Location: Princeton, NJ
Reports to: CTO
Environment: Fast-Paced Power and Energy Trading Hedge Fund
Core Responsibilities
- Trading and Business-Critical IT Support
- Oversee technology support for the trading floor and investment team, ensuring high availability of systems, applications, and connectivity required for daily trading activity.
- Provide leadership and escalation support for issues involving trading platforms, market data tools, Excel-based models, APIs, and other business-critical workflows.
- Partner closely with traders, analysts, and leadership to understand operational needs and prioritize support accordingly.
- Establish support standards and response expectations for time-sensitive incidents affecting trading or market access.
- IT Operations and Infrastructure Management
- Manage day-to-day office technology operations, including end-user computing, network reliability, communications platforms, and shared office systems.
- Ensure conference rooms, collaboration tools, and office technology deliver a dependable and professional user experience for internal meetings and external calls.
- Oversee the maintenance, lifecycle planning, and performance of workstations, peripherals, and other office technology assets.
- Coordinate with vendors and service providers to maintain reliable infrastructure and timely issue resolution.
- Team Leadership and Service Delivery
- Lead IT support activities with a strong focus on responsiveness, accountability, and user experience.
- Develop and improve IT processes, documentation, service standards, and escalation procedures.
- Mentor junior support staff or external support partners, helping to create a high-performance, business-oriented IT function.
- Act as the primary escalation point for complex technical issues and ensure timely communication of status, risks, and resolution plans.
- Stakeholder Communication and Cross-Functional Partnership
- Serve as a trusted point of contact between IT and business teams, providing clear, concise, and calm communication during both routine operations and high-pressure incidents.
- Communicate effectively with senior leadership regarding priorities, incidents, system risks, and improvement opportunities.
- Collaborate with compliance, operations, and external partners to ensure technology practices align with business and security requirements.
- Drive regular updates on infrastructure health, support trends, and operational initiatives.
- Systems Administration, Security, and Governance
- Oversee user onboarding and offboarding, access management, and the administration of internal and cloud-based business tools.
- Help implement and enforce cybersecurity controls, including MFA, endpoint protection, secure remote access, and general IT security best practices.
- Support business continuity by maintaining reliable backup, failover, and recovery processes.
- Manage relationships with MSPs, ISPs, software providers, and hardware vendors to ensure strong service levels and accountability.
Technical Qualifications
- Relevant Experience: 5+ years of IT experience in a trading environment, financial services firm, energy merchant, hedge fund, or similarly high-pressure setting.
- Business Application Support: Strong experience supporting trading, market data, and Excel-based analytical environments.
- Infrastructure Knowledge: Solid understanding of networks, end-user systems, collaboration platforms, and office technology support.
- Systems Expertise: Advanced troubleshooting experience with Windows 11 and Windows Server environments; Linux familiarity is a plus.
- Vendor and Service Management: Experience coordinating third-party providers and managing external support relationships.
- Security Awareness: Working knowledge of endpoint protection, identity and access controls, VPNs, and general IT security practices.
Leadership and Communication Skills
- Managerial Presence: Able to lead IT operations with maturity, sound judgment, and a strong sense of ownership.
- Executive Communication: Comfortable supporting senior stakeholders and providing clear, business-focused updates during critical situations.
- Team Collaboration: Skilled at building trust across technical and non-technical teams and working effectively with internal users, leadership, and vendors.
- Prioritization Under Pressure: Understands how to triage issues quickly and make decisions in a fast-moving trading environment.
- Proactive Mindset: Anticipates issues, improves processes, and drives follow-through rather than waiting for problems to escalate.
- Customer Service Orientation: Brings a high-touch, professional approach to support while maintaining composure in demanding situations.
Compensation
- Competitive base salary
- Performance-based bonus tied to fund performance
- Medical, dental and vision coverage
- 401k matching and Life insurance.