Sr. Solutions Engineer (Accessibility)

Full Job Description
Department Information

What We Do:
The Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT) strives to impact the lives of all Coloradans to create a safer, happier and healthier state. We work to empower the State of Colorado with flexible technology that will drive sustainable and intelligent business decisions. We envision a future where the end-user experience shapes design, and data analytics transform how state government serves its residents.

What We Believe:
We believe equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply.

What You'll Get From Us:
A culture that understands that we are better together when our differences are valued and everyone is inspired and empowered to contribute.

Check out this website to see some of the great work that OIT is doing around IT Transformation at the State.

Description of Job

The Chief Technology Office division exists to satisfy the business needs of our customers through the development of partnerships, consulting, planning, application development and support, project management, responsiveness, and strategic thinking. CTO delivers high quality application development and support to its customers while looking for opportunities to use newer technologies to deliver those services more efficiently, effectively, and elegantly.

This Senior Solutions Engineer (Accessibility) serves as the SME or Lead for Agency level Accessibility engineering project initiatives. For small to large initiatives, this role may work in the capacity of participation or leader. On complex initiatives, they will work in a participating capacity. This role provides leadership and mentorship to Engineers assigned to their project initiatives and oversee the completion of all milestones apart of the initiatives they are lead for. This role reviews all progress reports submitted by their engineer initiative teams and prepares a summary report and presents it to Agency leadership. In this role, you will work on new and innovative solutions; developing and testing possible solutions to determine practical options to be presented at the agency and enterprise level for consideration.

More specifically, the Senior Solutions Engineer is a senior technology solutions leader, providing forward-looking recommendations for applications solutions and development across a broad scope of responsibility. The Senior Solutions Engineer will have a primary focus and be a subject matter expert for a specific technology platform and/or a specific agency. This position provides guidance to agency leadership, OIT senior managers and senior developers on technical solutions to customer requests, best practices and enterprise standards for operational support and maintenance.

Under the direction of the Accessibility Architect, the Sr. Solutions Engineer will assume the role of assisting technical architecture for all Technology Accessibility Initiatives of the State of Colorado Office of Information Technology.

Site Improve Administrator, trainer and remediation support described as FTE in the House Bill 21-1110 2021.

The Technology Accessibility program encompasses those responsibilities which OIT is statutorily-obligated (Section 24-85-103, C.R.S.) to maintain and includes (but is not limited to) nonvisual access standards for information technology systems employed by state agencies, to consult with State agencies and representatives of individuals who are blind or visually impaired in maintaining nonvisual access standards, to work with the head of each State agency to establish a written plan (as part of its annual information technology plan), and assist in developing any proposed budget requests for implementing the nonvisual access standards for those agencies at facilities accessible by the public.
In this role the Sr. Solutions Engineer will manage each agency to reach 100% AA in the Evaluation Tool by 2024 with SiteImprove. The Sr. Solutions Engineer will also train and assist in remediation of WCAG errors.

In addition:

Act as Technology Accessibility Subject Matter Expert for the State on all related initiatives.
Perform all duties as the OIT Technology Accessibility Coordinator in service of the assigned intentions, requirements, and responsibility of OIT under C.R.S. 24-85-103 to 104.
Ensure the Technology Accessibility Roadmaps are included as a written plan in coordination with the head of each state agency, as part of its annual information technology plan, and assist in developing any proposed budget requests for implementing the nonvisual access standards for the agency at facilities accessible by the public.
Guide State Technology Accessibility solution design, technology integration, and interface with vendor technology/solutions to ensure the appropriate involvement of enterprise architecture is integrated and conforms to the statutorily mandated requirements of C.R.S. 24-85-103 to 104.

Ensure the Technology Accessibility Roadmaps adhere to the CTO Roadmap, OIT Playbook, OIT Technology Standards, as well as plan initiatives with OIT's functional area teams based on budget, approaches, and infrastructure to the enterprise architecture governing principles and identify when it is necessary to modify underlying business processes or the enterprise architecture standards to accommodate Technology Accessibility needs.

Primary Job Duties

Project Initiatives

Agency level specific research and validation of functionality of current and emerging technologies.
Interpret business, technical, security, regulatory, and architectural requirements in researching and recommending solutions at the agency level.
Collaborate with other teams within the OIT to determine technology fit within the agency and portfolio levels.
Pilot or build proof of concept for agency and portfolio level technologies proposed for adoption in partnership with sustaining resources.
Manage solution workflow within agency or portfolio level.
Develop high-level agency specific estimates of the team work effort needed to deliver solutions based on the project specifications provided.
Implement highly technical advisory duties associated with the design, implementation, and support of technical solutions.
Responsible for providing Subject Matter Expertise (SME) or Lead level of experience for agency or portfolio solutions.
Provide hands-on support and participation on an on-requested basis for specific projects requiring intervention or additional support.
Engage in complex decision making, using data and available research to understand the far reaching implications across OIT and the customer base statewide
Take on complex issues and deal with a variety of changes within the daily duties of the job; be open, and creative.

