National Operations Director - Soft Services

Maxwell Stephens Recruitment; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel expenses covered

Senior leadership exposure

National role

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Maxwell Stephens Recruitment is supporting a rapidly growing FM provider to appoint a National Operations Director – Soft Services from Birmingham with nationwide travel. The role leads a dispersed team, shapes strategy, and drives performance and client outcomes.

The successful candidate will balance strategic oversight with hands-on site leadership, delivering service excellence and strong commercial results across a national portfolio. This is a high-visibility, growth-focused appointment.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in facilities services operational management.
• Experience leading large, geographically dispersed teams.
• Strong commercial awareness and profitability focus.
• Excellent client-facing and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to operate at senior leadership level and drive growth.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a national operational team, including multiple regional managers.
• Drive performance against KPIs: profitability, customer satisfaction, productivity and service quality.
• Develop and implement operational strategy with the senior leadership team.
• Build long-term relationships with key client stakeholders and oversee escalations.
• Lead regular performance reviews and ensure actions are delivered.
• Oversee recruitment, retention, workforce management and compliance.
• Ensure high standards of client service and manage complaints.
• Oversee supplier performance and operational expenditure.
• Produce and present monthly contract and operational reports.
• Support planning and delivery of significant seasonal peak periods.
• Ensure HR processes are implemented consistently across the business.
• Tackle operational challenges with decisive, commercially focused solutions.

Skills

Facilities management

Distributed leadership

Commercial acumen

Stakeholder management

Senior leadership

Job description

Are you an experienced Facilities Management Operations Director / Senior Operations Manager looking for a role where you can genuinely influence the direction and growth of a business?

We are currently supporting a rapidly growing FM provider in the appointment of a National Operations Director – Soft Services. This is a high-profile senior leadership position with responsibility for operational performance, service quality, client relationships and commercial delivery across a significant national portfolio.

Based from Birmingham, with regular national travel, this role will suit an ambitious operational leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment and is comfortable managing both people and performance across a geographically dispersed operation.

The Opportunity

You will play a key role in shaping and delivering the operational strategy across two established areas of the business:

• Soft Facilities Management, including communal cleaning and security services across a demanding 24/7 national portfolio.
• Seasonal Turnaround Services, delivering large-scale deep cleaning and housekeeping operations within the student accommodation and university sectors.

You will work closely with senior leadership to drive operational excellence, improve service standards, develop client relationships and deliver against ambitious commercial and operational targets.

This is a particularly exciting opportunity for someone who enjoys being close to the operation. While the role carries significant strategic responsibility, you will be expected to maintain a strong presence across the business and spend time with teams and clients on-site.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a national operational team, including 5 SFM Operations Managers and 3 Regional Managers.
• Drive operational performance against key KPIs, including profitability, customer satisfaction, productivity and service quality.
• Develop and implement operational strategy alongside the senior leadership team.
• Build strong, long-term relationships with key client stakeholders.
• Lead regular operational performance reviews and ensure appropriate actions are delivered.
• Oversee recruitment, retention, workforce management and operational compliance.
• Ensure high standards of client service and effectively manage complaints and escalations.
• Oversee supplier performance and operational expenditure.
• Produce and present monthly contract and operational reports.
• Support the successful planning and delivery of significant seasonal peak periods.
• Ensure operational and HR processes are consistently implemented across the business.
• Take ownership of operational challenges and provide decisive, commercially focused solutions.

What We're Looking For

We are looking for a high-energy, ambitious and commercially aware FM professional who can demonstrate:

• At least 5 years' experience in facilities services operational management.
• Strong experience managing large, geographically dispersed teams.
• A proven track record within soft services / cleaning / FM operations.
• Strong commercial awareness, with the ability to manage profitability and operational performance.
• Excellent client-facing and stakeholder management skills.
• The confidence to operate at senior leadership level.
• The ability to remain calm and effective in high-pressure, time-sensitive environments.
• A genuine hands-on approach to leadership, with a willingness to spend significant time with operational teams and clients.
• A proactive, can-do approach, with the determination to identify problems, take ownership and see solutions through.
• A willingness to challenge the status quo and work towards ambitious growth targets.
• Flexibility to work extended hours and weekends when required during peak operational periods.

What's On Offer?

• Travel expenses covered as required.
• Senior leadership exposure and the opportunity to influence business strategy.
• A genuinely national role with significant operational responsibility.
• The opportunity to join a fast-growing FM business at an exciting stage of its development.

Why This Role?

This isn't a role for someone looking to simply maintain the status quo.

It's an opportunity for an ambitious FM operations leader to take ownership of a significant national operation, influence strategy at senior level, develop high-performing teams and play a key role in the continued growth of a successful business.