Director of Technology
The Carpentries is committed to training and fostering an active, inclusive, diverse community of learners and instructors who promote and model the importance of software and data in research. We seek an engaged and collaborative individual who shares this vision for a full-time position as the Director of Technology for The Carpentries. The Director of Technology has a broad responsibility for leading the maintenance and development of The Carpentries technical infrastructure.
As the Director of Technology, you will set and execute the vision for the infrastructure and technology that enables The Carpentries to operate globally. As lead for the Infrastructure Team, you will manage the technical needs and requirements for The Carpentries’ programmatic and administrative teams to ensure that The Carpentries provides an accessible and inclusive experience for our community members. The Director of Technology should be familiar with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other privacy laws to ensure the compliance of The Carpentries operations.
The Carpentries is an open, global community teaching the skills and perspectives to turn data into knowledge. We build capacity in essential data and computational skills for conducting efficient, open, and reproducible research. We believe in a world where more people have the computational skills and perspectives to work with data to address their questions in science, scholarship and society. We aim to build that world by scaling evidence-based teaching, creating inclusive environments, and building communities of practice based on open principles. In this role, you’ll join a diverse team of professionals working to spread data-driven research skills. Our community comprises approximately 80,000 learners, 3,900 Instructors, 110 Trainers, and 100 member organisations from research institutions around the world.
Candidates for this role should have demonstrated experience in managing technical projects and providing strategic direction. They should lead with empathy and value a team culture that emphasizes collaboration and effective communication. We seek candidates who are dedicated to the growth of The Carpentries team and ready to mentor their colleagues. Additionally, we seek candidates who have previous experience working for an open-source project or for a non-profit organisation, and candidates who understand the specificities of providing services and designing products for a large, diverse, and global community of volunteers. Experience hiring and managing independent contractors is also preferred.
We seek candidates with a diverse range of technical skills that would allow them to manage all of The Carpentries infrastructure. Working knowledge of Linux systems administration, working with containers (Docker), working with web APIs, generating reproducible reports (RMarkdown), maintaining Jekyll websites, developing Shiny applications, scripting using Python, bash, and extracting data from PostgreSQL databases are preferred.
Qualifications:
This posting is intentionally broad. We are not expecting experience with all components of the position. We are looking for someone with skills and perspectives that complement our existing team and an enthusiasm for the role and the goals and approaches of our organisation.
Requirements
- At least 3 years of experience in a relevant leadership position
- Experience in developing software and data products for a global audience
- Relevant experience in managing technical infrastructure on AWS (i.e. Linux systems administration skills and familiarity with EC2, S3, and RDS)
- Open-source software development experience, including R, Shiny, and/or Python (including Django)
- Proficient written and real-time communication skills
- Excellent time management skills
- Experience working remotely (preferably with a globally distributed team)
- Experience working with Google Workspace tools (Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms)
Preferred
- Experience with The Carpentries
- Experience communicating technical subjects to non-technical audiences
- Data wrangling and visualisation skills
- Work authorisation in Europe or South Africa
Our team values openness, honesty, fairness, and transparency as the keys to fostering trust. We believe that the individuals who make up our community are the most important part of our organisation and our strongest resource. We strive to make decisions that prioritize people first and empower the growth and success of all who are part of our organisation. We value a growth mindset in all that we do and strive to be always improving and evolving ourselves and our methodologies, being receptive to feedback, responsive, curious, and willing to learn.
About Us
We’re a Core Team of 16 staff and independent contractors, with a nine person Executive Council. We’re a fiscally sponsored project of the 501(c)3 Community Initiatives. We have a large community of instructors and contributors, and a much larger community of users. We use evidence-based teaching practices to teach the core skills for effective computational and data work, and we promote reproducible research and open science/open source widely. All interactions in The Carpentries community and spaces, both virtual and in-person, are governed by our Code of Conduct.
Compensation and Benefits
This is a remote position. All qualified applicants are highly encouraged to apply, however, candidates with work authorization in either Europe or South Africa will receive priority consideration.
Compensation will be $79,999 - $112,999 USD annually, commensurate with experience. This compensation may need to be adjusted in accordance with the legal and financial costs associated with international hiring and contracting for a US-based entity. We will make every effort to be transparent about the impact of costs on potential compensation during the interview process.
Community Initiatives will make every effort to support the hiring or contracting of international workers, following all local laws related to employment and benefits, ensuring a competitive compensation package.
Equal Employment Opportunity
The Carpentries is dedicated to providing a welcoming and supportive environment for all people, regardless of background or identity. We are an equal opportunity employer and give consideration for employment to qualified applicants without regard to age, race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, marital status, disability or protected veteran status, or any other status or characteristic protected by US federal, state, or local law. We encourage all qualified individuals to apply.
To Apply
Please submit a cover letter and resume or CV to jobs@carpentries.org. If you would like to be considered for any of our other open positions, please indicate all positions you are applying for in your cover letter. Please also clearly indicate the country in which you pay taxes.
Applications received before Wednesday, 20 July 2022 at 11:59:59 UTC (see deadline in your time zone) will receive full consideration.