Operations Manager – Manned Guarding

Palmer McCarthy; Milton Keynes; Remote; GBP 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Car allowance

Job summary

Palmer McCarthy is seeking an experienced Operations Manager for a hands-on, client-facing role within a security and resilience services environment. You will manage client relationships, attend meetings and site visits, resolve escalations and help retain and grow existing business.

The role combines home-based delivery with regular travel across England to client sites, ensuring high service levels and effective coordination with the control room and field teams.

Qualifications

• Experience in operations or contract management in 24/7 service environments.
• Strong client-facing skills and ability to handle difficult conversations.
• Practical problem solver who takes ownership and stays calm under pressure.
• Good commercial awareness and focus on retaining clients.
• Well organised, flexible, and able to travel across England.

Responsibilities

• Manage relationships with major clients and act as senior operational contact.
• Attend client meetings and site visits, using data to drive service discussions.
• Own complaints and service issues, coordinating practical corrective actions.
• Work with control room and operations teams to maintain SLA/KPI performance.
• Protect and develop accounts by retaining hours and expanding services.

Skills

Operations management

Client relationship management

Problem solving

Commercial awareness

Organization & flexibility

Job description

Salary: £50,000 basic + car/car allowance + growth-related bonus per year

Operations Manager - Manned Guarding (Ref 2793)

£50,000 basic + car/car allowance + growth-related bonus
Home-based | Travel across England

Palmer McCarthy has been retained by an established security and resilience services provider to recruit an Operations Manager to strengthen its client-facing operational team.

This is a hands-on, client-facing role focused on protecting client relationships, resolving operational issues and helping retain and grow existing business. With a strong established control room already managing day-to-day scheduling and first-line operational activity, this role provides the operational presence with clients and at key sites.

The Role

As Operations Manager, you will manage client relationships, attend regular meetings and site visits, resolve escalated issues and work closely with operational teams to ensure excellent service delivery.

You will be expected to identify problems early, take ownership and find practical solutions, while also looking for opportunities to retain client hours and increase services within existing accounts.

The role is predominantly home-based, with regular travel to client and operational sites across England. Site visits are driven by client requirements rather than being a constant feature of the role.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and develop strong relationships with key manned guarding clients, acting as a senior operational point of contact.
• Attend client meetings and site visits, using operational data and performance information to drive service discussions.
• Take ownership of complaints, escalations and service issues, coordinating practical solutions and corrective action.
• Work closely with the control room and operational teams to maintain strong SLA/KPI performance and service delivery.
• Protect and develop existing accounts by retaining hours and identifying opps to increase services.

What We're Looking For

• Operations, account or contract management experience, ideally within security, manned guarding, resilience, labour supply or another 24/7 service environment.
• Strong client-facing and relationship-management skills, with the confidence to handle difficult conversations and represent the business professionally.
• A practical problem solver who takes ownership, remains calm under pressure and gets involved when required.
• Good commercial awareness, with an understanding of the importance of retaining clients and developing existing business.
• Well organised, flexible and responsive, with the ability to travel across England and manage a fluid operational workload.

The Opportunity

This is an important appointment within an established security provider with mature operational infrastructure and a strong control room function.

For the right Operations Manager, it offers the opportunity to take ownership of important client relationships, make a visible impact on service delivery and contribute directly to the retention and growth of existing business.

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