IT Operations Director - Infrastructure and Cyber

Daisy Group™; Brierfield; On-site; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday + bank holidays + 1y‑2

Birthday day off

Referral bonus £500

Professional development

Eye care vouchers

Virgin Media/O2 deals

Retail discounts

Job summary

O2 Business seeks an IT Operations Director - Infrastructure and Cyber to lead the secure, resilient running of our technology platforms and services. You will own infrastructure engineering, cloud services, network operations and IT service management, working with the CIO function to ensure service stability and business continuity.

Key leadership responsibilities include driving a service-led culture, managing budgets and partners, and aligning cyber operations with CISO standards while

Qualifications

• Degree-level IT/CS/Cyber Security or equivalent experience.
• ITIL certification and strong service management knowledge.
• Proven leadership of enterprise IT operations, security and budgets.

Responsibilities

• Oversee stability, resilience and performance of infrastructure, cloud and networks.
• Own service management, incident, change and reporting across platforms.
• Lead cyber security operations and align with CISO standards.
• Manage suppliers, partners and cross-functional stakeholder relationships.

Skills

ITIL Foundation certification

Azure cloud platforms

Security operations

Leadership & stakeholder management

Cloud infrastructure

Budget management

Education

Degree-level IT/CS/Cyber Security/Engineering or equivalent

Tools

Azure

Microsoft Fabric

Data Lake storage

Job description

Exciting news from us at Daisy: we’re re-branding to O2 Business! Following the merger between Virgin Media O2 Business and Daisy Group last year, we’re taking the next step in our journey by announcing our new brand! As O2 Business, we believe in the wonder of simplicity; the joy of that comes when technology works as it should, with reliability, clarity, and speed. We’re incredibly excited about this next step in our journey and you could be on that journey too.

We’re looking for an IT Operations Director - Infrastructure and Cyber to be accountable for the secure, resilient and efficient running of the technology platforms and services supporting the organisation’s business systems and employee experience. The role oversees infrastructure and cyber solution architecture, infrastructure engineering, platform operations, IT service operations and end-user computing.

The objective of this role is to build a leading IT support operation, developing processes and people while supporting large scale systems transformation and consolidation of IT services to one.

Job Title: IT Operations Director - Infrastructure and Cyber

Salary: DoE

Location: Nelson, Cheadle or Bournemouth

Hours of work: 37.5 hrs a week Monday to Friday between 08:30 - 17:30

What You’ll Be Doing

Key Accountabilities

• Own the operational stability, resilience and performance of infrastructure, cloud, network and workplace technology services.
• Own data lake and Fabric infrastructure, including platform foundations, storage, compute and operational resilience.
• Lead infrastructure engineering, cloud services, network services, hosting and platform operations.
• Own IT service management, including incident, problem, change enablement, request fulfilment and service reporting.
• Own service desk, end-user computing and colleague technology support.
• Lead security operations and SOC capabilities where these sit within CIO operational scope.
• Ensure infrastructure and operational platforms meet agreed availability, performance, resilience and cyber control requirements.
• Work with CISO on security standards, monitoring, incident response and risk remediation.
• Support business continuity, disaster recovery and technology resilience planning.
• Manage operational suppliers, managed service partners and infrastructure delivery partners were within remit.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Lead the operational backbone of the CIO function.
• Build a service-led culture focused on reliability, responsiveness and continuous improvement.
• Drive operational discipline through ITIL-aligned processes and measurable service outcomes.
• Ensure cyber operations are run effectively while recognising that independent security policy and challenge sit with CISO.
• Provide clear line of sight from operational performance to customer and colleague experience.

Success measures

• Improved service stability, availability and operational resilience.
• Reduced severity and recurrence of major incidents.
• Effective ITSM adoption and service reporting.
• Data lake infrastructure available and scalable to support data engineering and analytics needs.
• Improved end-user support experience.
• Security operations are effective and aligned to CISO standards.

What We’re Looking For

• Degree-level qualification in Information Technology, Computer Science, Cyber Security, Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• ITIL Foundation certification (or higher) with a strong understanding of IT Service Management principles and practices.
• Proven experience leading enterprise-wide IT Operations, Infrastructure, Service Management and Cyber Security functions at a senior leadership or Director level.
• Demonstrated success developing and executing technology and operational strategies that improve service stability, resilience, security, performance and customer experience.
• Deep expertise across cloud platforms, infrastructure, networks, workplace technologies and hosting services, with strong knowledge of Microsoft Azure and modern enterprise architectures.
• Experience owning and governing large-scale data platform operations, including Data Lakes, Microsoft Fabric, storage, compute and platform resilience.
• Strong understanding of ITIL-based service management, with a track record of driving operational excellence across incident, problem, change, service performance and continuous improvement.
• Significant experience leading cyber security operations, security monitoring, incident response, vulnerability management and risk remediation in partnership with Information Security teams.
• Proven ability to lead high-performing multi-disciplinary teams, manage strategic suppliers and influence senior stakeholders across complex organisational environments.
• Commercially astute leader with experience managing significant operational budgets, technology investments and governance frameworks

What’s In It For You

Our ethos is simple: the more you put in, the more you get out.

What We Offer

• 25 days holiday + bank holidays, with an extra day for each year of service (up to 30 days!)
• An extra day off on your birthday or if you’re getting married
• £500 referral bonus - bring great people, get rewarded!
• Professional development - training and support to help you grow
• Eye care vouchers and discounted Medicash membership for healthcare savings
• Exclusive Virgin media and O2 deals for you and your family/friends
• Exclusive discounts and savings at over 1,200 retailers

At O2 Business, we’re passionate about developing those who drive results and build rewarding careers. As an IT Operations Director - Infrastructure - Cyber, this is your chance to make a real impact.

O2 Business is committed to maintaining a professional, safe, inclusive, and respectful environment for our colleagues and everyone we interact with.

We operate a zero-tolerance approach to bullying, harassment, discrimination, and abusive behaviour, and expect all communications and interactions to be respectful and professional.