Analyze information and data; use logic to make informed decisions that address work-related issues and problems


Continuous IT Innovation and Collaboration (Accessibility)

Develop and test innovative agency level solutions and organize work efforts and resources needed to prototype technologies in consideration.
Research, implement, and review technical documentation and use cases for technology being considered.
Maintain agency-specific currency in technologies and trends through research, study, and collaboration across OIT technical portfolios.
Communicate effectively and collaborate across a matrix environment with agency leaders, OIT leadership, project managers, strategic partners, and vendors.
Demonstrate the benefits of an agency specific solution to agency leaders and OIT leadership.
Understand the agency perspective of OIT operations across the supported agencies.
Contribute in the evaluation of the Request for Information (RFI) process to investigate new agency level solutions.
Ensure agency level professional development is aligned with OIT strategic plans.
Engage with agency content Managers to onboard, and train them to use SiteImprove software to meet state compliance 80%AA standards.
Ongoing interaction with key stakeholders to advise and ensure that timely, innovative, and appropriate Technology Accessibility infrastructure and services support agency strategies, projects and outcomes to align with OIT roadmaps, desired future states and overall architectural fit.

Promote the understanding of WCAG compliance and industry standard patterns and practices.
Mentor and coach other Enterprise Applications staff to ensure consistent delivery of quality industry-standard solutions.
Capture and share best-practice knowledge with the solution architect community.
Ensure that intellectual assets created during the delivery process are captured and evolved in the knowledge base in a manner that is reusable and relevant, including delivery and process models, sample project plans, sample deliverables, estimating and cost models, resource allocations.
Plan initiatives with OIT's functional area teams based on budget, approaches and infrastructure to the enterprise architecture governing principles and identify when it is necessary to modify underlying business processes or the enterprise architecture standards to accommodate Technology Accessibility needs.

Maintain the Technology Accessibility Roadmap and ensure its fit within the CTO roadmap and the CIO Playbook

Deliver Technology Accessibility technology standards
Provide thought leadership in emerging accessibility trends as they relate to business process development and execution
Understand OIT funding model and align technology initiatives to ensure highest return on investment based on available budget, while understanding and ensuring the long term requirements for sustainable service
Maintain and establish technical contacts with IT industry leaders to pioneer innovative Technology Accessibility technologies, ideas and structures within OIT
Translate complicated technical plans into clear, business value added proposals, which are compelling and effectively communicated using a variety of methods and forums

Effectively leverage public-private partnerships

Maintain currency in technologies and trends through research.

Maintain awareness of current and future work efforts across the enterprise and identify opportunities for implementing innovative solutions.

Research and recommend solutions that meet the requirements of the customers and align with annual agency work plans, OIT's enterprise strategy, and the OIT Playbook.
Track initiatives, evaluate the effectiveness of the planned solutions, and recommend alternative solutions when needed.
Anticipate the training needs of end users and support staff who will maintain the solution in production.
Assist the Enterprise Architects in the management of strategic alliances to position OIT as the premier service provider for agencies within the State of Colorado.
Pursue the development and testing of innovative solutions and organize work efforts and resources needed to prototype or pilot them.

Demonstrate the benefits (increased operational efficiencies, decreased costs, etc.) of a solution to an agency unit.

Coordinate with OIT internal operations teams to consider the implications (to infrastructure, security, etc.) of introducing solutions.

Understand advanced data migration techniques.

Understand the enterprise perspective of OIT operations across the supported agencies.

Documentation and Reporting

Document, communicate, and implement OIT standards and best practices.

Provide peer review of the work product generated by agency level teams and other engineers.
Provide a peer review of the work product generated by the enterprise applications development team. (replace above statement with this for solution engineers)
Ensure agency level compliance requirements are adhered to and established policies, procedures, standards and guidelines are followed.
Ensure all new agency level technology projects and initiatives align with and support enterprise Five-Year IT roadmaps.

Additional Duties As Assigned

Take on additional duties as they arise to fulfill the OIT mission and goals.


Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

While a wide salary range is posted for this position, an eventual salary offer is determined by a comprehensive salary analysis, which considers multiple factors including but not limited to education and experience compared to others in the organization doing substantially similar work.

Work Experience:

8 years of hands-on programming experience in applications development, with at least 4 of those as a senior developer or team lead for an applications development group or other IT experience directly relevant to the role.


Education/Training:


Undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university in information technology, computer science, or related technical fields.

Additional appropriate experience will substitute for the degree requirement on a year-for-year basis.
Additional appropriate education will substitute for the required experience on a year-for-year basis.

Preferred Qualifications


4 years Experience with Technical systems and industry standards: WCAG, W3C, Section 508, ADA


4 years Experience with IT Strategy Planning in developing 3-5 year IT strategic roadmaps (IT Strategy Plan)


4 years Experience with up-to-date with cloud, mobile, and other emerging technologies


10 years Experience with large, enterprise settings


4 years Experience of In-depth knowledge and understanding of technology accessibility regulatory requirements, data management, and privacy and security policies

Supplemental Information

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law.

The Governor's Office of Information Technology is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADA Coordinator at OIT_HR@state.co.us or call (303) 764-7900.
(rev. 2/05/2020)
The Governor's Office of Information Technology does NOT offer sponsored Visas for employment purposes.

Conditions of employment: A pre-employment background check will be conducted as part of the selection process.
Comparative Analysis Process: is the selection process used to identify the applicant that fits the job the best from a qualified applicant pool. Applications and applicants are compared to others in the pool to identify a top group. Applicants will be notified of their status in the pool via email.
On-call Status: As warranted.
Travel- This position may require travel to locations in the metro area periodically, and locations across the state occasionally.