Team Lead, IT Systems Operations

What’s Under the HoodDriveTime Family of Brands is the largest privately owned used car sales finance & servicing company in the nation. Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona and Dallas, Texas, we create opportunities and improve the lives of our customers and our employees by placing a focus on putting the right customer, in the right vehicle, on the right terms and on their path to ownership.The DriveTime Family of Brands spans across DriveTime, Bridgecrest and SilverRock. You can find us at the intersection of technology and innovation as we use our proprietary tools and over two decades of industry knowledge to redefine the process of purchasing, financing, and protecting your vehicle. That’s Nice, But What’s the Job?This is not a position for which sponsorship will be provided. Individuals with temporary visas or who need sponsorship now or in the future are not eligible for hire at this time.In short, this is a hands-on, people-first leadership role focused on transforming an IT Systems operations team from reactive, process-heavy work into a modern, efficient, and accountability-driven function. You’ll lead a technically strong team, drive automation and process improvements, and ensure daily operations, service delivery, and team performance are aligned to real business outcomes.In Long, as the Team Lead, IT Systems, you will be responsible forLeading, coaching, and developing a team of IT Associates, Specialists, and Senior Specialists through regular 1:1s, feedback, and structured growth planningSetting clear expectations, driving accountability, and ensuring ownership of outcomes—not just task completionEstablishing team priorities and translating leadership direction into clear, actionable work plansManaging day-to-day workload across tickets, incidents, requests, projects, and operational tasksMonitoring and improving SLA performance through Freshservice, including reporting, review cycles, and continuous improvementIdentifying performance gaps early and addressing them through coaching, documentation, and clear expectationsOwning team KPIs and operational metrics, providing visibility through Smartsheet dashboardsConducting audits of current processes and building a roadmap to modernize, automate, and streamline operationsPartnering with engineering and automation teams to reduce manual, repetitive workStandardizing documentation, runbooks, and SOPs to improve consistency and knowledge sharingManaging team capacity, resource allocation, and workload balancing across competing prioritiesOverseeing on-call rotations and ensuring equitable distribution of responsibilitiesServing as the primary point of contact for stakeholders and maintaining strong cross-functional relationshipsCommunicating status, risks, and priorities clearly to both technical teams and business stakeholdersDriving adoption and continuous improvement of Freshservice and Smartsheet for operational management and reportingSo What Kind of Folks Are We Looking For?You lead with accountability and aren’t afraid to set high standards and hold people to themYou’re a coach at heart—invested in helping others grow, develop, and succeedYou thrive in transformation environments and see legacy processes as opportunities to improveYou bring structure and clarity to ambiguity, ensuring nothing falls through the cracksYou communicate effectively across all levels, translating technical work into business impactYou’re highly organized and intentional about capacity planning, prioritization, and executionYou build trust easily and create a culture of transparency, ownership, and continuous learningYou can balance empathy with performance expectations, especially during times of changeThe Specifics.5+ years of experience in IT operations, systems administration, or enterprise application support2+ years of people management experience leading technical teamsBachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Business, or a related field preferred; equivalent experience consideredProven track record of driving process improvement, operational efficiency, and accountability in a technical environmentExperience managing workloads and projects using Smartsheet or similar resource management toolsFamiliarity with enterprise platforms such as secure file transfer systems, document management solutions, and business applicationsStrong capacity planning, prioritization, and resource management skillsExperience working in cross-functional environments with multiple stakeholdersNice To HaveITIL Foundation certification or working knowledge of ITIL practicesExperience with Fortra Globalscape EFT, Square9 GlobalSearch/GlobalCapture, or similar platformsExposure to scripting or automation tools (PowerShell, Python, Bash)Experience in industries such as financial services, automotive, or multi-location retailSo What About the Perks? Perks matterWork From Home. Feel free to rock the casual wear while still being camera ready. You will be working from your home office (