Service Governance Specialist (UAE National)

Black Pearl Consult; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 200,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Black Pearl Consult is looking for a talented Service Governance Specialist who will establish and mature the IT Service Governance Framework in Abu Dhabi. This UAE National role emphasizes proactive service management using ITIL 4 and ISO 20000 standards.

The candidate will be responsible for governance over service performance, operational KPIs, and SLA management. Experienced professionals with relevant qualifications and a minimum of 8 years in ITSM are encouraged to apply.

Qualifications

• 8 years of experience in IT Service Management or Service Governance.
• Familiarity with COBIT 2019, ISO 27001, and ISO 22301.
• Experience managing complex SLAs and cross-functional service improvement plans.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement IT Service Governance framework.
• Monitor SLAs and operational KPIs for IT services.
• Produce governance reports for COO and senior leadership.

Skills

ITIL 4

Service Governance

Data Analytics

Audit Preparation

Education

Bachelor's degree in Information Technology or related field

ITIL 4 Foundation certification

ISO/IEC 20000 Lead Implementer or Lead Auditor

Tools

ServiceNow

ManageEngine

Freshworks

Job description

Our client is seeking an experienced Service Governance Specialist (UAE National) who is responsible for establishing, enforcing, and maturing the IT Service Governance Framework across the organization to ensure resilient, consistent, and compliant service delivery. Operating at the intersection of IT operations and corporate governance, this role leverages ITIL 4 and ISO 20000 Service Management System (SMS) standards to govern the end-to-end lifecycle of IT services. The specialist acts as the primary governance authority over service performance, driving the transition from reactive operations to proactive service management. This includes overseeing Service Level Agreements (SLAs), operational KPIs, and IT General Controls (ITGC) while ensuring seamless integration with the broader Integrated Management System (IMS).

Key Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain the internal IT Service Governance framework strictly aligning workflows with ITIL 4 guiding principles, COBIT, and ISO 20000 requirements.
• Govern the IT Service Catalog and Configuration Management Database (CMDB) ensuring they accurately reflect live operational dependencies, business criticality, and explicit service ownership.
• Establish and enforce standardized operating procedures (SOPs) across the four dimensions of service management covering organizations, technology, external suppliers, and value streams.
• Define, govern, and monitor critical Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), SLAs, and Operational Level Agreements (OLAs) for all internal and external IT services.
• Actively monitor ITSM dashboards and queues to identify service bottlenecks, workload imbalances, and recurring SLA breach trends across various assignment groups.
• Produce executive-level governance reports with detailed SLA breach analyses and operational performance scorecards for the COO and senior leadership to highlight operational risks.
• Govern commercial relationships with third‑party service providers ensuring vendor performance consistently aligns with contractual SLAs and internal service quality standards.
• Drive the Continual Improvement practice across the organization by facilitating mandatory Service Review Meetings and structured post‑incident reviews for major service or security failures.
• Enforce strict Quality Assurance (QA) on IT service documentation ensuring incident closures and Problem Management records contain valid Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and actionable resolution steps.
• Mandate and govern Knowledge Management practices ensuring Level 1 and Level 2 support teams are empowered with up‑to‑date Knowledge Base articles to improve First Call Resolution (FCR) rates.
• Serve as the primary liaison for internal and external IT Service Management (ITSM) audits ensuring absolute audit‑readiness and strict compliance with IT General Controls (ITGC) across all service management domains.
• Identify operational service risks across the Service Management spectrum, record them in the central Risk Register, and manage the formal Risk Acceptance process for operational deviations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or a related field.
• ITIL 4 Foundation certification (required). ITIL 4 Managing Professional or Strategic Leader preferred.
• Minimum of 8 years of progressive experience in IT Service Management (ITSM), Service Governance, or IT GRC roles within a complex enterprise or Managed Service Provider (MSP) environment.
• Proven track record of operating successfully within ITIL‑aligned service environments and directly contributing to corporate process maturity.
• Hands‑on experience in tracking day‑to‑day service performance, actively managing complex SLAs, and coordinating cross‑functional service improvement plans.
• Experience supporting and preparing technical documentation for internal and external IT audits.
• ISO/IEC 20000 Lead Implementer or Lead Auditor certification.
• Familiarity with broader governance and IT service frameworks such as COBIT 2019, ISO 27001, and ISO 22301.
• Certifications in Data Analytics or experience building executive dashboards within specialized ITSM administration platforms (e.g., ServiceNow, ManageEngine, Freshworks).
• Must be a UAE National with a valid Emirates ID and Family Book.

Work Location

Abu Dhabi