IT Service Manager
Axians UK · Coventry, United Kingdom · hybrid
JOB SUMMARY
The IT Service Manager is accountable for the end-to-end performance, governance and continual improvement of a portfolio of IT services, including management and development of the Service Desk function, its team and platform as the single front door for all incidents and service requests.
Operating as the senior service management interface for the Head of IT the role translates business priorities into measurable service outcomes, establishes effective governance and ensures services remain resilient, secure, compliant and commercially sustainable.
The role oversees ITIL-aligned governance across incident management, service request fulfilment, problem management, change enablement, service transition and service level management. It drives continual improvement in service management capability to deliver a consistently high-quality, measurable customer experience.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
· Own the Service Desk platform and the operational front door for all incidents and service requests, ensuring effective intake, triage, routing, prioritisation, communication and fulfilment through consistent processes and service standards.
· Manage, lead and develop the Service Desk team, including Service Desk Agents and the Service Analyst, setting clear objectives, clarifying accountability, coaching performance and building consistent service management capability.
· Accountable for end-to-end service performance, customer experience, resilience, risk and value, using KPIs, SLAs, experience measures and trend analysis to drive informed decisions and corrective action.
· Analyse service data and produce accurate dashboards and regular reports covering incident and request volumes, backlogs, SLA performance, resolution times and customer satisfaction. Identify trends, recurring issues and improvement opportunities, translating findings into actionable recommendations and tracking the impact of service improvements.
· Champion the effective and responsible use of automation and artificial intelligence across service management processes to reduce manual handling, accelerate incident and service request fulfilment, improve service quality and deliver a faster, more consistent customer experience.
· Provide leadership during major incidents and critical service escalations, ensuring decisive ownership, effective communications, appropriate business continuity and timely restoration of service.
· Ensure robust problem management and post-incident governance, holding owners to account for root cause analysis, corrective actions, risk reduction and measurable prevention of recurrence.
· Own service change governance and represent service interests in change approval, balancing pace of delivery with operational risk, control, readiness and service stability.
· Set service acceptance and transition standards for new and changed services, ensuring support models, ownership, security, monitoring, capacity, continuity, documentation, knowledge and funding are in place before go-live.
· Maintain a prioritised continual improvement portfolio that delivers measurable gains in service quality, automation, efficiency, resilience, customer satisfaction and business value.
· Manage supplier service performance and commercial outcomes, challenging underperformance, validating obligations, coordinating improvement plans and supporting contract, renewal and sourcing decisions.
· Maintain oversight of service budgets, forecasts, consumption and cost drivers, identifying opportunities to improve value, control demand and optimise the total cost of service.
· Own the service risk and control position, ensuring audit actions, data protection, cyber security, backup, recovery, disaster recovery and operational resilience requirements are understood, evidenced and addressed.
· Chair service reviews and governance forums, presenting concise performance, financial, risk, compliance and improvement updates to senior business and IT stakeholders.
· Develop trusted relationships with business leaders, acting as the senior point of accountability for service matters and converting business demand into clear service priorities and outcomes.
· Own and maintain the project roadmap for service initiatives and improvements, ensuring priorities, dependencies, resources and delivery milestones are aligned with business and technology objectives.
· Own the service management strategy and operating plan for assigned services, ensuring priorities, investment and improvement roadmaps align with business objectives and technology strategy.
SKILLS & CAPABILITIES
Experience & Knowledge
· Substantial experience managing a portfolio of business-critical IT services in a complex, multi-stakeholder and supplier-supported environment
· Demonstrable accountability for service strategy, governance, performance, customer experience, risk, financial management and continual improvement
· Experience owning and developing IT service management (ITSM) platforms, with a proven track record of evolving technology through the responsible use of automation, AI and continual service improvement to reduce manual handling, accelerate service delivery and improve customer experience, supported by measurable outcomes
· Experience managing and developing a Service Desk function, including Service Desk Agents and Service Analysts, setting direction, managing performance and building capability across direct and matrix teams
· Strong track record of influencing senior stakeholders, chairing governance forums and presenting complex service matters as clear business decisions, risks and outcomes
· Experience managing strategic suppliers and supplier governance, service contracts, performance obligations, improvement plans and commercial negotiations to optimise service value
· Experience overseeing service budgets, forecasts, cost optimisation, demand management and investment cases
· Proven leadership of major incidents, high-impact escalations, problem management and service recovery in pressured environments
· Strong practical knowledge of ITIL-aligned governance across incident management, service request fulfilment, problem management, change enablement, service level management, service design and transition, and continual improvement
· ITIL certification is essential
· Ability to define service measures and translate operational, financial and customer data into insight, priorities and evidence-based decisions
· Supporting technical and control knowledge covering monitoring, asset and software management, lifecycle planning, backup and recovery, disaster recovery, continuity planning, operational and service resilience, cyber security, data protection and governance controls
PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
· Visible and credible leader who sets clear direction, creates accountability and develops high-performing teams
· Strategic thinker able to connect technology services, business priorities, customer experience and commercial outcomes
· Confident and influential communicator, effective from operational teams through to executive leadership
· Decisive under pressure, with sound judgement and the ability to balance service, risk, cost and business priorities
· Commercially aware and financially literate, with a strong focus on value, outcomes and responsible use of resources
· Skilled in negotiation, constructive challenge and conflict resolution across internal teams and external suppliers
· Analytical and evidence-led, able to turn complex information into clear priorities, decisions and executive messages
· Customer-focused and pragmatic, maintaining strategic perspective while ensuring operational commitments are delivered
· Resilient, adaptable and comfortable leading through ambiguity, organisational change and competing demands
· Committed to continual improvement, professional standards and building a mature, measurable service management culture
COMPLIANCE AND VALUES