Somerset West: Team Lead: IT (Somerset West) (In office) posted by DataFin Recruitment

ENVIRONMENT:

Our client is one of South Africa’s leading industrial IoT firms, developing AI-augmented solutions in digital productivity, workplace safety, and employee healthcare. With two decades of deep domain expertise and signal processing experience, the company is at the forefront of Industry 4.0. This role is based at the Somerset West Head Office and reports directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO). The environment is fast-paced, innovative, and technology-driven, requiring high resilience, security, and availability across all internal systems.

DUTIES:

• Provide strategic oversight and operational excellence for the entire internal IT environment.
• Take full ownership of internal IT operations, infrastructure, networks, and security.
• Lead, mentor, and develop the internal IT team, fostering a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.
• Ensure high availability and resilience across all systems, including LAN, power systems, and desktop support.
• Develop, implement, and maintain disaster recovery plans and business continuity procedures.
• Manage vendor relationships, software/hardware procurement, and IT budget oversight.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex IT matters, troubleshooting advanced network, database, and system issues.
• Collaborate closely with the CTO and business leaders to align IT strategy with business growth and operational efficiency.
• Oversee systems administration, including database management (specifically PostgreSQL) and virtualization environments.
• Apply scripting and automation to reduce manual overhead and improve system reliability.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Experience in role: 5+ years of relevant IT experience, with at least 5 years of Linux-based network experience.
• Team management: Minimum 3 years of experience leading or managing an IT team (e.g., as Engineering Manager, DevOps Engineer, or similar).
• Database administration: Proven experience as a Database Administrator, specifically with PostgreSQL.
• Networking: Advanced knowledge of IPv4 networks, including firewall management and network security principles.
• Virtualization: Hands-on experience with virtualization technologies (Proxmox VE and/or Microsoft Hyper-V are advantageous).
• Scripting & automation: Proficiency in Python; working knowledge of Bash and/or PowerShell is nice-to-have.
• Version control & tracking: Familiarity with Git and Jira is nice-to-have.
• Language proficiency: Professional proficiency in English (written and spoken).
• Location: Must be based at or willing to work full-time from the Somerset West Head Office.

ATTRIBUTES:

• Strategic thinker Able to balance day-to-day operational demands with long-term infrastructure planning.
• Decisive and calm under pressure Serves as the primary escalation point; can troubleshoot complex failures without losing composure.
• Mentoring mindset Genuinely invested in growing the technical and leadership capabilities of the IT team.
• Ownership mentality Takes full accountability for the internal IT environment, from power systems to security posture.
• Collaborative communicator Works effectively with the CTO and non-technical business leaders, translating technical risk into business impact.
• Process-driven Values documentation, disaster recovery testing, and structured change management.
• Security-conscious Embeds security best practices into every layer of IT operations.