Senior Project Transition Manager

Careerwebsite; Wiesbaden; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

NCI Agency, headquartered in Brussels, supports NATO and partners by delivering secure CIS services. Located in Wiesbaden, it seeks an experienced Service Delivery/Operations Manager to lead transition and ongoing operations for NCIA services at the site.

The role covers incident, problem and change management, SLA governance and cost control, with extensive interaction across vendors, customers and senior stakeholders. NATO experience is advantageous.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required with 8+ years post-related experience.
• Alternative: 12+ years progressive IT/service delivery experience without degree.
• ITIL 4 Foundation and ITSM certifications are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Lead project transitions from planning to live service and handover.
• Ensure operational readiness, service acceptance and documentation.
• Manage incidents, problems and escalation with stakeholders.
• Oversee change control, risk assessment and CAB participation.
• Define and monitor SLAs, reporting, and continual service improvement.
• Budget, cost control and vendor/contract management for the location.

Skills

Communication

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Analytical skills

Problem solving

Leadership in international teams

German language knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in Information Technology / Engineering / Business Administration

ITIL 4 Foundation

PMI/PMBOK or PRINCE2 qualification

Tools

ITSM tools: ServiceNow, BMC Remedy, Jira Service Management

Job description

Spektrum supports apex purchasers (NATO, UN, EU, and National Government and Defence) and their Tier 1 supplier ecosystem with a wide range of specialist services. We provide our clients with professional services, specialised aerospace and defence sales, delivery, and operational subject matter expertise. We are looking for personnel to join our team and support key client projects.

Who we are supporting

The NATO Communication and Information Agency (NCIA) is responsible for providing secure and effective communications and information technology (IT) services to NATO's member countries and its partners. The agency was established in 2012 and is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.

The NCIA provides a wide range of services, including:

• Cyber Security: The NCIA provides advanced cybersecurity solutions to protect NATO's communication networks and information systems against cyber threats.
• Command and Control Systems: The NCIA develops and maintains the systems used by NATO's military commanders to plan and execute operations.
• Satellite Communications: The NCIA provides satellite communications services to enable secure and reliable communications between NATO forces.
• Electronic Warfare: The NCIA provides electronic warfare services to support NATO's mission to detect, deny, and defeat threats to its communication networks.
• Information Management: The NCIA manages NATO's information technology infrastructure, including its databases, applications, and servers.

The program

Assistance and Advisory Service (AAS)

The NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCI Agency) is NATO's principal C3 capability deliverer and CIS service provider. It provides, maintains and defends the NATO enterprise-wide information technology infrastructure to enable Allies to consult together under Article IV, and, when required, stand together in the face of attack under Article V.

To provide these critical services, in the modern evolving dynamic environment the NCI Agency needs to build and maintain high performance-engaged workforce. The NCI Agency workforce strategically consists of three major categorise's: NATO International Civilians (NIC)'s, Military (Mil), and Interim Workforce Consultants (IWC)'s. The IWCs are a critical part of the overall NCI Agency workforce and make up approximately 15 percent of the total workforce.

Role ID - C005419

Role Duties and Responsibilities

Project Transition to Operations

• Leads the transition of projects and capabilities into operational service, from early engagement in project planning through to formal handover and early life support.
• Defines and agrees transition plans, entry and exit criteria, service acceptance criteria and handover deliverables with Project Managers, Service Owners and customers.
• Ensures operational readiness prior to go-live: support model, staffing, training, documentation, spares, underpinning contracts, monitoring and configuration data are in place.
• Evaluates project outputs against agreed service acceptance criteria and formally recommends acceptance, conditional acceptance or rejection.
• Identifies, manages and escalates transition risks, issues and dependencies, and ensures residual risks are understood and owned by operations.
• Manages early life support and closes transition only when agreed service performance has been demonstrated.
• Captures and applies lessons identified to improve future transitions.

