Applications Manager

Do you enjoy being the person everyone calls when “it’s not working”… and actually fixing it? Can you juggle five priorities, three urgent tickets, and one “this is on fire” situation—without breaking a sweat (or at least without anyone noticing)? Do you get a little excited about making technology actually work for people instead of against them? If that sounds like you, the Town of Oro Valley wants you. As our Applications Manager, you’ll play a key role in supporting public safety systems while ensuring they integrate seamlessly across the broader enterprise. You’ll combine technical expertise with people skills to keep critical applications running, users supported, and projects moving forward. You’ll work closely with Town departments, public safety personnel, outside agencies, and vendors, translating “tech speak” into plain English (and sometimes the other way around). The ideal candidate knows how to stay calm under pressure, communicate clearly with everyone from frontline staff to leadership, and bring a little order to the chaos that comes with managing enterprise applications. Bonus points if you enjoy solving problems before anyone else even notices them.

Under general direction, plans, organizes, and manages the daily operations, staff, and direction of the Town’s Information Technology Applications Division. This role is responsible for enterprise application portfolio management, business systems analysis, vendor oversight, and ensuring applications effectively support Town operations, including public safety systems.

The Applications Manager partners with departmental stakeholders to align technology solutions with business needs, improve service delivery, and ensure systems are secure, reliable, and scalable.

• Manages and oversees the Applications Division within the Information Technology Department.
• Leads enterprise application strategy, governance, and lifecycle management, including selection, implementation, optimization, and retirement of systems.
• Collaborates with stakeholders to identify business needs and translate them into technical solutions that align with organizational goals.
• Oversees business systems analysis, requirements gathering, and solution design for complex applications.
• Develops and maintains system architecture documentation, process flows, and technical specifications for both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Evaluates business processes and workflows; recommends and implements improvements leveraging technology and best practices.
• Oversees application security, including role-based access, data protection, and coordination with cybersecurity policies and standards.
• Manages vendor relationships, including contract administration, SLA monitoring, performance management, and invoice approval.
• Directs application implementation projects, including testing, deployment, and post-implementation support to ensure successful outcomes.
• Provides leadership, supervision, coaching, and performance management for Applications Division staff.
• Serves as escalation point for complex application and GIS-related issues.
• Leads or supports cross-functional projects involving enterprise systems integration.
• Ensures alignment with industry standards such as SDLC, Agile, Scrum, or hybrid methodologies.
• Develops and tracks key performance indicators (KPIs) and service metrics for application performance and customer satisfaction.
• Prepares reports, project updates, system documentation, and presentations for leadership and stakeholders.
• Provides training and guidance to Town staff on application use and best practices.
• Coordinates evaluation and deployment of system upgrades, patches, and enhancements.
• Promotes collaboration across departments and fosters a customer-service-oriented culture.
• Participates in personnel actions including recruitment, selection, discipline, and evaluations.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Strong leadership and personnel management skills with the ability to build and mentor high-performing teams.
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and meet critical deadlines.
• Proficiency in systems analysis, application architecture, and enterprise solution design.
• Experience with database concepts and query languages such as SQL.
• Knowledge of project management methodologies (Agile, Scrum, Waterfall, or hybrid approaches).
• Understanding of application security principles, data governance, and compliance frameworks.
• Familiarity with enterprise integrations, APIs, and data exchange processes.
• Knowledge of, or ability to learn, governmental operations, policies, and regulatory requirements.
• Ability to analyze complex problems and implement effective, scalable solutions.
• Experience with process improvement methodologies such as Lean or Six Sigma.
• Knowledge of networking fundamentals and how they relate to application performance and availability.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment in high-pressure or sensitive situations.

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Information Technology, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or a closely related field.
• Five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in enterprise IT applications, systems analysis, or application management.
• Two (2) years of supervisory or team leadership experience overseeing IT staff or technical operations. Other supervisory experiences may be considered.
• Industry-recognized certifications may substitute for years of experience (e.g., PMP, CSM, SAFe, ITIL).
• An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.
  
  

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience in local government or public sector IT environments.
• Experience supporting public safety applications (e.g., CAD/RMS, justice systems, GIS integrations).
• Professional certifications such asPMP, CSM, SAFe, ITIL.
• Experience with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, permitting systems, or municipal software platforms.
• Experience with identity and access management (IAM) and role-based security models.
• Knowledge of data analytics, reporting tools, and business intelligence platforms (e.g., Power BI).

• Work is performed in an indoor and outdoor environment.
• Must be able to lift or move up to twenty-five (25) pounds.
• Regular and reliable attendance; may work more than forty hours in a workweek without additional compensation to perform assigned job duties, including weekends, evenings, early morning hours, and holidays as required.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must pass an Arizona Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS) background check and screening by the Oro Valley Police Department.