Director IT Operations
Iridium Cloud Systems · Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Tailor my CV for this job — freeDirector of IT Operations – Private Cloud & Infrastructure
We are expanding our global infrastructure capabilities and are looking for an experienced technology leader to drive the next phase of operational excellence, private cloud transformation, automation, reliability, and international growth. Position OverviewThe Director of IT Operations will be responsible for leading the organization's global IT Operations function, ensuring the reliability, security, scalability, and cost-efficiency of our hosting and cloud infrastructure platforms.This role requires a unique blend of deep technical expertise, operational leadership, financial management, and strategic thinking. The successful candidate will lead the evolution of our infrastructure from traditional systems administration toward highly automated, cloud-native, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) driven operations.The ideal candidate has significant experience managing Linux-based infrastructure, Private Cloud environments built on OpenStack and Proxmox, large-scale hosting platforms, cybersecurity, data center operations, and globally distributed operations teams. Key ResponsibilitiesStrategic Leadership & GovernanceDefine and execute the IT Operations strategy aligned with company objectives and international growth plans.Develop operational policies, governance frameworks, and infrastructure standards.Drive infrastructure modernization initiatives focused on scalability, resilience, automation, and operational efficiency.Establish long-term technology roadmaps for hosting, cloud, virtualization, networking, storage, and security platforms.Lead strategic vendor relationships with hardware suppliers, connectivity providers, data centers, cloud technology partners, and open-source communities.Manage departmental CAPEX and OPEX budgets while ensuring optimal ROI on infrastructure investments.Develop cost optimization strategies without compromising service quality or reliability.Private Cloud & Infrastructure LeadershipOwn the architecture, operations, and evolution of the company's Private Cloud platforms.Lead infrastructure strategy around:OpenStackProxmox VEKVM VirtualizationCeph StorageLinux-based InfrastructureCloud Orchestration PlatformsEnsure high availability, fault tolerance, and performance across all production environments.Oversee compute, storage, networking, backup, disaster recovery, and infrastructure lifecycle management.Drive cloud automation and Infrastructure-as-Code initiatives.Define capacity planning methodologies and long-term infrastructure forecasting.Operations ExcellenceEnsure smooth execution of:Service OperationsCapacity ManagementContinuity & Availability ManagementIncident & Problem ManagementChange ManagementEstablish operational maturity models across:MonitoringAlertingRedundancyDisaster RecoverySecuritySoftware Lifecycle ManagementLead root cause analysis for major incidents.Drive continuous service improvement programs.Implement best practices aligned with ITIL, SRE, and modern operations frameworks.SRE & Automation TransformationLead the transition from traditional SysAdmin operations to Site Reliability Engineering (SRE).Drive automation of repetitive operational tasks.Reduce operational toil through tooling, scripting, orchestration, and self-healing infrastructure.Promote Infrastructure as Code (IaC) practices using modern automation frameworks.Establish reliability engineering principles and Service Level Objectives (SLOs).Cybersecurity & ComplianceEnsure security of infrastructure, systems, applications, and customer environments.Lead security initiatives including:DDoS ProtectionWAF ManagementVulnerability ManagementSecurity HardeningThreat MitigationEnsure compliance with:GDPRISO/IEC 27001Information Security Management Systems (ISMS)International Data Protection RegulationsCollaborate closely with security and compliance teams.Global Operations ManagementDesign and implement a robust 24x7 operational support model.Establish Follow-the-Sun operational coverage where required.Build scalable operational structures supporting international growth.Standardize operational procedures across multiple geographies.Ensure seamless coordination between infrastructure, support, engineering, and product teams.Product & Business AlignmentPartner closely with Product, Engineering, and Commercial teams.Assess operational readiness for new product launches.Ensure infrastructure scalability before commercial expansion initiatives.Contribute to strategic business planning through technology insights.Balance technical excellence with customer experience and business profitability.Leadership & People DevelopmentLead, mentor, and inspire high-performing IT Operations teams.Build a culture of:OwnershipAccountabilityInnovationContinuous LearningCollaborationDrive talent development and succession planning.Support recruitment and retention of top technical talent.Facilitate cross-team knowledge sharing and technical excellence.Required QualificationsEducationBachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or related discipline.Master's Degree is preferred.Professional ExperienceMandatory15+ years of experience in IT Infrastructure and Operations.10+ years of leadership experience managing technical teams.Experience leading large-scale hosting, cloud, ISP, telecom, SaaS, or infrastructure organizations.Proven experience managing enterprise infrastructure budgets.Experience managing geographically distributed teams.Technical ExpertiseMandatoryExpert-level Linux administration and infrastructure management.Strong hands-on experience with:OpenStackProxmox VEKVM VirtualizationCeph StoragePrivate Cloud PlatformsDeep understanding of:Hosting InfrastructureVPS PlatformsDedicated Server EnvironmentsCloud InfrastructureData Center OperationsStrong networking knowledge:BGPRoutingSwitchingFirewallsLoad BalancersExperience with:ApacheNginxLAMP StackMariaDB / MySQLStrong knowledge of:Disaster RecoveryHigh Availability ArchitectureBackup & Recovery SolutionsCapacity PlanningPreferred TechnologiesKubernetesDockerTerraformAnsibleGitOpsPrometheusGrafanaZabbixElastic StackHAProxyCloud Native TechnologiesLeadership CompetenciesStrategic PlanningBudget & Financial ManagementVendor ManagementStakeholder ManagementExecutive CommunicationCrisis ManagementTeam BuildingOrganizational DevelopmentCustomer-Centric LeadershipSuccess Metrics (KPIs)Financial & Operational EfficiencyInfrastructure Unit Cost OptimizationCAPEX/OPEX ManagementBudget AdherenceROI on Infrastructure InvestmentsReliability & QualityService Availability (Uptime)RTO/RPO ComplianceInfrastructure PerformanceIncident Resolution EfficiencyOperational Maturity ImprovementsTeam PerformanceEmployee RetentionEmployee Engagement (eNPS)Team ProductivityKnowledge DistributionEscalation ReductionCustomer ImpactCustomer SatisfactionService StabilityTechnical Resolution QualityPlatform Reliability