Head of Operations

Axon Moore; Bolton; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

Axon Moore is supporting a growing Passive Fire Protection specialist in appointing a Head of Operations based in Manchester. The role holds day-to-day ownership of operational delivery across live projects, ensuring safety, quality and programme milestones are met while enabling scalable growth.

Reporting to the Managing Director, you will build robust processes, governance and a high-performing team, developing capacity planning and practical systems to drive efficiency and maintain

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of operational delivery across all live Passive Fire projects, ensuring safety, quality, programme milestones and client service.
• Build the operational capability to support ongoing growth, including workforce planning and additional management layers as the business scales nationally.
• Establish and lead the Project Management function, strengthening delivery strategy, procurement and programme management.
• Drive operational improvements through systems and processes while preserving accreditations and standards.

Job description

Head of Operations – Passive Fire | Construction

Manchester | UK-wide growth

Salary £80k - £95k

We are supporting a growing specialist Passive Fire Protection business in the appointment of a newly created Head of Operations role.

The business delivers specialist Passive Fire Protection projects across the UK, working with clients from initial survey and assessment through to installation, remediation and upgrade works. Its work spans existing buildings and live projects, with a strong focus on quality, compliance and delivering practical solutions on site.

The business is in a strong position, delivering double-digit year-on-year growth and continuing to expand its national footprint. The next stage is about building the operational infrastructure to support that growth without compromising the quality, safety and compliance standards that underpin the business.

Reporting to the Managing Director, the Head of Operations will be the senior operational leader within the business, taking overall ownership of the day to day operational agenda. This is a genuinely influential role, with responsibility for shaping the operational model, strengthening processes and governance, building high-performing teams and ensuring the business has the structure and capability to deliver safely, consistently and effectively at scale, underpinned by a keen commercial acumen.

Key deliverables will include:

• Taking full ownership of operational delivery across all live PFP projects, ensuring consistent performance across safety, quality, programme and client service.
• Building the operational capability to support continued growth, including workforce and capacity planning and the development of further management layers as the business scales nationally.
• Establishing and leading the Project Management function, strengthening delivery strategy, procurement, materials and programme management across the business.
• Driving operational improvement, introducing effective systems, processes and ways of working while maintaining the accreditations and standards that underpin the business.

This is a role for someone who has the training and discipline of a larger or Tier One environment, combined with a more entrepreneurial mindset. The opportunity is to take that experience into an agile, growing business (just sub £10m at the moment) where there is genuine scope to build, improve and introduce systems and ways of working that make sense for the organisation today — without the legacy, bureaucracy and layers often found in larger businesses.

With further national growth and project diversification planned, the role will be central to developing the people, processes and operational capability needed to take the business to its next stage.