This job is with AQA, an inclusive employer and a member of myGwork – the largest global platform for the LGBTQ business community. Please do not contact the recruiter directly. At AQA, we're committed to advancing education and we're committed to our people. As the largest provider of academic qualifications in the UK, we mark over 10 million exam papers each year and it's our people who make this happen. Infrastructure & Cloud Operations Manager Permanent Manchester: £65,682 - £73,290 Hyrbrid Working Imagine spearheading transformative cloud and infrastructure operations that empower thousands of employees. Are you ready to lead a team that drives innovation, fosters collaboration and ensures seamless delivery of business-critical services? At AQA, we're seeking an Infrastructure & Cloud Operations Manager to shape the future of enterprise technology. In this pivotal role, you'll lead a high-performing team to deliver evergreen, secure, and scalable infrastructure services, ensuring value for money and a culture of continuous improvement. You'll oversee the management of both on-premises and cloud platforms, ensuring seamless service delivery that supports a hybrid workforce. Your leadership will drive innovation, operational excellence, and a modernised IT infrastructure aligned with business goals. What's in it for you? Leadership : Guide and inspire a talented team to deliver excellence in cloud and on-premises infrastructure services. Impact : Oversee the design, implementation, and management of cutting-edge IT environments supporting hybrid working. Growth : Collaborate with enterprise functions and external vendors to align with best practices and security standards. Enjoy a flexible work environment with a 35-hour week and extensive opportunities for professional and personal development. Access to an enhanced contributory pension scheme which could you see you paying in 7% and AQA contributing 11.5% (Other options are available) Receive 25 days of annual leave, increasing to 30 days with service, plus bank holidays and additional Christmas office closure. Comprehensive health coverage from day one, including Bupa PMI, Health Cash Plan, and Life Assurance. Participate in eco-friendly transport schemes, including electric vehicles and cycle-to-work options. To be successful in this role, you will need to know: Strong leadership and team management skills to build high-performing teams. Have expertise and know how to manage and develop complex infrastructure. Cloud compute platforms (MS Azure) and networks (Cisco). How to manage third-party vendor relationships and the delivery of contractual commitments for managed services. ITIL, ISO/IEC27001, and Cyber Essentials frameworks for delivering secure services. Be commercially aware and able to forecast budgets. Resilience, adaptability, and the ability to deliver under pressure. Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills. How do I apply? Read the full job description and upload your most recent CV by following the link provided. Closing date for applications will be Sunday 16th February. AQA is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community regardless of gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, disability status, citizenship, or any other aspect which makes people unique. Recruitment Agencies We have a preferred supplier list (PSL) in place. Unsolicited CVs will be treated as a gift. We will not be subject to or liable under your terms and conditions for agency fees. Full Job Description Summary Purpose: As the Infrastructure and Cloud Operations Manager within the Enterprise Services department, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of our enterprise technology. Leading the design and delivery of our on-premises and cloud infrastructure and platforms. Responsibility for creating a culture and service that is evergreen and continually reviewing opportunities to improve the infrastructure and cloud service offering. Provide inspirational leadership to the infrastructure and cloud operations team creating vision, setting and communicating direction and bringing clarity to ensure they are equipped to deliver and develop.Landscape: Reporting to the Head of Enterprise Services, who in turn reports into the Director of Enterprise Technology within Corporate Services. The role will lead the continuous improvement of an enterprise scale infrastructure and cloud operations service that has responsibility for on-premises infrastructure and accountability for assuring the managed services underpinning cloud operations. Supporting and leading a hybrid working team that is spread across multiple office locations. As a security focussed organisation, you will provide services that enable ongoing alignment and certification to ISO/IEC27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. Enterprise Technology consists of the following functions: • Service Delivery • Enterprise IT Services • Enterprise Applications • Enterprise Architecture • Security, Risk & Data Protection Activities: Lead the strategy and delivery of infrastructure and cloud services, maintaining a roadmap plan Lead and develop the team, positively impacting the creation of a high performing culture of continuous improvement and service delivery across the team, role modelling behaviours and actions to support this Champion security, colleague experience, efficiency, and value for money infrastructure and cloud services Establish a strong service focused culture, with a focus on service led KPIs and SLA's Champion the leveraging of technology to improve AQA colleagues collaboration and productivity Manage the team to ensure resources are planned to deliver both BAU and projects priorities Implement and embed effective operational management and monitoring governance, processes and procedures to ensure the timely identification, documentation and resolution of issues. Ensuring service are being delivered to the required expectations Establish and manage supplier relationships, holding them to account for the delivery of services Accountable for the solution design and service implementation / operation are effectively satisfied and that activity is delivered in line within any agreed cost, quality and time criteria. Providing appropriate project assurance Effectively manage the lifecycle for hardware and software technologies, ensuring that we remain current and provide a structured forward plan that enables an evergreen approach to infrastructure and cloud services Manage budget in accordance with AQA's financial management and budgetary procedures and deliver appropriate resources effectively ensuring that all relevant financial KPIs and SLAs are met Forecasts future years budget and resource plans, identifying significant variances Build strong stakeholder relationships within Enterprise and Assessment Technology and across AQA to align platform services to the needs of the organisation Develop and report on measures that demonstrate a high performing platform service team To be successful in this role, you will need to know: Strong leadership and team management skills Proven success managing high performing teams Technical expertise and competence in the management and development of mainstream cloud (including MS Azure) / on-premise infrastructural environments, computing hardware, storage and back up platforms. Server and Desktop Virtualisation. Telecoms & Networking, especially Cisco technologies Good knowledge of and the ability to apply ITIL, ISO/IEC27001, Cyber Essentials Plus and COBIT standards and frameworks into the delivery of the infrastructure & cloud service Change oriented, people leader who can quickly bring about timely and cost-effective delivery and process improvement Be results focused: make pragmatic decisions and deliver at pace Excellent customer service. The ability to translate the impact of a technical issue onto a business service How to be resilient and work under pressure, being used to meeting deadlines Forward planning and budget forecasting abilities Commercially aware and experience of working in an environment that relies on 3rd parties and 3rd party delivered services Demonstrable experience in stakeholder management and ability to influence and persuade stakeholders at all levelsLI-DNI