Local Operations Management (Wiesbaden)

• Takes accountability for the day-to-day delivery of NCIA services at the location, including service performance, customer satisfaction and compliance with security and safety requirements.
• Leads and coordinates local technical, support and contractor personnel, setting clear priorities, standards and direction.
• Oversees the local infrastructure (facilities, networks, data centre / server rooms, end-user and deployable CIS assets) and ensures it is maintained, secured and fit for purpose.
• Ensures asset and configuration management records for the location are accurate and complete.
• Coordinates local business continuity and service recovery arrangements.

Incident and Problem Management

• Ensures incidents are logged, prioritised, diagnosed and resolved according to agreed procedures and service levels.
• Leads the resolution of major incidents, coordinating technical teams, vendors and customers, and provides timely, accurate communication to senior stakeholders.
• Escalates unresolved incidents and facilitates recovery following resolution.
• Initiates and monitors problem investigations, drives root cause analysis and ensures preventive measures are implemented.
• Analyses incident and problem trends to reduce recurrence and improve service stability.

Change Management

• Manages the change control process for services and assets at the location and for services in transition.
• Assesses changes for risk, impact, cost and resource requirements, and represents the location in Change Advisory Boards.
• Ensures changes are planned, communicated, tested, implemented and reviewed in a controlled manner, minimising disruption to operations.

Service Level Management

• Negotiates service level requirements and agreed service levels with customers, and contributes to Service Level Agreements, Operational Level Agreements and underpinning contracts.
• Monitors service performance and key performance indicators, diagnoses service delivery problems and initiates improvement actions.
• Provides accurate and regular performance reporting to NCIA management and customers.
• Drives continual service improvement across processes, tools and third-party delivery.

Cost, Resource and Vendor Management

• Manages the operational and transition budget for the location, including cost planning, forecasting, tracking and variance reporting.
• Provides inputs to customer budget processes, cost models and service rates, ensuring the full cost of operating transitioned services is identified and funded.
• Identifies cost optimisation opportunities without compromising service levels or security.
• Manages vendor and contractor performance against contractual obligations, statements of work and service levels, and supports procurement activities as required.

Essential Skills, Experience and Certifications

Education

• A minimum requirement of a Bachelor's degree at a nationally recognised/certified university in Information Technology, Engineering, Business Administration or a related discipline, and 8 years' post-related experience.
• Or exceptionally, the lack of a university degree may be compensated by the demonstration of a candidate's particular abilities or experience that is/are of interest to the NCI Agency, that is, at least 12 years' extensive and progressive expertise in duties related to the function of the post.

Experience

• Minimum 8 years of combined experience in IT service management and project management, of which at least 3 years in a senior role.
• Proven experience (minimum 5 years) in IT service management in a Service Delivery Manager, IT Operations Manager or similar role, including incident, problem, change and service level management.
• Proven experience (minimum 5 years) in project management, delivering complex IT/CIS projects to time, cost and quality.
• Demonstrable track record of transitioning projects or new capabilities into live operational service.
• Proven experience engaging, influencing and briefing senior stakeholders at executive (C-level) or General/Flag Officer level.
• Experience managing IT infrastructure (networks, data centres, servers, end-user and communications systems) in an operational environment.
• Experience in budget and cost management, including forecasting, cost control and financial reporting.
• Proven experience managing vendors and contractors against contractual and service level obligations.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams in an international environment.
• Excellent communication, negotiation and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to make data-driven decisions under pressure.

Training/Certifications

• ITIL 4 Foundation (or ITIL v3 Foundation).
• Project management certification: PMP (PMI / PMBOK) or PRINCE2 Practitioner.

Desirable Qualifications

• Experience in NATO, military, defence or other international organisations.
• Experience with deployable CIS or mission-critical communications services.
• ITIL 4 Managing Professional or Strategic Leader; MSP or PgMP; SIAM certification.
• Experience with ITSM tools (e.g. ServiceNow, BMC Remedy, Jira Service Management).
• Knowledge of NATO procurement and financial processes.
• Working knowledge of German.

Working Location

• Wiesbaden, Germany

Working Policy

• 100% Full time on-site

Travel

• Some travel to other NATO sites may be required

Security Clearance

• Valid National or NATO Secret personal security clearance