Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Planning Manager

Sainsbury's; London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the retail sector is seeking a professional with significant knowledge in disaster recovery and business continuity management. The role involves developing and maintaining recovery plans, leading testing exercises, and ensuring compliance with industry standards. The successful candidate will contribute to continuous improvement and demonstrate strong leadership and project management skills within a dynamic and collaborative environment.

Benefits

Colleague discounts

Pension scheme

Life cover

Performance bonus

Holiday allowances

Health plans

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of disaster recovery and business continuity management.
• Experience in automating disaster recovery processes.
• Track record in modern disaster recovery strategies.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain disaster recovery plans and procedures.
• Conduct annual disaster recovery testing exercises.
• Provide guidance and support to the disaster recovery team.

Skills

Strong knowledge of disaster recovery principles, practices, and technologies

People management experience

Project management, organizational, and communication skills

Ability to work under pressure and manage multiple priorities

Self-motivated, innovative, eager to learn new skills

Education

Knowledge of industry standards like ISO 22301 and ISO 27031

Tools

ServiceNow

Job description

Division/Department

Sainsbury’s Tech / Infra & Tooling

Location

Working From Home & Store Support Centre

Reporting to

Senior Head of Technology – Infra & Tooling

Directly or indirectly manages

A team of 2 Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Planning Leads (C4)

Budget

No direct budget responsibilities, required to feed requirements into the departmental budget

In a nutshell

Work with internal support teams & 3rd parties to ensure annual Disaster Recovery testing is performed and recorded for all critical systems for the whole of the business. Manage, implement and drive continuous improvements, including “out of the box” thinking, to ensure the team continues to grow. Provide support to projects and all levels of management demonstrating governance requirements.

• Carry out monthly 1-2-1 sessions and end-of-year reviews with each team member, to monitor performance and development needs. Set goals and objectives which are monitored and discussed in the 1-2-1 sessions.

• Engage in internal audits when required and agree timescales for any actions.

• Represent the team in projects under a Non-Disclosure Agreement, ensuring confidentiality.

What I am accountable for

• Developing, implementing, and maintaining disaster recovery plans and procedures to ensure service continuity during disruptions.

• Ensuring compliance with resilience policies and disaster recovery frameworks through effective testing, operational controls, and reporting. Lead and support the disaster recovery team, providing guidance and strengthening capabilities.

• Keeping risk and control management up to date and aligned with business processes.

• Providing expertise and support to management and business areas for disaster recovery processes.

• Leading and supporting the development of disaster recovery plans.

• Coordinating and conducting annual disaster recovery testing exercises.

• Promoting a culture of continuous improvement and maximizing available tools to enhance operational resilience.

• Reviewing Important Business Services to identify gaps in disaster recovery for supporting IT services.

• Facilitating and supporting plan execution during crises.

• Advising projects to meet disaster recovery standards for new systems.

• Reporting disaster recovery status to senior management and stakeholders.

What I need to know

Essential

• Strong knowledge of disaster recovery principles, practices, and technologies

• People management experience

• Experience in automating disaster recovery management and orchestration (ServiceNow experience desirable)

• Ability to work under pressure and manage multiple priorities

• Project management, organizational, and communication skills

• Self-motivated, innovative, eager to learn new skills

• Assertive personality with good organizational and interpersonal skills

• Knowledge of industry standards like ISO 22301 and ISO 27031 relating to Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity

Desirable

• Proven track record in creating and embedding modern disaster recovery strategies

• Experience with ServiceNow

• Knowledge of Business Impact Analysis and Risk Assessments

What I need to show

• Consistent delivery on outcomes, clear communication, problem-solving independence

• Respectful and open communication, inviting challenge and feedback

• Understanding business context, goal review, adaptability, and proactive problem solving

• Openness to new methods, supporting change, and curiosity about business operations

• Seeking and giving feedback, building relationships based on honesty and integrity

• Customer perspective focus, using data to understand and solve customer problems

• Living our Purpose in decision-making, guiding teams accordingly

• Role clarity, accountability, prioritization aligned with customer commitments

• Effective delegation, performance management, and understanding the bigger picture

• Sharing and understanding internal/external strategies, fostering diverse perspectives and challenge

• Developing others through feedback and coaching, self-awareness and continuous development

Support we will provide

• Access to My Learning for self-management and technical training

• Internal mentoring, bitesized talks, flexible working options with approval

Qualifications

We are committed to inclusion and development. Benefits include colleague discounts, pension scheme, life cover, performance bonus, holiday allowances, health plans, and various financial benefits. We support family leave and provide access to numerous other benefits. See www.sainsburys.jobs for details (eligibility may vary).

Responsibilities

Our environment involves large-scale data and transactions, requiring modern software engineering practices like Agile, Scrum, and XP. Opportunities include AI and reusable tech development.