About Us

Ampersand Brands is a growing portfolio of beloved confectionery brands, including Hammond’s Candies, the iconic hand-crafted candy maker, and Lolli & Pops, a premium retail and gifting brand with a national presence. The company is backed by strong growth ambitions, combining innovation, brand storytelling, and operational excellence to expand its reach and solidify its position as a leading player in the U.S. confections industry. We are currently hiring for a Director of IT.

What You’ll Do

Technology Leadership & Strategy

·         Develop and execute the IT strategy to support business growth across multiple brands.

·         Build and manage system integrations and data intelligence capabilities.

·         Support ERP solutions across the organization.

Infrastructure & Systems Administration

·         Oversee installation, configuration, and support of retail hardware and software, including switches, routers, firewalls, printers, monitoring tools, and networking infrastructure.

·         Administer and support Counterpoint POS systems, ensuring reliability and integration with internal systems.

·         Manage PBX/VoIP phone systems, including configuration and vendor coordination.

·         Implement and maintain Veeam backup and recovery solutions for cloud and server environments.

Cloud Platforms & Application Support

·         Lead administration of Microsoft 365 (Exchange Online, Teams, SharePoint, Intune, identity & security).

·         Manage Google Workspace, including provisioning, IAM, and security configurations.

Security, Compliance & Risk Management

·         Maintain PCI compliance and safeguard all PII and payment data.

·         Perform proactive patching, maintenance, monitoring, and upgrades across all systems.

IT Support & Vendor Management

·         Lead an IT support organization, including help desk, walk-up, phone, remote, and outsourced teams.

·         Troubleshoot hardware, software, and network issues.

·         Manage vendor relationships, oversee contracts, and ensure SLAs are met.

·         Oversee the IT budget, forecasting, and cost optimization.

·         Develop SOPs, training materials, and technical documentation.

Qualifications

·         4–8 years of experience managing vendor relationships and budgeting IT spend.

·         3+ years of IT project management experience.

·         Broad knowledge of IT infrastructure, networking, hardware, cloud platforms, and the SDLC.

·         Experience managing and reporting on PCI-compliant network environments.

·         Experience administering Business Central, Sage 100, and/or NetSuite ERP systems.

·         Experience with LabTech/ConnectWise Automate or similar remote management tools (strong plus).

·         4+ years of experience with AWS cloud technologies.

·         Hands-on experience administering Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace environments.

·         Bachelor’s degree is required, preferably in Information Systems or Computer Science.

·         Strong independent decision-making abilities and communication skills.

·         Exceptional troubleshooting and problem-solving capabilities.

·         Retail industry experience is a plus.

·         Ability to lift, push, pull, or carry up to 50 pounds.

You’ll work with a modern and diverse technology environment that includes:

Languages & Frameworks:  Java, HTML, JavaScript, Shopify Liquid

Integration & Application Servers:  Apache NiFi, Apache Tomcat

Cloud & Infrastructure: AWS Cloud, Amazon Linux, Veeam Backup & Recovery, PBX/VoIP systems

Business Systems: NetSuite, soon to be phase out:  Business Central, Sage 100, Cunterpoint POS

Collaboration & Identity Platforms:  Microsoft 365 Administration, Google Workspace Administration

Web & Commerce: Shopify

Databases & Version Control: SQL Server. Git