Head of IT Service Management

Purpose of the role

Reporting directly to the Director of Managed Services, The Head of Service Management is responsible for the leadership, governance, performance and continual improvement of all IT Service Management (ITSM) functions within the Shared Managed Services business. The role provides strategic and operational leadership across the Service Desk, Major Incident Management, Problem Management, Change Management, Service Governance and Service Reporting functions. Working closely with customers, operational teams and senior stakeholders, the role ensures service excellence, operational efficiency, strong governance and continual enhancement of customer outcomes.

Culture, Values and Behaviours

• Putting customers first and maintaining a strong focus on service outcomes.
• Giving their best through visible leadership, accountability and high professional standards.
• Challenging limits by using innovation, automation and continual improvement to strengthen service performance.
• Rising together by collaborating across teams, communicating clearly and helping others succeed.
• Taking ownership of outcomes and demonstrating resilience during service-critical situations.
• Continuously learning and encouraging the development of others.

Key Responsibilities/Deliverables/Behaviours

• Lead and develop the Service Desk and Service Management teams, creating a high-performing and customer-focused culture.
• Own ITSM governance across the Shared Managed Service business, ensuring alignment with ITIL best practices and organisational standards.
• Oversee Incident, Major Incident, Problem and Change Management functions, ensuring effective control and continuous service performance.
• Drive SLA achievement, customer satisfaction, service availability and operational excellence across all managed service contracts.
• Act as the senior escalation point for critical incidents and significant service issues.
• Lead automation, efficiency and continual service improvement initiatives that enhance service maturity and reduce operational risk.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with customers, suppliers and senior stakeholders, balancing customer, operational and commercial priorities.

Success Measures

• A highly successful Head of Service Management will have:
• Consistently achieved contractual SLA and KPI commitments.
• Improved customer satisfaction (CSAT) and overall service perception.
• Increased service availability and first contact resolution rates.
• Improved major incident recovery performance and reduced business impact.
• Maintained a high change success rate while effectively managing service risk.

Knowledge/Skills/Experience

Essential Skills

• Significant leadership experience gained within an IT Managed Services environment.
• Proven track record leading Service Desk, Incident, Major Incident, Problem and Change Management functions.
• Experience managing multi-customer managed service contracts and delivering against agreed SLAs and KPIs.
• Experience driving ITSM governance, service improvement and operational excellence.
• Strong hands-on experience with enterprise ITSM platforms, including ServiceNow.
• Expert knowledge of ITIL-based Service Management practices, governance frameworks and continual service improvement methodologies, with proven experience applying these within a complex Managed Services environment.
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication and leadership skills, with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead high-performing operational teams.
• Strong analytical and decision-making capability with sound commercial awareness.

Desirable Skills

• Experience leading automation, transformation or service modernisation programmes.
• Experience delivering executive governance reporting to customers and senior leadership.
• Experience operating within large-scale outsourced or enterprise Managed Services environments.

Essential Qualification

• ITIL 4 (or above) Managing Professional (MP), ITIL Expert or equivalent advanced IT Service Management qualification.
• Equivalent demonstrable experience operating at a senior Service Management leadership level may be considered where supported by significant practical achievement.
• Proven experience applying ITIL practices across Service Desk, Incident, Major Incident, Problem, Change and Continual Service Improvement disciplines.

Desirable

• ITIL 4 (or above) Strategic Leader (SL) certification.
• Leadership or management qualification such as ILM, CMI or equivalent.
• Lean, Six Sigma or Service Improvement certification.

Additional Role Requirements

• Occasional travel to customer and company locations may be required.
• Participation in major service incidents or escalations outside normal business hours may be required.
• Ability to successfully attain and maintain Security Check (SC) and Non-Police Personnel Vetting Level 3 (NPPV3) clearance.
• Successful completion of any role-relevant background screening or security clearance may be required for specific customer assignments

At Telefónica Tech, we believe inclusion is the bridge that empowers everyone to be their authentic selves. We celebrate and respect our differences because diversity drives innovation and makes us stronger.

Be yourself with us, and feel that you belong.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and identities regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

We are also committed to equity, accessible hiring practices, and creating an inclusive culture through many means including TogetHer (Women's network) and our Employee Resource Groups which include Diversity and Inclusion, Telefónica Tech Pride, Neurodiversity, ELEVATE (African and Caribbean heritage network), and Sustainability.

We don’t believe hiring is a tick box exercise, so if you feel that you don’t match the job description 100%, but would still be a great fit for role, please get in touch.