Mgr IT Optimization & Governance

Location:

Irvine, CA, US, 92618

Employment Type: Salaried

Work Arrangement: Hybrid

Position Summary

The Manager of IT Optimization & Governance is a key member of the Office of the CIO, reporting directly to the VP responsible for enterprise technology strategy and governance. This role drives operational excellence across the IT organization by establishing governance frameworks, optimizing processes, and ensuring that technology investments deliver measurable business value. The position serves as a strategic partner to the VP, OCIO, enabling transparency, accountability, and disciplined execution of IT priorities.

Major Duties And Responsibilities

• Technology Cost Optimization:
• Lead IT cost optimization initiatives to improve efficiency and reduce waste.
• Analyze total cost of ownership (TCO) and identify opportunities for rationalization, consolidation, automation, and consumption optimization.
• Optimize Keep the Lights On (KLO) expenditures to enable reinvestment into modernization and innovation.
• Develop KPIs and benchmarking metrics to measure cost efficiency and value delivery.
• Partner with IT applications, infrastructure, architecture and security teams to align cost optimization with long-term roadmaps.
• Portfolio Governance & Financial Oversight:
• Support IT operating and capital budgeting processes in alignment with strategic priorities.
• Oversee spend, forecasting and variance analysis to proactively manage financial performance.
• Support IT leaders to develop and validate business cases, ROI models, and benefits realization tracking.
• Provide financial insight and recommendations to IT leadership.
• Partner with Vendor Management Office (VMO) on vendor negotiations, renewals, and licensing agreements.
• Cloud Financial Management (FinOps):
• Monitoring all Cloud bills to prevent "sticker shock."
• Support technical teams to identify underutilized cloud instances and optimize the usage to save cost.
• Supporting the purchase of long-term cloud commitments to lock in lower rates.
• Reporting & Executive Transparency:
• Develop dashboards providing clear visibility into IT spend, cost drivers, and investment mix.
• Differentiate and report on KLO, growth, transformation, and technical debt investments.
• Help IT teams translate technical initiatives into clear financial narratives for relevant stakeholders.
• Single point contact for IT team for financial tracking and reporting of all IT spends.
  

Education And Experience

• Required:
• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Business, Information Systems, or related field
• 5 years of experience in IT finance, FP&A, or technology cost management
• Strong understanding of IT cost structures (infrastructure, applications, cloud, labor)
• Advanced skills in financial modeling, budgeting, and forecasting
• Experience working with ERP, financial planning tools, and Excel
• Preferred
• MBA or relevant professional certification (CPA, CMA, CIMA)
• Experience with cloud financial management (FinOps)
• Background in large-scale IT environments or digital transformation programs
  

Knowledge And Skills

• Required:
• Strategic and analytical thinking
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills
• Ability to balance cost control with innovation enablement
• High attention to detail with executive-level presentation skills
  

Why Join Us

Ventura Foods innovates and manufactures food solutions for foodservice and retail businesses. We make exclusive products for the world's most iconic restaurants and retailers, we provide ready-to-go product solutions for professional kitchens, and we make consumer brands everyone knows and loves. When you work for Ventura Foods, you get a strong foundation of training, a manager who cares about you and celebrates your success, a safe environment, and challenging work. As part of our team, your future is limited only by how much you’re willing to push yourself to get there. We invest in your growth because you invest in ours.

Ventura Foods offers career growth opportunities as well as competitive compensation and benefits:

• Medical, Prescription, Dental, & Vision – coverage beginning on your 1st day for eligible employees
• Profit Sharing and 401(k) matching (after eligible criteria is met)
• Paid Vacation, Sick Time, and Holidays
• Employee Appreciation Events and Employee Assistance Programs
• Salary Base Range of $135,978.00 - $179,183.55*
• Annual bonus (based on the incentive program terms and conditions)
• The “base salary range” provided above is a good faith estimate of what we expect to pay for this position in the specified markets. Ventura Foods reserves the right to pay outside of the given range based on a variety of factors including but not limited to: candidate skills and experience, complexity of the job, budgetary factors, and location/geography. Ventura Foods conducts regular reviews of compensation ranges and therefore reserves the right to alter this range at any given time.
  
  

Diversity & Inclusion

Our commitment to a diverse and inclusive environment in which all employees are treated with respect is evident in our company culture and values. We believe that fostering an environment of inclusion and a focus on diversity across our organization is vital to attracting top talent, driving innovation, and meeting the high expectations of our customers in a rapidly evolving global marketplace.

Ventura Foods is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Nearest Major Market: Irvine California

Nearest Secondary Market: Los Angeles