Head of IT Operations & Delivery

About the School / Service

IT Services is a centralised resource working collaboratively with the University community to transform UEL's digital world in line with the University’s Vision 2028 strategic plan. Engaging in ground-breaking initiatives delivered within a dynamically developing cloud environment, IT Services work closely with staff, students, partners and other key collaborators to identify technological improvements to our learning and working environments. We implement, develop and provide support for systems and services within the university’s IT Service Portfolio.

Every member of staff will embrace the University’s values, ensuring their behaviour reflects the ethos of the University, one committed to building a learning community founded on equality of opportunity and celebrating the rich diversity of our student and staff populations.

About the Job

We are seeking an experienced and strategic Head of IT Operations & Delivery to provide senior operational leadership across key IT service and delivery functions within the University.

This role is responsible for leading multiple technical teams spanning application development and support, infrastructure, networking, end user computing, and integrations. You will ensure that IT services are secure, resilient, cost-effective, and aligned with the University’s strategic objectives.

You will play a critical role in driving operational excellence, ensuring effective service performance, governance, and delivery planning across a complex and evolving digital estate.

• Provide leadership and direction to multi-disciplinary technical teams, ensuring high performance and delivery outcomes
• Develop and support managers and team leaders, ensuring accountability, professional growth and succession planning
• Promote a culture of collaboration, accountability, customer focus and continuous improvement
• Lead workforce planning including recruitment, retention, and skills development
• Ensure availability, performance, resilience and recoverability of IT services across cloud and on-premise platforms
• Oversee ITIL-aligned processes including incident, problem, change and release management

About You

You are an experienced IT leader with a strong operational background and a passion for delivering high-quality, resilient services in complex environments.

You will bring:

• Significant experience leading multi-disciplinary IT teams across applications, infrastructure, integrations, networking and EUC
• Strong knowledge of IT service management and operational best practices (ITIL aligned)
• Experience delivering services in cloud and hybrid environments
• Proven ability to translate strategy into effective operational delivery
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at senior levels
• Excellent communication, leadership and decision-making skills
• A proactive, solutions-focused mindset with the ability to manage complexity and competing priorities

How to apply

Alongside the application form, please also upload an up-to-date copy of your CV for review.

Benefits Package

At UEL, we believe that a great role is about more than just a salary. It’s about the complete package, including our outstanding work environment and inclusive culture.

We offer a genuinely competitive salary, dependent on experience (DOE), and a range of excellent benefits.

You can explore our full benefits package here: https://uel.ac.uk/benefits-professional-services-positions

Further Details

Job Description & Person Specification

To contact the recruitment team please phone +44 20 8223 3000 x 4600 or e-mail jobs@uel.ac.uk