Contractor: IT Operations Specialist - Newsela

Role Overview

Newsela is seeking an IT Operations Specialist to empower our team by delivering seamless tech support, optimizing internal platforms, and driving operational efficiency for a distributed team of 500+ employees. In this role, you will be the face of IT for Newsela staff—handling day-to-day access, security, and hardware requests, while orchestrating an exceptional onboarding and offboarding experience for all employees.

Reporting to the Manager of IT Engineering, this role works alongside Legal, Procurement, and People Operations to maintain corporate security and operational efficiency. Because Newsela is a 97% macOS-based company, this role requires deep, hands-on experience with Apple hardware and macOS administration.

Working hours are 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM EDT, with occasional minor after-hours responses to simple support requests or rare 8:00–8:30 AM start times due to support needs after major system changes.

Key Responsibilities

• Support Newsela staff by resolving IT requests (access, security, equipment requests, internal platforms administration, and support for Apple hardware, macOS, Google Workspace, Kandji, Slack, Atlassian, 1Password, etc.).
• Handle engineering challenges related to operational efficiency and compliance.
• Establish relationships across the organization to better understand specific department-level support needs.
• Manage staff onboarding and offboarding by collaborating with People Operations and hiring managers, creating and updating documentation, partnering with hardware vendors, and orchestrating preboarding and day-one experiences.
• Implement support models and security guidelines established by the Senior System Administrator and collaborate with teams managing other components of the tech stack.
• Work within a grouping of operations teams, including IT, Legal, and Procurement.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience in an IT Support role with demonstrated success supporting global IT operations internal stakeholders.
• Deep working knowledge of Apple hardware, macOS, Google Workspace, Kandji, and Slack.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills in English paired with a customer-first mindset.
• Strong troubleshooting skills with a methodical approach to resolving technical issues.
• Ability to translate technical concepts to non-technical audiences.
• Proven track record of resolving support issues in a timely and accurate manner.

Nice to Have

• Experience with scripting and/or automation, especially using the GAM command-line utility.

About Newsela

Newsela is a leading education technology company dedicated to meaningful classroom learning for every student. We deliver integrated, AI-powered solutions designed to unlock student engagement, empower teachers, and drive meaningful learning outcomes. Our suite of products supports knowledge and skill development, writing practice, daily instruction, assessment, and data-informed decision-making across K–12 classrooms.