IT & Systems Strategy Lead

Joma Jewellery & Katie Loxton; Banbury; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

33 days holiday + service increase to

Staff discount across both brands

Opportunities to grow & develop

Innovative, friendly workplace

Job summary

Joma Jewellery & Katie Loxton seeks a Head of IT & Systems to shape and lead the Systems function during an exciting growth phase. You will own the systems strategy and roadmap, partnering with senior stakeholders to prioritise initiatives and manage resources for scalable, secure technology.

You will balance long-term development with operational resilience, lead the IT & Systems team, and oversee governance, supplier relationships and budgets, delivering measurable business value and

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading a business systems, technology, transformation or operational systems function.
• Strong experience developing and managing technology strategies, roadmaps and prioritisation frameworks.
• A strategic mindset with the ability to translate business priorities and requirements into structured systems initiatives and delivery plans.
• Strong planning, prioritisation and stakeholder management skills, with the confidence to work with both senior and operational stakeholders.
• Commercially aware, with a pragmatic approach to decision‑making, investment and resource allocation.
• Experience managing technology suppliers, contracts, budgets, governance and delivery performance.
• Strong governance and risk management experience, including establishing policies, standards and controls.
• Experience working with ERP, WMS, ecommerce, reporting or systems integration environments would be desirable.
• A good understanding of technology architecture and the principles required to create scalable, secure and integrated systems.
• Proven leadership capability, with experience developing and building the capability of a systems or technology team.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to simplify complex information and bring stakeholders with you.
• Highly organised, structured and comfortable managing multiple priorities in a fast‑paced environment.
• A proactive and solutions‑focused approach, with a genuine appetite for continuous improvement and innovation.
• A collaborative leadership style, with the ability to create accountability while empowering your team to deliver.

Responsibilities

• Owning and maintaining our overall Systems Roadmap to ensure our priorities, resources and investment remain aligned with business objectives.
• Developing clear frameworks for prioritisation, capacity planning and delivery sequencing across strategic initiatives, operational resilience and business-as-usual activity.
• Partnering with senior stakeholders across the business to understand requirements, manage expectations and make informed decisions around priorities and trade‑offs.
• Leading systems reviews and providing clear reporting on progress, risks, dependencies and key decisions.
• Aligning systems investment and project prioritisation with business strategy, operational objectives and commercial value.
• Defining and maintaining technology standards and architectural principles to ensure our systems remain scalable, secure, integrated and fit for the future.
• Overseeing systems delivery, project closure, documentation and post‑go‑live reviews, ensuring initiatives deliver measurable business benefits.
• Building and managing strategic supplier relationships, overseeing performance, contracts, service levels and commercial value.
• Managing systems budget planning and senior reporting, ensuring third‑party resource is used effectively where required.
• Establishing and maintaining governance frameworks covering systems, security, access, acceptable use, change management and operational resilience.
• Collaborating with the Senior IT & Systems Manager on the technical implementation of agreed controls, cyber security, access management and disaster recovery.
• Leading and developing the Systems function, creating a culture of structured delivery, accountability, knowledge sharing and continuous improvement.
• Planning workloads across internal and external resource, ensuring the team is appropriately resourced against business priorities.
• Coaching and developing team members, supporting succession planning, cross‑training and continuous professional development.
• Monitoring emerging technologies and industry trends, working with the AI Architect to identify opportunities to improve how we work and enhance the customer experience.
• Identifying opportunities to simplify processes, strengthen operational resilience and make better use of technology across the business.
• Championing Company values, policies and people management processes, including the health and safety responsibilities associated with leading a team.

Skills

Leadership

Strategy & roadmaps

Stakeholder management

Budget & governance

ERP/WMS integration

Governance & risk

Technology architecture

Team development

Communication skills

Prioritisation

Job description

Joma Jewellery & Katie Loxton seeks a Head of IT & Systems to shape and lead the Systems function during an exciting growth phase. You will own the systems strategy and roadmap, partnering with senior stakeholders to prioritise initiatives and manage resources for scalable, secure technology.

You will balance long-term development with operational resilience, lead the IT & Systems team, and oversee governance, supplier relationships and budgets, delivering measurable business value and