Service Desk Team Leader

Hyra; Ipswich; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

Bristow Holland is partnering with a growing Ipswich organisation to recruit an experienced Service Desk Team Lead to join its IT team. The role balances team leadership with hands-on technical support and service improvement, offering ownership of day-to-day service desk operations while staying engaged in complex escalations.

You will lead 1st and 2nd line engineers, manage workloads, escalations and incidents, mentor the team, and help drive improvements in monitoring, tooling and processes.

Qualifications

• Experience leading, managing or mentoring IT Support Engineers.
• Strong Microsoft 365 administration and troubleshooting.
• Proficient in Windows Server and Active Directory.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Azure and cloud technologies.
• Solid networking knowledge (switches, routing, firewalls, VPNs).
• Experience handling escalations and major incidents.
• Excellent customer service and communication skills.
• Experience in a fast-paced customer-focused IT support environment.

Responsibilities

• Managing the day-to-day operations of the IT service desk
• Leading, supporting and mentoring a team of 1st and 2nd Line Engineers
• Monitoring ticket queues, prioritising workloads and managing escalations
• Acting as a technical escalation point for complex infrastructure and support issues
• Managing major incidents and ensuring effective communication with customers
• Improving service desk performance, reducing ticket backlogs and identifying recurring issues
• Supporting engineers with technical troubleshooting and problem resolution
• Managing resource planning, workload allocation and team capacity
• Supporting the onboarding, training and development of engineers
• Helping improve internal processes, documentation and service delivery standards
• Supporting Microsoft 365, Windows Server, Azure and networking environments
• Contributing to improvements in monitoring, automation and support tools

Skills

Leadership

Microsoft 365

Windows Server

Active Directory

Azure

Networking

Escalation management

Customer service

Team mentoring

Ticketing

Job description

Bristow Holland is working with a growing organisation in Ipswich that is looking to recruit an experienced Service Desk Team Lead to join its IT team.

This is a great opportunity for someone who already has experience in a Service Desk leadership or management position, or a Senior IT Support Engineer who has been involved in leading, mentoring, managing or supporting other engineers and is now looking to take the next step in their career.

The role offers a good balance of team leadership, technical support and service improvement, with the opportunity to take ownership of the day-to-day service desk operations while remaining involved in the technical side of IT.

The Role

As Service Desk Team Lead, you'll take responsibility for the day-to-day running of the service desk, ensuring tickets are managed effectively, engineers are supported and customers receive a high standard of service.

You’ll be responsible for leading and mentoring a team of 1st and 2nd Line Engineers, managing workloads, overseeing escalations and helping improve the overall efficiency of the support function.

Although this is primarily a leadership position, you’ll still remain technically hands‑on, getting involved in complex escalations, infrastructure issues and major incidents when required.

Key Responsibilities:

• Managing the day-to-day operations of the IT service desk
• Leading, supporting and mentoring a team of 1st and 2nd Line Engineers
• Monitoring ticket queues, prioritising workloads and managing escalations
• Acting as a technical escalation point for complex infrastructure and support issues
• Managing major incidents and ensuring effective communication with customers
• Improving service desk performance, reducing ticket backlogs and identifying recurring issues
• Supporting engineers with technical troubleshooting and problem resolution
• Managing resource planning, workload allocation and team capacity
• Supporting the onboarding, training and development of engineers
• Helping improve internal processes, documentation and service delivery standards
• Supporting Microsoft 365, Windows Server, Azure and networking environments
• Contributing to improvements in monitoring, automation and support tools

Key Skills & Experience:

We're looking for someone with a strong technical background who already has experience leading, managing, mentoring or supervising other engineers and enjoys helping develop a team while remaining involved in the technical side of IT.

• Previous experience in a Service Desk Team Lead, IT Support Manager, IT Support Team Lead, Senior IT Support Engineer or similar position involving leadership, management or mentoring responsibilities
• Experience leading, managing, supporting or mentoring a team of IT Support Engineers
• Strong Microsoft 365 administration and troubleshooting experience
• Windows Server and Active Directory
• Microsoft Azure and cloud technologies
• Networking, including switches, routing, firewalls and VPNs
• Troubleshooting complex infrastructure and technical support issues
• Managing ticket queues, escalations and service desk priorities
• Strong customer service and communication skills
• Experience working in a busy, customer-focused IT support environment