Desktop and Mobile Computing Specialist (MAC) - Information Technology Services

Category: Professional

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Department: Information Technology Services - 02007

Locations: Albany, NY

Posted: Jun 2, 2025

Closes: Jul 18, 2025 - 11:59 PM EDT

Type: Full-time

Ref. No.: WF240407

Position ID: 188692

About University at Albany:

Established in 1844 and designated a University Center of the State University of New York in 1962, the University at Albany's broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, research, and public service engages a diverse student body of more than 17,000 students in nine schools and colleges across three campuses.

Located in Albany, New York, New York State's capital, the University is convenient to Boston, New York City, and the Adirondacks.

Job Description:

Information Technology Services (ITS) at the University at Albany seeks applicants for a Desktop and Mobile Computing Specialist. The Specialist plays a critical role in supporting all University desktop and mobile computing endpoints (Windows, macOS, iOS, and Linux) with expertise in Apple operating systems. The successful candidate has the knowledge and skills to provide guidance and oversight for the enterprise management of university devices, with particular focus on macOS and iOS devices. This is a unique opportunity for someone looking to grow their skills in a diverse, multidisciplinary environment in one of four University Centers in the State University of New York (SUNY) system.

The Specialist works on service and project teams in support of the University's research, teaching and learning, information security, and infrastructure services. They develop and rely on tools and processes for the enterprise management of all University workstations and devices, including the deployment of operating systems, applications and patches, secure and reliable operations, and maintaining an accurate device inventory. As the ITS subject matter expert for Apple operating systems, they recommend standards, guidelines, and procedures to enhance and improve service delivery for the management of macOS and iOS devices on behalf of the campus community. ITS may further invest in this position by supporting professional development activities, such as earning certifications, to advance expertise in relevant areas.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Specialist in Apple Operating Systems (macOS, iOS) and Endpoints

• Serve as ITS' subject matter expert in Apple operating systems and devices.

Implement, operate, and maintain Apple OS and software distribution using appropriate enterprise management tools (i.e., Jamf).

• Employ best practices to automate the configuration and management of Apple endpoints and support MacOS across a range of versions.

• Develop and maintain tools and procedures to include and update all University-owned Apple devices in the asset inventory.

• Work with distributed IT units to promulgate and promote ITS' standardized enterprise tools, practices, and procedures for the management of Apple devices.

• General Desktop and Mobile Computing Support

• Contribute to the development, testing, documentation, and operationalization of workstation, mobile device, printer, and software deployment processes, procedures, and scripts.

• Proactively test new operating system versions and features, new device drivers, and new application versions and integrate changes into deployment processes to maintain currency.

• Use enterprise management tools and develop scripts to remotely configure, support, and maintain all University desktops, mobile devices, and printers.

• Work within service teams to resolve service desk incidents and service requests in accordance with ITS' service management and project management processes and workflows.

• Serve as a point of escalation for Field Support Specialists; deploying to the field, as needed.

• Develop and maintain both customer-facing knowledgebase articles and ITS-internal documentation, taking the lead on information related to Apple and Mac endpoints.

• Consider, develop, recommend, and implement operational work and service improvements.

• Stay abreast of industry practices and tools for enterprise management of endpoints.

• Manage and operate test environments for all service offerings; conduct field tests, as warranted.

• Ensure service level agreements and operational level agreements are followed consistently.

Application Administration and Configuration:

• Install, administer, and configure server-based applications that enable enterprise management of desktop and mobile devices, printers, and software.

Additional/Other Responsibilities:

• Work on service and project teams associated with research, teaching & learning, information security, and infrastructure services.

• Be available to provide scheduled support and consultation outside normal business hours, including occasional evenings, holidays, or weekends, within reasonable professional obligation and expectation

• Other reasonable duties as assigned

Functional and Supervisory Relationships:

• Reports to: Manager, Desktop and Mobile Computing

• Supervises the following positions: n/a

Job Requirements:

• Excellent interpersonal and oral and written communication skills.

• Ability to organize work, prioritize tasks, and manage multiple and changing priorities, ensuring timely delivery, high quality, and attention to detail.

• Ability to engage with customers to analyze, document, and translate business requirements into effective technical designs, workflows, business processes, and specifications.

• Ability to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams and communicate technical details effectively to non-technical stakeholders.

• Provide scheduled support and consultation outside normal business hours, including occasional evenings, holidays, or weekends, within reasonable professional obligation and expectation.

Requirements:

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree at time of hire from a college or university accredited by a U.S. Department of Education (DOE) or by an internationally recognized accrediting organization.

• 2 years' experience working maintaining and supporting Mac computers using Jamf or similar enterprise management tool.

• Applicants must demonstrate an ability to develop inclusive and equitable relationships within our diverse campus community

• Applicants must demonstrate an ability to support diversity, equity, access, inclusion, and belonging relative to their role

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in JaMF Pro administration for macOS/iOS devices.

