VP, IT Infrastructure & Operations; Hybrid

About Us

At Selective, we don't just insure uniquely, we employ uniqueness.

Selective is a midsized U.S. domestic property and casualty insurance company with a history of strong, consistent financial performance for nearly 100 years. Selective's unique position as both a leading insurance group and an employer of choice is recognized in a wide variety of awards and honors, including listing in Forbes Best Midsize Employers in 2025 and certification as a Great Place to Work in 2025 for the sixth consecutive year.

Employees are empowered and encouraged to Be Uniquely You by being their true, unique selves and contributing their diverse talents, experiences, and perspectives to our shared success. Together, we are a high-performing team working to serve our customers responsibly by helping to mitigate loss, keep them safe, and restore their lives and businesses after an insured loss occurs.

Note:

(For NJ candidates) This role will be located at our future headquarters in Short Hills, N.J. Until the new headquarters is operational, the successful candidate will be offered the ability to work in our Branchville, N.J. location during this interim period.

The VP, IT Infrastructure & Operations will be responsible for managing all aspects of the IT Infrastructure and Operations department. This role will direct the preparation and delivery of the enterprises' IT infrastructure and operation plans, including collaborating with other IT departments and Business leaders in developing overall infrastructure and operations strategy; deploying and managing day-to-day activities for enterprise data centers, cloud services, networks, engineering, operations, service delivery management, help desks, and all related infrastructure and operational functions.

You will also play a critical role in operational crisis planning and data center disaster recovery, and manage through major events that impact IT infrastructure operational services.

• Accountable for the day-to-day activities, maintenance, capacity, performance, and availability of the data center, infrastructure assets, and operational services that are essential to the company's business model and long-term success. Contributes to data center disaster recovery planning and supports disaster recovery testing and execution.
• Collaborates with Enterprise Architecture, Information Security, Application Delivery, Information Management, and other key IT Leaders to ensure alignment of Infrastructure operational plans and strategy with department goals, objectives, and policies
• Works closely with all other IT Leadership team members as part of identifying, evaluating, and selecting specific hardware and software platforms that support the business objectives and plans. Keeps abreast of new developments and forecasts of future trends in the areas of Infrastructure Operations and services.
• Prepares and manages long range and annual plans, objectives and budgets for all areas within IT Infrastructure and Operations. Reviews cost estimates for personnel requirements, new hardware, software upgrades or additions, and external consulting projects. Accountable for projecting and planning future hardware, software and personnel needs.
• Leverages service delivery standards, and operational frameworks and methodologies, such as ITIL and lean, to continuously improve the quality, efficiency, effectiveness, and customer service of the Infrastructure operation.
• Collaborates with IT and Program Management to prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual reports on the performance of IT Infrastructure and Operations, and period reports, including a comparison against various benchmarks, as needed.
• Collaborates with Enterprise Architecture and contributes to the development of enterprise technology standards, reference architectures, and the corporate technology strategy.
• Interacts frequently with senior management from all areas of the Company on internal and external operations that are impacted by the computing and telecommunications infrastructure. Manages effective working relationships with all areas of the Company.
• Accountable for appropriate vendor selection, management and measurement. Participates with vendors in the assessment of advanced operating systems and database production systems. This includes beta and field test participation.
• Plans and directs all aspects of Talent Management for the IT Infrastructure and Operations department including: acquisition, assessment, development, and performance and compensation management. Identifies and mentors high potential associates, develops appropriate succession plans, and ensures development plans are in place for all Infrastructure and Operations team members.

• Knowledge of, and experience working with, infrastructure and operations service management frameworks including ITIL is required. Knowledge of continuous improvement mythologies of Six-Sigma, Lean, or equivalent is preferred.…