Western Cape Education Department (WCED) Deputy Director: ECD: Administration and Reporting Systems Manager Vacancy 2026

Opportunity Overview

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) is seeking a skilled professional for a Deputy Director role within its Early Childhood Development (ECD) directorate. This is a crucial 3-year contract position based in Cape Town, focused on enhancing and managing the department's administrative and reporting systems.

The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in ensuring the efficient operation, adoption, and support of the provincial eCares System. This involves a mix of technical oversight, user support, training, and strategic system testing to drive effective decision-making in ECD.

Minimum Requirements

To be considered for this opportunity, applicants must meet the following criteria:

• Education: A SAQA-recognised three-year post-matric qualification (NQF Level 7) in Information Systems, ICT, Computer Science, Data, or a related field.
• Experience: 6 to 7 years of relevant experience in systems administration and user support, user acceptance testing (UAT), training facilitation, data reporting, and system usage monitoring.
• Knowledge: Familiarity with cloud-based system operations and the Provincial Education Management Information System (EMIS) environment and/or ECD system landscape.
• Skills: Strong analytical abilities, advanced data manipulation and reporting skills (Excel advanced level), the ability to coordinate multi-level stakeholders (national, provincial, district), problem-solving ability, attention to detail, and a customer service orientation.
• Other: The ability to work independently and travel extensively is required. A valid driver's license is essential. Applicants must be South African Citizens/Permanent Residents or Non-SA Citizens with a valid work permit.

Key Responsibilities

The successful candidate will be responsible for a range of duties, including:

• Leading provincial support for eCares system usage, performance, and adoption.
• Monitoring user compliance with system functionality and data workflows.
• Advocating for system utilisation to support decision-making processes.
• Managing first-line helpdesk support for Provincial Education Department (PED) users.
• Overseeing user access, roles, and permissions within the system.
• Promptly escalating issues to national teams and service providers.
• Conducting ongoing training for users on new releases, functional improvements, reporting, and dashboards.
• Supporting districts and circuits to drive system usage.
• Leading provincial testing of system releases and updates.
• Developing test plans, recording User Acceptance Testing (UAT) outcomes, and providing feedback to developers.
• Validating system enhancements before deployment.

What the Work Involves

This role involves hands-on management and strategic oversight of key information systems that support Early Childhood Development across the Western Cape. Day-to-day, you will lead efforts to ensure the provincial eCares System runs smoothly, providing critical support to users and monitoring its overall performance. You will manage helpdesk operations, resolve access issues, and escalate more complex technical challenges to national teams or service providers.

A significant part of the work includes designing and delivering training sessions for users on new system features, improvements, and reporting tools, supporting various districts and circuits to maximise system adoption. You will also be at the forefront of quality assurance, leading the testing of new system updates and enhancements, developing detailed test plans, and providing essential feedback to developers. While based in Cape Town, the position requires extensive travel to support users and systems across the province, working with a wide range of stakeholders from provincial to district levels.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted using the Western Cape Education Department’s online E-Recruitment system.

• Visit the application portal using Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox: https://www.westerncape.gov.za/education
• Read the foreword available on the WCED website before beginning your application.
• Ensure your online profile is fully completed, as the system will automatically generate your Curriculum Vitae from this information.

Please Note: Certified copies of your Identity Document, Senior Certificate, highest required qualification, and a driver's license (where necessary) will only be submitted by shortlisted candidates to HR on or before the day of the interview.

The closing date for applications is 09 October 2026.