IT Specialist

From offices in downtown Vancouver and Victoria, WA Architects Ltd. provides a full range of architectural, planning and interior design services. With more than forty years of practice in Western Canada, our firm is widely recognized for expertise in retail, residential, mixed-use, office and senior health-care projects. We are dedicated to high quality design, exceptional client service and the incorporation of sustainable design principles in our projects.

The IT Specialist will support staff in all aspects of IT and is passionate about building more efficient IT processes. We are looking for an experienced IT professional who thrives on resolving technical challenges and enjoys being the go-to person for helping team members resolve technical issues. This role is fully on-site in our Vancouver office with occasional travel required to our Victoria office.

**Responsibilities**:

- Oversight of all office IT functions and maintain the performance of all IT systems in a primarily Windows environment
- Administer and support the Office 365 environment
- Serve as primary contact for user support and provide technical support and troubleshooting for hardware, software, and network issues in a timely manner
- Manage equipment for interactive office meetings, conference calls and events
- Install, configure, maintain and upgrade existing hardware and software
- Consistently stay updated on emerging technologies and industry trends to enhance productivity and efficiency
- Research and advise on innovative solutions to improve effectiveness of IT systems
- Maintain documentation of IT systems, processes, and configurations, including hardware and software inventory, licenses, and user accounts
- Conduct training on new and existing hardware and software systems
- Support onboarding of new staff by setting up required hardware and relevant software
- Provide tutorials on office systems and processes
- Workstation set-up / cable management / power requirements / peripherals
- Develop IT security procedures to align with industry standards and best practices
- Consistently assess risks, implement controls, and address data privacy issues
- Maintain compliance with relevant regulatory requirements
- Stay updated with the latest security threats and ensure the implementation of robust security measures to protect company data, networks, and systems
- Manage relationships with 3rd party technology vendors or service providers, including contract/service agreement negotiations and monitoring vendor performance
- Assess vendor solutions and make recommendations for procurement
- Coordinate with Accounting to ensure accuracy in services received and payments
- Oversight of live backups/restores and project archive administration
- Provide back-up support for office VoIP phone system and plotter management (training, set-up, ordering of supplies and troubleshooting issues)

**Qualifications**:

- Post-secondary education in Computer Science or related fields (including relevant certifications such as Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA, etc.)
- 3-5 years of experience in IT operations, preferably with at least 2 years in desktop support including hardware and software installation and configuration
- Strong hands-on experience in operating and maintaining office/IT equipment
- Proficiency with Office 365/ (Outlook, MSWord, Excel, Powerpoint) Adobe, Autodesk products including AutoCAD and Revit, Cloud meeting software, etc.
- Experience with managing remote desktop software
- Working knowledge of Microsoft server active directory would be asset
- Excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with others and communicate effectively with management and staff at all levels
- Excellent customer service skills with a positive and responsive attitude
- Be available after hours for infrequent emergency IT issues (such as power outages)
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills required
- Demonstrates a high level of integrity and an ethical approach to data privacy protection
- Focused on maintaining confidentiality of company data
- Ability to take initiative and a self-starter
- Willingness to learn and acquire relevant training
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
- Ability to explain technical issues to non-technical users
- Ability to meet challenges head-on, manage priorities and meet tight deadlines while demonstrating flexibility and a high level of resourcefulness and troubleshooting skills
- Ability to articulate alignment with our WA Guiding Principles

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What we offer:

- Engaging and energetic work environment with an approachable management/ownership team.
- We recognize our hard work with Friday afternoon socials, office-wide lunches, social activities outside the office and annual Family Day picnics.
- We provide group health benefits and on-site gym facilities

What we’re about:

- We value honesty, integrity, communication, l