Head of Technology, Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library

Description

Yale University offers exciting opportunities for achievement and growth in New Haven, Connecticut.  Conveniently located between Boston and New York, New Haven is the creative capital of Connecticut with cultural resources that include two major art museums, a critically-acclaimed repertory theater, state-of-the-art concert hall, and world-renowned schools of Architecture, Art, Drama, and Music. ennew haven

Position Focus:  Reporting to the Director of the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, the Head of Technology provides vision, leadership, and strategic direction for all aspects of library technology at the Beinecke. The Head directs software planning, development and deployment; technology infrastructure planning, implementation and support; and database technologies for the Beinecke Library. Represents the Beinecke Library’s technology interests within the University Library and broader University and collaborates closely with these departments to support the mission of the Beinecke Library.

Provides strategic and tactical analysis concerning the Beinecke Library’s technology requirements and goals based on a strong understanding of industry trends and the higher education environment. Works collaboratively with Beinecke Library staff to develop requirements for technology-based tools and productivity enhancements in support of Beinecke’s strategic plans and programs for user services. Fills in for and assists direct reports on an as needed basis.

Leads efforts to develop technology-based tools designed to enrich the research experience of patrons of the Beinecke Library. Directs the development or acquisition and implementation of software for the Beinecke Library, including client-server database applications as well as web-based systems and applications. Serves as a leader in project and task prioritization as it relates to IT requests across the different units in the Beinecke.

Working closely with University Library IT and University IT, is responsible for and takes a lead role in maintaining servers that support Beinecke-centric applications. This includes web servers, database servers, and workflow production servers.

In collaboration with the Head of Digital Services, oversees and supports the computing infrastructure, storage, and workflow automation in use by the Beinecke Library’s digital scanning operation and explores opportunities for continuous improvement.

Collaborates closely with staff in the Library and University ITS on matters of campus-wide strategy, planning, and implementation related to the life cycle management of digital content and the development of new services associated with access to the Beinecke Library’s digital content.
Supports library wide efforts to develop technologies that measure and analyze metrics that emphasize performance, sustainability, and usability of tools and platforms.

Required Education, Skills and Experience: 
• Bachelor's Degree in a relevant technical field and six years of related technical experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills. Demonstrable interpersonal, analytical, and project management skills in a service-oriented environment.
• Demonstrated ability to identify and analyze problems, especially in the context of technology initiatives related to special collections.
• Excellent management skills with a strong commitment to fostering growth and development of others. Demonstrated ability in working with large-scale transition management, and workflow analysis and improvement.
• Demonstrated experience with Linux or Windows server implementation and administration, database planning, development, implementation, and administration; experience with software development for networked and web applications, including database-driven web application programming and development
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively and collaboratively to develop productive partnerships within/across organizations. Effective ability in developing innovative processes and solutions with a team-based approach.

Preferred Education, Skills and Experience:  Master’s degree in library science, computer science, humanities computing or a related field. Project management training. Experience in the following: working in a library, academic institution, or other non-profit computing operation; implementing discovery systems and digital repositories; database administration and programming.  Web dev.; .Net using C# or Visual Basic, and/or Java; user-facing web standards/platforms; library software; search platforms (i.e. Apache Solr); web server software.
The University and the Library

The Yale University Library, as one of the world's leading research libraries, collects, organizes, preserves, and provides access to and services for a rich and unique record of human thought and creativity. It fosters intellectual growth and supports the teaching and research missions of Yale University and scholarly communities worldwide. A distinctive strength is its rich spectrum of resources, including around 12.8 million volumes and information in all media, ranging from ancient papyri to early printed books to electronic databases. The Library is engaging in numerous projects to expand access to its physical and digital collections. Housed in eighteen buildings including the Sterling Memorial Library, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, and the Bass Library, it employs a dynamic and diverse staff of approximately five hundred who offer innovative and flexible services to library readers.  For additional information on the Yale University Library, please visit the Library's web site at www.library.yale.edu.

Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library:
The Beinecke Library is Yale's principal repository for literary archives, early manuscripts, and rare books. One of the great collections in North America, the Beinecke collections are internationally known and heavily used by scholars from around the world. For further information about the Beinecke Library, consult the library's web site at: http://www.library.yale.edu/beinecke .

Salary and Benefits:
We invite you to discover the excitement, diversity, rewards and excellence of a career at Yale University. One of the country's great workplaces, Yale University offers exciting opportunities for meaningful accomplishment and true growth. Our benefits package is among the best anywhere, with a wide variety of insurance choices, liberal paid time off, fantastic family and educational benefits, a variety of retirement benefits, extensive recreational facilities, and much more.

How to apply:  Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.  Applications, consisting of a cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information of three professional references should be submitted by applying online at http://www.yale.edu/jobs. The STARS req. ID for this position is 28736BR.  Please be sure to reference 28736BR in your cover letter.

Yale University considers applicants for employment without regard to, and does not discriminate on the basis of an individual’s sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, status as a veteran, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.