• Experience working in higher education.

• Apple Certification such as Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP) or Apple Certified Mac Technician (ACMT).

• JaMF 300 and above Certification.

• Working knowledge of MECM.

• Experience writing technical and user documentation.

Additional Information:

Professional Rank and Salary Grade: SL-3, Lead Programmer/Analyst, $69,000-$74,000

Special Note: Visa sponsorship is not available for this position. If you currently need sponsorship or will need it in the future to maintain employment authorization, you do not meet eligibility requirements.

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or Clery Act, mandates that all Title IV institutions, without exception, prepare, publish and distribute an Annual Security Report. This report consists of two basic parts: disclosure of the University's crime statistics for the past three years; and disclosures regarding the University's current campus security policies. The University at Albany's Annual Security Report is available in portable document format [PDF] by clicking this link http://police.albany.edu/ASR.shtml

Pursuant to NYS Labor Law 194-A, no State entity, as defined by the Law, is permitted to rely on, orally or in writing seek, request, or require in any form, that an applicant for employment provide his or her current wage, or salary history as a condition to be interviewed, or as a condition of continuing to be considered for an offer of employment, until such time as the applicant is extended a conditional offer of employment with compensation, and for the purpose of verifying information, may such requests be made. If such information has been requested from you before such time, please contact the Governor's Office of Employee Relations at (518) 474-6988 or via email at info@goer.ny.gov.

THE UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY IS AN EO/AA/IRCA/ADA EMPLOYER

Please apply online via http://albany.interviewexchange.com/candapply.jsp?JOBID=188692

Application Instructions:

Applicants MUST submit the following documents:

• Resume

•  Cover letter stating all the required minimum qualifications and any of the applicable preferred qualifications

• List of 3 professional references with e-mail addresses and telephone numbers

Note: After submitting your resume, the subsequent pages give you instructions for uploading additional documents (i.e. cover letter etc.).

See the FAQ for using our online system. Please contact us if you need assistance applying through this website.

Returning Applicants - Login to your UAlbany Careers Account to check your completed application.

Closing date for receipt of applications: July 18, 2025

Desktop and Mobile Computing Analyst

About University at Albany:

Established in 1844 and designated a University Center of the State University of New York in 1962, the University at Albany's broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, research, and public service engages a diverse student body of more than 17,000 students in nine schools and colleges across three campuses.

Located in Albany, New York, New York State's capital, the University is convenient to Boston, New York City, and the Adirondacks.

Job Description:

Information Technology Services (ITS), the central IT provider at the University at Albany, seeks applicants for a Desktop and Mobile Computing (D&MC) Analyst. ITS manages and supports nearly 7,000 university-owned faculty/staff, classroom, conference room, and research lab desktops and mobile devices. The D&MC Analyst is a senior position that is key to continuous improvement and delivery of services in this large-scale operation. 

The D&MC Analyst is a subject matter expert in desktop and mobile computing and provides technical leadership within service teams. They address and resolve complex and non-standard requests and issues. They develop and maintain strong expertise in enterprise management applications and tools (i.e., Active Directory, MECM, AllSight, Jamf, etc.), and steer the selection and usage of each in achieving ITS' goals and adhering to ITS' principles and standards.

The D&MC Analyst understands the importance of well-defined processes and promoting their adoption across large service teams to successfully manage the pace and volume of work required to support thousands of devices. The successful Analyst independently identifies process challenges and recommends and assists in implementing actionable improvements and solutions to the D&MC Manager. They monitor the flow of real-time work and act to address operational problems.

Under the leadership and direction of the D&MC Manager, the Analyst is responsible for ensuring internal and customer-facing documentation is created, accurate, and updated regularly. They understand the value of documentation in promoting clarity and cohesion for large service teams.

Essential Functions:

Endpoints service standards, efficient operations and consistent user experiences 

• Provide subject matter expertise, oversee and continuously evaluate hardware and software deployment and support processes, their effectiveness and recommend improvements.

• Determine and document the standard workstation and printer models and configurations for various use cases including fac/staff, classrooms, conference rooms, research labs; refresh standards, as needed.

• Oversee the internal and external documentation and maintain all approved desktop and mobile computing standards for the University.

• Regularly report on workstation hardware, operating systems, software, and printers at risk or outside of defined standards and work to resolve.

• Determine and document operating system versions used for deployments; determine and manage upgrade cycles.

Enterprise management applications and tools (i.e., Active Directory, MECM, AllSight, Jamf, etc.)

• Ensure that all enterprise desktop and mobile device management applications and tools are maintained, and versions updated in a timely fashion and adhere to TIS standards, controls, security policies and procedures.

• Build and maintain advanced technical expertise in ITS' enterprise desktop and mobile device management applications and tools.

• Stay abreast of advances in the field and steer technical direction in D&MC, following ITS' architecture review protocols.

Asset inventory maintenance, cyclical planning, budgeting, and related projects

• Regularly report on anomalies and potential problems in the asset inventories for all supported services and work to resolve.

• Maintain, provide reports and update replacement schedule and replacement cost fields in the asset inventories for all supported service areas to support budgeting and planning processes.

• Develop and maintain a strong understanding of how the inventory data structure, operational processes to add/remove/update records, inventory dashboards and reports, and project workload planning all play a role in planning cyclic replacement of all D&MC assets.

Provide day-to-day operational oversight of operations and service offerings

• Prepare technical diagrams, configuration logs, process maps, internal and external knowledge base articles, and other documentation, as needed.

• Provide subject matter expertise, technical support and collaborate across ITS teams and on projects to identify problems, devise creative solutions, and implement proposed recommendations.

• Other reasonable duties as assigned.

Project Management

• Serve as Project Manager on D&MC projects.

• Actively participate, as needed, in ITS projects related to your service(s).

Functional and Supervisory Relationships:

• Reports to: Manager of Desktop and Mobile Computing Services

• Interacts with: ITS staff; faculty and staff in academic, research, and business units; external vendors/contractors/consultants; peer institutions

Job Requirements:

• Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills. 

• Organize work, prioritize tasks, and manage multiple and changing priorities.

•  Provide scheduled support and consultation outside normal business hours, including occasional evenings, holidays, or weekends, within reasonable professional obligation and expectation. 

• Report to campus in-person on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and as needed. This position is eligible to telecommute on Tuesdays and Thursdays, following a probationary period and with supervisor approval.

Working Environment:

• Typical office environment

Requirements:

Required Qualifications:

• A bachelor's degree from a college or university accredited by a U.S. Department of Education (DOE) or internationally recognized accrediting organization.

• 3-5 years' experience building operating systems and application deployments in a large, complex environment.

• 3-5 years' experience documenting deployment processes that can be replicated/implemented by field staff.

• 3-5 years' experience supporting desktops and mobile devices, IT operations, or systems administration addressing and resolving issues escalated for higher level support.

• At least 2 years in a professional position with experience independently assessing and resolving challenging technical and/or non-technical problems or requests.

• Applicants must demonstrate an ability to develop inclusive and equitable relationships within our diverse campus community

• Applicants must demonstrate an ability to support diversity, equity, access, inclusion, and belonging relative to their role

Preferred Qualifications: 

• 1-3 years' experience using Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (MECM); for operating system deployments, application packaging and deployment, and workstation security/patch management.

• 1-3 years' experience using and maintaining active directory and group policy.

• 1-3 years' experience developing and continuously maintaining technical documentation within a knowledge base repository.

• Experience configuring and managing a Microsoft mobile device management (MDM) system such as Microsoft Intune.

• Experience configuring and managing an Apple mobile device management (MDM) system such as Jamf Pro.

• Experience using PowerShell (or similar scripting language) to manage workstations, users, AD.

• Experience using and supporting workstations running Linux operating systems.

Additional Information:

Professional Rank and Salary Grade: Senior Programmer/Analyst, SL4; $85,000-95,000.

Special Note: Visa sponsorship is not available for this position. If you currently need sponsorship or will need it in the future to maintain employment authorization, you do not meet eligibility requirements.

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or Clery Act, mandates that all Title IV institutions, without exception, prepare, publish and distribute an Annual Security Report. This report consists of two basic parts: disclosure of the University's crime statistics for the past three years; and disclosures regarding the University's current campus security policies. The University at Albany's Annual Security Report is available in portable document format [PDF] by clicking this link http://police.albany.edu/ASR.shtml

Pursuant to NYS Labor Law 194-A, no State entity, as defined by the Law, is permitted to rely on, orally or in writing seek, request, or require in any form, that an applicant for employment provide his or her current wage, or salary history as a condition to be interviewed, or as a condition of continuing to be considered for an offer of employment, until such time as the applicant is extended a conditional offer of employment with compensation, and for the purpose of verifying information, may such requests be made.  If such information has been requested from you before such time, please contact the Governor's Office of Employee Relations at (518) 474-6988 or via email at info@goer.ny.gov.

THE UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY IS AN EO/AA/IRCA/ADA EMPLOYER

Please apply online via https://apptrkr.com/6321588

Application Instructions:

Applicants MUST submit the following documents:

• Resume

• Cover letter stating all the required minimum qualifications and any of the applicable preferred qualifications

• List of 3 professional references with e-mail addresses and telephone numbers

Note: After submitting your resume, the subsequent pages give you instructions for uploading additional documents (i.e. cover letter etc.).

See the FAQ for using our online system. Please contact us if you need assistance applying through this website.

Returning Applicants - Login to your UAlbany Careers Account to check your completed application.

A review of applications will start on April 14, 2025 and the search will remain open until the position is filled.