Application Administrator II

This position is currently employed by CATS, a department of the City of Charlotte. With the passage of the PAVE Act and last year’s sales tax referendum, CATS is preparing to transition from a City department to the newly created Metropolitan Public Transit Authority (MPTA). The MPTA was established to strengthen regional transit governance, improve accountability, and support long-term investment in mobility. It’s an important and exciting step forward for transit in our region.

Employees hired into this role will remain City employees through December 31, 2026, and will transition to MPTA employment on January 1, 2027. Benefits and compensation will follow City provisions through 2026 and shift to MPTA provisions in 2027, with clear information shared in advance. Your core duties, reporting structure, and daily responsibilities will remain consistent, with no break in service. If anything delays the transition, your City employment, including compensation and benefits, will remain in place until the move to the MPTA occurs.

The creation of the MPTA positions us for a more modern, sustainable, and efficient transit system, one that can better support the Charlotte region for decades to come. We’re excited about what’s ahead and appreciate your interest in being part of it., The Application Administrator II performs advanced professional work administering, configuring, supporting, and improving technology applications used by the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). This position is responsible for maintaining reliable system operation while exercising independent judgment in system configuration, troubleshooting, and implementation activities.

The Application Administrator II administers, configures, supports, and continuously improves enterprise business applications with primary responsibility for Workday and Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) platforms. The position serves as the primary technical resource for assigned systems and partners with HR, Finance, Procurement, Payroll, Maintenance, Operations, vendors, and infrastructure teams to ensure secure, reliable, and efficient business operations.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

Application Administration and System Ownership Support

• Administer and configure Workday and/or Enterprise Asset Management applications.
• Manage security roles, workflows, business processes, reports, and configuration.
• Support upgrades, releases, testing, and deployments.
• Support integrations with enterprise systems.
• Develop reports, dashboards, and data extracts.
• Maintain documentation and knowledge articles.
• Troubleshoot application issues and coordinate resolution.
• Drive continual improvement and user adoption.

User and Stakeholder Support

• Serve as a primary technical contact for assigned application users.
• Analyze user requirements and recommend system solutions or configuration changes.
• Provide training and guidance to users on system functionality and best practices.
• Support access management and role-based security controls.

Implementation and Enhancement Activities

• Lead portions of system upgrades, implementations, or enhancement initiatives.
• Participate in requirements analysis and solution design activities.
• Coordinate testing, validation, and deployment activities.
• Evaluate impacts of changes to operational workflows and business processes.

Vendor Coordination and Technical Liaison

• Coordinate directly with vendors to resolve technical issues and implement system improvements.
• Review vendor recommendations and assess operational impacts.
• Monitor vendor performance related to assigned systems.
• Escalate risks or performance concerns appropriately.

Documentation and Knowledge Management

• Develop and maintain technical documentation and operational procedures.
• Ensure configuration changes are documented and traceable.
• Contribute to organizational knowledge repositories.
• Support standardization of documentation practices.

Continuous Improvement and Analysis

• Analyze system performance and recommend improvements.
• Identify opportunities to automate processes or improve system utilization.
• Support adoption of best practices in application administration.
• Participate in organizational process improvement initiatives.

Technical Proficiency and System Administration: Ability to independently administer complex application systems.

• Applies advanced troubleshooting techniques.
• Maintains system stability and performance.
• Implements configuration changes responsibly.

Analytical Problem Solving: Ability to analyze operational and technical issues and recommend solutions.

• Evaluates system impacts and alternatives.
• Identifies root causes of problems.
• Applies structured analysis methods.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement: Ability to work effectively with users, vendors, and technical teams.

• Builds strong working relationships.
• Communicates technical solutions clearly.
• Balances stakeholder needs with system constraints.

Accountability and Quality Focus: Ability to maintain high standards of accuracy and reliability.

• Ensures configuration integrity.
• Maintains documentation accuracy.
• Supports organizational standards.

Communication: Ability to communicate technical information effectively across audiences.

• Documents processes clearly.
• Provides user guidance.
• Shares information proactively.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Knowledge of:

• Application lifecycle management practices.
• System configuration and integration concepts.
• Software testing and troubleshooting techniques.
• Change management practices.
• Operational or enterprise technology environments.

Skill in:

• Diagnosing and resolving application issues.
• Coordinating technical activities with vendors.
• Analyzing user requirements.
• Developing system documentation.
• Communicating technical concepts effectively.

Ability to:

• Exercise independent judgment in system administration decisions.
• Manage multiple assignments simultaneously.
• Translate business needs into system configurations.
• Work collaboratively across departments.
• Maintain professional relationships with stakeholders.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Information Systems, or related field; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Three (3) years experience supporting or administering business or operational applications.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience administering enterprise or operational technology systems.
• Experience participating in system implementations.
• Experience working with vendor-supported platforms.
• Public-sector or transit technology experience.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

The City’s Background Check Policy requires background checks to be conducted on final internal or external candidate(s) applying for any position with the City of Charlotte. The type of information that will be collected as part of a background check includes, but is not limited to: reference checks, social security verification, education verification, criminal conviction record check, and, if applicable, a credit history check, sex offender registry and motor vehicle records check.

Background checks must be in compliance with all federal and state statutes, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The checks must be consistent with the guidelines set forth by these laws requiring organizations to obtain a candidate’s written authorization before obtaining a criminal background report, motor vehicle records check or credit report; and to properly store and dispose of information derived from such reports.

Final candidates must pass a pre-employment drug-screening test and physical examination. During the selection process, candidates may be asked to take a skills test, and/or participate in other assessments.

The City of Charlotte provides a comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees.