Technology Manager - Connectivity

Sainsbury's; Coventry; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading retail company seeks a Technology Manager to enhance their IT infrastructure connecting stores and offices. You'll lead technology transformation, ensure efficient operations, and drive improvements with third-party suppliers. The ideal candidate should possess strong leadership skills and extensive knowledge of network technologies, including modern solutions. This role offers a chance to influence stakeholders and make a significant impact on the organization, with a flexible location based in the UK.

Qualifications

• In-depth experience with large-scale third-party technology suppliers.
• Proven leadership track record.
• Ability to influence customer decisions.
• Experience in managing network services.

Responsibilities

• Evolve IT infrastructure connecting stores and depots.
• Drive technical assurance of business outcomes.
• Engage with stakeholders across the organization.
• Implement new ideas for network improvement.

Skills

Leadership

Network technologies

Process management

Communication skills

Service management (ITIL)

Problem-solving

Stakeholder engagement

Tools

SDWAN

SASE

IP networking hardware (routers, switches, etc.)

Job description

Why join us

Joining Sainsbury's Tech means being part of a cutting-edge technology team that powers the UK's leading multi-channel, multi-brand retailer. As a Technology Manager, you will play a pivotal role in driving the transformation of our technology delivery, contributing to our business strategy and shaping the future of our organisation. With our complex resourcing model and matrix team structure, you will collaborate with internal and external teams, working closely with strategic partners. We foster a culture of personal accountability, innovation, and collaboration, where you will have the opportunity to lead and coach others, influence stakeholders, and make a tangible impact on the services we provide. With a focus on quality, financial accountability, technical assurance, and delivery excellence, you will have the chance to work with leading technology suppliers and support the ongoing growth and success of Sainsbury's Tech.

What You'll Do

We’re seeking a Technology Manager who will focus on evolving our IT infrastructure that connects our stores, fuel stations, depots and offices. You will analyse current systems and assets, recommend and implement solutions and drive execution. The ideal candidate has extensive knowledge of network technologies, experience as a manager, and advanced industry knowledge to keep us on the cutting edge. You will have an immediate impact on the day-to-day efficiency of our operations and a long-term impact on our overall growth.

A key aspect of the role is the need to work through external partners and suppliers to deliver meaningful change, driving continual improvement of our network as well as supporting product roadmap requirements. You will be responsible for the technical assurance of business outcomes, responsibilities and outsourced platforms and services, always ensuring we maximise value for money in development, contracts, services and service management.

The Technology Manager will also look to drive new ways of working, introducing and evolving processes affecting our ability to deliver a capable and reliable network platform. To achieve this, you will need to engage in discussions across the organisation with stakeholders Architecture, Procurement, Finance and Delivery functions.

Who You Are

• In-depth experience of working with large-scale third-party technology suppliers in complex, large scale organisations
• Proven track record of strong leadership and ability to demonstrate these inside and outside of our organisation.
• Ability to influence others to make the right ‘customer’ decision.
• Adaptable approach to delivering service & value at pace.
• Experienced in planning, directing, and coordinating a mixed and varied workload of conflicting priorities, responding effectively to the needs of all customers.
• A broad knowledge and understanding of technology concepts, with proven experience of successfully managing and maintaining network services.
• Show initiative to implement new ideas whilst being able to take an objective view on what is realistically possible.
• