IT Sys Admin - Sr/Spec

The Office of Secretary of State (OSOS) offers some of the most unique and diverse job opportunities in state government. Its critical responsibilities include: ensuring a fair and accurate elections process; connecting Washingtonians through the power of libraries; protecting our important government records; and registering corporations and charities. The Secretary of State also administers vital community programs that inspire giving, document our history, and assist crime survivors in avoiding further abuse. This independent office under the state Constitution operates from facilities in the Olympia area and statewide.

The OSOS is looking for top-performing employees who embody its core values of integrity, service excellence, visionary leadership, collaboration and teamwork. It is committed to both employee growth and work-life balance. The benefits of working in state government also include potential eligibility for the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Visit our website at: www.sos.wa.gov.

Information Technology (IT) is a core service and the foundational framework of the Office of the Secretary of State. The IT division impacts virtually every employee, program, department and the vast majority of the agency's diverse external stakeholders. Currently, the IT Division is comprised of nine (9) programs: 1) Architecture 2) Applications Development 3) Web Development 4) Network Operations 5) Helpdesk Support 6) Project Management Office 7) VoteWa 8) Digital Archives.

IT Systems Administrator Senior/Specialist

Permanent, Full-Time

This position is the lead system administrator and primary technical resource for our ServiceNow platform. This position is  aligned with the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) framework, uses IT Service Management (ITSM) to support and manage systems.  This position utilizes advanced knowledge to accomplish tasks and an understanding of IT concepts.  This position strives to improve the systems it supports through learning and understanding OSOS's business needs, interacting with end users and attending statewide technical groups.

This position provides system administration and IT support primarily for elections support for the counties, internal back-office IT systems, and the Address Confidentiality program using ServiceNow, but will also be assigned to other agency systems, as needed. As the subject matter expert (SME) of internally and externally used systems, they are the go-to person for externally facing customers, election staff,IT customer support staff and support lower-level IT staff to enhance and coordinate IT services.

This position maintains all aspects of the systems and services they support while adhering to Washington State and Agency standards, policies and industry best practices. This position learns quickly and continuously learns new technology and backs up other system administrators.Lead ServiceNow System Administrator. Independently applies highly specialized knowledge and advanced expertise to administer and maintain ServiceNow and other IT systems, services and applications such as Microsoft Backend Infrastructure, System monitoring tools, Physical and Virtual Servers

Tasks include:

• Manages all aspects of existing systems independently to coordinate security, privacy, networking, data management, system design and integration.

• Generates quality standards and maintains overall integrity of the ServiceNow platform.

• Provides guidance to other staff that support and work with the ServiceNow platform.

• Directs projects to upgrade systems, services, and applications this position supports.

• Resolves tier 2 and 3 requests related to assigned systems,

• Go to person for the systems this position manages as the subject matter expert.

• Coordinates with vendor and customers then performs updates and upgrades using ITIL change management.

• Ensures systems, services and applications are backed up with the ability to restore user data, system configurations and entire system.

• Create scripts to manage and automate tasks in systems and applications administered by this position.

• Resolves problems and restores systems to service using advanced IT knowledge and concepts to identify and address the root cause of issues. May require researching multiple sources and deviating from routine solutions.

• Integrate systems, services, and applications into central statewide systems such as Microsoft Entra ID identity management and Secure Access Washington (SAW).

• Manages licenses by working with divisions, units and programs to validate current users and charge codes.

• Builds new processes by collaborating with information technology, programs, vendors, and stakeholders.

• Formulates routines and standards of practice to complete assigned tasks.

• Gets feedback by coordinating with users from across the agency and facilitating user groups.

• Identifies IT trends by analyzing new requirements, capabilities, and configurations that may be applied to the system to improve efficiency.

• Keeps manager informed on potential problems, future needs, technology direction and security issues.

• Works on the systems and successfully completes tasks as requested.

• Assists lower-level staff with resolving problems and troubleshooting.

Integration Testing. Perform integration testing on new functionality and enhancements on the ServiceNow platform and other systems, as assigned

Tasks include:

• Tests system changes and new development and system upgrades before advancing to other team members for further testing.

• Identifies new business opportunities; designs, plans and tests, and documents system enhancements and hardware upgrades.

