuous improvement initiatives across the team, ensuring best practices for SOA, service reusability, and performance.Conducts regular performance reviews, sets development goals, and identifies growth opportunities for team members.Leverages expertise in SOA and microservices architecture to guide the development of highly modular, reusable, and robust core services.Stays current with industry trends and emerging technologies to proactively incorporate relevant advancements, such as containerization, service mesh, and AI/ML.Evaluates and implements API management and monitoring tools to ensure efficient, secure, and scalable service delivery.Establishes and maintains standards for code quality, testing, and deployment to ensure the reliability and performance of core services.Collaborates with DevOps and infrastructure teams to optimize CI/CD pipelines, automate deployments, and enhance monitoring and alerting for production environments.Ensures compliance with security and regulatory requirements, implementing policies for service authentication, authorization, and data privacy.Performs other job-related duties as assigned.Knowledge, Skills, and AbilitiesStrong people and management skills to interact with staff, colleagues, cross-functional teams, and third parties.Ability to drive a culture of quality and personal accountability through development and delivery teams.Demonstrates commitment to quality through the ability to translate complex technical requirements into functional software using best practices.Expert in vendor contract management and management of distributed development teams and resources.Expert in Agile methods including SCRUM and TDD.Experience in application architecture and making rational buy vs. build and interface decisions.Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to work equally well in self-managed and team-based projects.Deep technical knowledge of web applications using web services.Strong expertise in SOA and microservices, API design, and management, with proficiency in tools such as REST, SOAP, and gRPC.Excellent presentation, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.Ability to inspire and lead cross-functional teams effectively.Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, capable of translating complex technical concepts into business language for executive leadership.Education           Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related fieldExperience15 years of experience in Software Engineering7 years of experience in a Leadership RoleProven leadership experience in defining and executing technology strategy at the enterprise level.Experience delivering for a large, global enterprise in a regulated industry.Extensive experience with service-oriented architecture (SOA), including hands-on design and implementation of core services.Familiarity with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and service mesh solutions.Experience with infrastructure as code (IaC) tools (e.g., Terraform, CloudFormation) and automation technologies.Proficiency in modern development languages (e.g., Java, Python) and frameworks used for building scalable web services.Experience managing budgets, resources, and vendor contracts in a complex enterprise environment.Preferred QualificationsMaster’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related fieldCertifications in Enterprise Architecture (e.g., TOGAF, Zachman) or Cloud ArchitectureExperience with DevOps, CI/CD practices, and agile methodologies.Experience in DevSecOps, implementing security practices within cloud infrastructure.Familiarity with AI/ML-driven innovations, IoT, or edge computing to drive future enterprise services.Proven track record of leading large-scale SOA transformations or core services re-architecture.Familiarity with data governance, security frameworks, and compliance standards.Experience in lieu of educationEquivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements.  Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is the discretion of the hiring manager.#LI-ZARDThe salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Pay Range: $161,300.00 - $290,300.00How to apply: apply onlineFull-time Regular Positions (FT classification, standard working hours = 40)This is a full-time, regular position that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.The University is 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 protected veteran status.SummaryLocation: Salt Lake City Office; Phoenix OfficeType: Full time