IT Manager

Title: Information Technology (IT) Manager
Organization: Hayward Lumber
Department: Information Technology
Classification: Exempt
Pay Range: 95k to 125k plus bonus potential
Reports to: CFO

About the Company:

For 100 years and four generations of Hayward family leadership, Hayward Lumber has been committed to meeting and exceeding the needs of builders. Beyond full-service lumberyards, we offer window, door and cabinet design centers, pro-oriented hardware stores, and innovative building solutions designed to save time and money. Hayward Lumber is a family-oriented company that treats every employee as such. Our average tenure companywide is over 10 years and we pride ourselves in creating an environment in which you can learn, grow, and prosper. Hayward Lumber provides a competitive compensation structure, as well as a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, 401K, and paid time off including vacation, holiday, and sick leave. Learn more at www.haywardlumber.com

Mission:

Hayward is to be the most dependable supplier of products, services, and solutions to the construction market, as it has been since 1919.

Job Summary:

The IT Manager is a hands-on leader responsible for driving the implementation and management of technology solutions that support the company's business objectives within the lumber and building materials industry. This role requires strong practical understanding of IT systems and the ability to apply technology to improve operations and reduce business risk. It is an execution-first position with full accountability for IT systems supporting uninterrupted business operations across all locations — ownership of outcomes, not just oversight of work. Core priorities include stabilizing infrastructure, standardizing the environment across all locations, validating security and disaster recovery posture, retiring legacy systems, and driving effective adoption of existing tools.

Key Responsibilities:

• Hands-on Leadership: Design, development, implementation, and maintenance of IT systems, including hardware, software, networks, and data centers.
• Personally engage in troubleshooting, upgrades, infrastructure work, and after-hours maintenance and system cutovers; maintain working knowledge of core systems sufficient to resolve issues independently.
• Take direct ownership of critical issues and drive all work — tickets, projects, and upgrades — to completion with clear documentation, whether performed by internal staff or vendors.
• Establish and maintain a comprehensive, current IT knowledge base covering system architecture, configurations, network diagrams, vendor and license inventory, recovery procedures, standard operating procedures, and known-issue resolutions; ensure it is accessible to the team and kept up to date as systems change.
• Stabilize infrastructure (network, endpoints, servers) to reduce downtime and eliminate recurring system issues.
• Prioritize response and resolution for critical systems (ERP); own and maintain the network, hardware, and local infrastructure these systems depend on, and coordinate directly with hosted-system vendors during outages to restore service as quickly as possible.
• Develop into the primary technical IT owner of the company’s ERP system; build deep working knowledge of the platform and partner with business stakeholders on configuration, upgrades, integrations, and roadmap.
• Establish and enforce standard configurations, hardware, and processes across all locations; prevent drift from defined standards.
• Maintain and validate security, backup, and disaster recovery posture; identify gaps and ensure systems are recoverable through tested procedures.
• Own compliance posture across IT systems, including cyber insurance requirements; proactively identify risks and drive resolution to closure.
• Implement and operate a recurring security awareness program for all employees, including simulated phishing testing and fraud awareness training, using available tooling.
• Make timely decisions with incomplete information, prioritizing business continuity and operational impact.
• Technology Innovation: Drive adoption and effective use of existing systems and tools to improve operations and reduce inefficiencies.
• Ensure new tools and systems include documentation and training prior to rollout, with adoption measured by actual usage and team capability — not just deployment.
• Problem Solving: Provide end-user support to internal staff by diagnosing and resolving complex IT issues at all levels, ensuring minimal downtime and disruption to business operations.
• Identify and eliminate root causes of recurring issues to reduce long-term support demand.
• Document cause, fix, and prevention for resolved issues, and communicate patterns across the team to prevent repeat incidents.
• Data-Driven Decision Making: Leverage data analytics to provide insights that inform strategic decision-making.
• Use operational data — ticket trends, downtime, system performance — to prioritize work based on business risk and operational impact.
• Collaboration: Work closely with cross-functional teams to understand their needs and develop technology solutions that meet their requirements.
• Communicate clearly with leadership on system risks, priorities, and progress — including what is not being addressed and why.
• Vendor Management: Negotiate and manage relationships with IT vendors and service providers, ensuring they deliver high-quality products and services.
• Actively monitor vendor and MSP performance; hold them accountable for accuracy, on-time delivery, and follow-through to completion; intervene directly when execution does not meet expectations.
• Ensure vendor-delivered work is documented and transferred into the internal knowledge base.
• Team Development: Manage IT staff by recruiting, training and coaching employees; communicating job expectations, setting and manage performance expectations.
• Ensure systems, processes, and deliverables include documentation and training, so operations are not dependent on any single individual.
• Hold the team accountable for execution and adherence to defined standards.
• Continuous Improvement: Drive a culture of continuous improvement within the IT department, seeking out opportunities to optimize processes and reduce costs.
• Continuously evaluate system performance, support trends, and operational risks to proactively improve stability and efficiency.
• Identify legacy systems and infrastructure requiring decommissioning or transition; document dependencies and risks, ensure team readiness, and execute changes safely with minimal business disruption.
• Budget: Manage the department budget and ensure cost effectiveness.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• Minimum 8 to 10 years of experience in IT leadership roles preferably within the lumber and building materials industry.
• Proven track record of successfully implementing and managing complex IT systems.
• Demonstrated hands-on technical proficiency in areas such as networking, server and endpoint administration, and common business systems; able to troubleshoot and resolve issues directly, not just delegate.
• Experience supporting and standardizing IT across multiple physical locations.
• Strong understanding of IT infrastructure, network security, and data management principles.
• Excellent problem-solving and troubleshooting skills.
• Ability to make timely decisions and take responsibility for the outcomes.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Passion for technology and a desire to stay current with industry trends.
• Availability for on-call response, after-hours maintenance and system cutovers, and travel between branch locations as needed.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with ERP systems, supply chain management software, and CRM tools.
• Familiarity with lumber and building-materials industry systems, such as industry ERP platforms, EDI with suppliers, and dispatch and delivery software.
• Experience managing hosted and SaaS business-critical systems and coordinating with vendor support during outages.
• Knowledge of industry-specific technologies and trends, including AI.
• Certifications in IT management or security (e.g., CISSP, CISM, ITIL).

• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• Life insurance
• 401K
• Paid time off including vacation, holiday, and sick leave.
• No weekends