• Tests system updates, enhancements and new features meet or exceed applicable internal controls, OSOS, state and federal policies and standards.

• Develops test scripts for system and integration testing to ensure full system operation as originally intended.

• Defines and documents technical requirements for the network administrator to configure the development, quality assurance, and production environments.

• Develops and documents release (deployment) plans to move changes into the production environment.

Creates and maintains operational documentation for the ServiceNow platform and other systems, as assigned

• Develops and documents the standards that promote efficient and maintainable systems for the ServiceNow platform or other assigned systems.

• Creates and documents procedures, system configuration, network flow and firewall ports diagrams in Visio and other system management tools to facilitate management of the service.

• Creates procedures for customer support to provide support for all aspects of assigned systems.

• Contributes to the creation and maintenance of applicable IT policies.

Staff Direction

Tasks include:

• Assigns work and reviews work assignments for compliance with standards and best practices.

• Develops and implements work plans and technical guidance to ensure delivery of information management system projects and support activities (operational and project activities).

• Assists supervisor in personnel tasks including hiring, performance evaluations, and training plans.

• Maintains working knowledge for all state and agency personnel policies and procedures.

Keeps Current with Technology/Training:

Stays current with the latest system administration and customer support best practices, trends, technology and threats. Works with IT staff, system users, and agency management when needed

Tasks include:

• Independently keeps current with industry standards and practices for system administration by attending classes, attending seminars and webinars, and reading industry publications.

• Attends trainings, conferences and other events to maintain or develop skills.

• Maintain awareness of potential external threats or risks to the security posture of the application portfolio.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree

(OR)

• Associate's degree and two years of additional professional IT experience

(OR)

• Four years of additional professional IT experience

AND

• Four years of professional information technology system administration experience, configuring, troubleshooting, installing, backing up and maintaining systems such as ServiceNow, EntraID, Backup, File, Print, IIS, SQL, GIS, WSUS, Email, Active Directory/Azure, Deployment (SCCM), M365, Monitoring, etc.

• Three Years of experience maintaining and configuring ServiceNow.

Desired Qualifications

• One year or more of PowerShell Experience

• CompTIA Certificates such as A+, Network+, Security+, and/or Cloud Essentials.

• ServiceNow Certifications such as System Administration, Implementer, Implementation Specialist, or Technical Consultant

• Microsoft Certifications such as M365, Azure, Endpoint Management, SCCM, Intune, IIS, SQL, SharePoint, Servers and Cloud Applications.

• ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) Certification

Working Conditions:

In this position, the incumbent works primarily in an office setting, which will require the ability to sit and/or stand for extended periods of time. The standard work hours are Monday-Friday 8am - 5pm; however, work can be required outside of standard hours to include evenings, weekends, and holidays. Occasional travel to local offices is required and occasional travel to county offices is required. The incumbent in this position must be able to represent the Office of the Secretary of State in a competent, confident, and professional manner, including professional dress, and be able to clearly and effectively communicate ideas and information both verbally and in writing, and work successfully with a wide variety of people in a team environment. The incumbent in this position must have the ability to work under pressure, meet deadlines, and coordinate with other operational areas to resolve complaints or conflicts; and be able to move and maneuver objects weighing approximately 30lbs with or without reasonable accommodation.   

Special Requirements

• Must be able to install, uninstall and configure items by traveling independently to different office locations throughout the state including transporting items when traveling.

• Prior to a new hire, a background check including criminal record history will 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 position.

• Must have current Washington state driver's license or have requested and obtained an appropriate accommodation.

How to Apply

• Required: To be considered for this position you must attach the following:

• Letter of interest describing how your experience and qualifications relate to the duties and qualifications of the position.

• Current resume

• Three Professional references. Personal references will not be considered.

• You must complete the supplemental questions at the end of this application. Incomplete responses such as "see resume" will not be considered.

• All veterans must include a copy of your DD214 to receive preference in the hiring process.  You must black out your social security number before attaching it to your application.

The Office of the Secretary of State is an equal opportunity employer (EOE). We do not discriminate on the basis of religion, age, gender, marital status, color, creed, national origin, political affiliation, military status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any sensory, mental or physical ability. All interested candidates are encouraged to apply. Persons of disability needing assistance in the application process, or those needing the announcement in alternative format, should call (360) 704-4871.