Senior Technical Manager, Database Services

Who are we?

We are the IT Division of HKJC, a vibrant community of over 1,500 dedicated professionals working collaboratively across Hong Kong and Shenzhen. Our team is a diverse mix of individuals from various backgrounds, from all across the world. We embrace our humanity, recognizing that each of us brings unique strengths and perspectives. This diversity not only enriches our work environment but also drives our innovation and creativity as we strive to achieve our collective goals.

What do we do?

We design, build, and operate the technology that powers the Club. Our primary focus is on delivering the service that supports our hospitality, racing and wagering operations, to ensure that our customers and members enjoy exceptional experiences. We also deliver the changes necessary to drive business growth through new products and services. And, we are committed to safeguarding the Club by protecting it from external threats, providing a secure and resilient technological environment.

The Department

The IT Infrastructure and Platform Operations Department is responsible for the design, implementation, and management of the infrastructure that supports the Club’s IT systems, and leads the Service Management capabilities that ensure the smooth running of these systems.

This department ensures the efficient and effective operation of technological resources to support business objectives. Key responsibilities include:

• Designing and operating processes and controls to ensure IT service availability, performance, and resilience align with business needs.
• Managing the 24x7 IT Operations Centre.
• Overseeing the Club’s use of the public cloud.
• Managing the lifecycle of IT infrastructure equipment and on-premises technology (e.g., data centres and retail offices).
• Providing roadmaps, standards, and capabilities to keep the IT infrastructure current, secure (patched against CVEs), and robust.
• Provide the Club’s colleague collaboration technology suite, including desktop and laptop computers, mobile devices, collaboration tools, carrier contracts, and associated support functions.

The Job

You will:

• Lead the design of the IT database architecture framework and facilitate its adoption across the organisation
• Lead the development, delivery and support of IT database infrastructure solutions across IT functional teams for new and existing projects
• Define IT database technology roadmap, evaluate database products and solutions to support the business requirements of IT application systems and align with IT infrastructure roadmap
• Consolidate user requirements and translate them into technical requirements for the subsequent detailed database architecture design and solutions
• Perform technology and infrastructure design review for new projects to ensure the proposed design can meet the business requirements from a database perspective
• Proactively identify and address vulnerabilities in database systems through regular risk assessments and audits
• Implement robust security measures, including encryption, access controls, and monitoring, to protect sensitive data
• Implement and manage advanced database monitoring tools (e.g., Redgate, SolarWinds, or similar) to proactively identify and resolve performance issues
• Establish automated monitoring systems to track database health, usage trends, and potential bottlenecks in real-time
• Analyse monitoring data to optimise query performance, storage utilisation, and overall system efficiency
• Lead a team composed of internal functional members and external service providers to deliver a database architecture within the given timeframe and resources
• Prepare and conduct presentations on database architecture to different levels of audience within the organisation
• Facilitate communication between the team and stakeholders to ensure alignment on priorities and expectations
• Manage manpower and resources for business-as-usual (BAU) tasks and project implementation activities
• Build technical mentorship and guidance to skill up team members
• Participate and contribute positively to create a diverse and inclusive culture with trust and respect. Play an active role to support cross-team/division/department efforts and model collaborative behaviours

About You

You should have:

• At least 10 years of hands-on work experience in database management within mission-critical production environments in a large-scale IT organisation
• Proven track record in managing large-scale database servers, including support, performance tuning, cluster setup, Always On replication, and refreshment programs
• Extensive experience with various database technologies (e.g., SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, MongoDB, or similar)
• Demonstrated expertise managing both on-premises and cloud-based database environments (e.g., AWS, Azure)
• Hands-on experience with advanced database monitoring tools (e.g., Redgate, SolarWinds, or similar) to ensure system health and performance
• Experience with container orchestration technologies (e.g., Kubernetes) and deployment methodologies (CI/CD pipelines, Ansible, etc.)
• Detailed knowledge of database architecture design, including capacity planning, scalability, and high availability strategies
• Familiarity with IT infrastructure components such as servers, virtualisation, storage, networking, operating systems, automation, and monitoring tools
• Proven ability to define and enforce database technology policies, principles, standards, and guidelines to minimise incompatibility, duplication, and risks
• In-depth understanding of database governance frameworks and best practices for performance, security, and compliance
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to mentor, guide, and manage high-performing teams
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and present complex ideas to non-technical stakeholders
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, with the ability to prioritise competing demands in high-pressure situations

Terms of Employment

The level of appointment will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.

How to Apply

Please submit your resume with expected salary by clicking the Apply Now button.

We are an equal opportunity employer. Personal data provided by job applicants will be used strictly in accordance with the Club's notice to employees and prospective employees relating to the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. A copy of which will be provided immediately upon request.