IT Manager

Our mission is to provide real-time on-orbit connectivity for critical missions, enabling a new era of data-driven intelligence and innovation. With 33 satellites launched to date, Kepler operates the first commercial optical data relay constellation, enabling real-time, continuous space communications while supporting advanced on-orbit compute and hosted payload capabilities. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead, mentor, and grow a cross-functional IT team that may include Network Administrators, Systems Administrators, DevOps Specialists, and IT Specialists, fostering a culture of accountability, documentation, and continuous learning that exemplifies Kepler's Values

• Provide ongoing coaching, technical guidance, and career development through regular 1:1s and structured performance reviews

• Work alongside the team as a technical contributor, leading through hands-on involvement rather than delegation alone, while growing the team's independence rather than becoming a bottleneck

• Serve as senior technical escalation point for complex incidents across networks, servers, cloud platforms, identity systems, DevOps tooling, and business-critical applications

• Own IT operations end to end: service delivery, prioritization, support quality, incident response, root-cause analysis, and after-hours escalation coverage

• Own the reliability, scalability, and lifecycle management of Kepler's infrastructure, including network operations, Linux and Windows systems, identity and access management, virtualization, AWS, monitoring, backups, and disaster recovery

• Drive DevOps practices and automation, including CI/CD, infrastructure as code, configuration management, containerization, and controls around production access, deployments, and secrets

• Lead IT security practices and technical controls, including privileged access, endpoint protection, network security, vulnerability remediation, patching, and system hardening; partner with Security and Legal on customer, contractual, and compliance requirements

• Develop and maintain the IT operations roadmap, balancing immediate operational needs against longer-term investment in reliability, security, and operational maturity

• Contribute to annual planning, budgeting, vendor management, and technology lifecycle planning, and guide make/buy decisions

• Ensure accurate technical documentation and provide regular reporting to senior leadership on service performance, infrastructure health, security posture, operational risks, and resource needs

• Support hiring plans, lead interviews, onboard new team members, and act as primary liaison between IT Operations and Engineering, Security, People and Culture, Finance, and Facilities

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent practical experience

• 7+ years of progressive IT experience, with 3+ years of which were leading or managing multidisciplinary technical teams

• Demonstrated success in a player-coach role combining people management with meaningful hands-on technical responsibility

• Track record of picking up unfamiliar technologies quickly and self-directing your own learning, with specific examples of systems you learned on the job well enough to lead work on

• Strong practical experience with network administration, Linux and Windows systems, identity and access management, virtualization, and infrastructure operations

• Ability to independently troubleshoot complex issues across infrastructure, networking, cloud services, identity platforms, and operational tooling

• Experience with cloud platforms, preferably AWS

• Working knowledge of modern DevOps practices, including CI/CD, infrastructure as code, configuration management, containers, and scripting

• Familiarity with network security technologies, endpoint management, monitoring platforms, backup systems, and disaster recovery practices

• Proven ability to manage incidents, projects, operational risk, and shifting priorities, and to drive execution through ambiguity

• Track record of building healthy team culture and driving performance through clear expectations and feedback

• Strong communication skills and the ability to explain technical concepts, risks, and trade-offs to senior leaders and non-technical stakeholders

• Demonstrates a willingness to adopt and effectively utilize AI-assisted engineering tools, applying sound judgment to improve productivity, quality, and innovation while continuously adapting to evolving technologies 

Bonus Points:

• Relevant certifications such as CCNA, CISSP, AWS, Linux Professional Institute, or ITIL

• Experience supporting hybrid environments spanning on-premises infrastructure and public cloud

• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, or Ansible

• Scripting and automation experience with Bash, Python, or PowerShell

• Familiarity with security and compliance frameworks such as NIST, ISO 27001, or SOC 2

• Experience leading disaster recovery, infrastructure modernization, cloud migration, or security-improvement programs

• Experience developing IT roadmaps, operational metrics, budgets, and technical business cases

• Experience working in fast-paced startup or aerospace environments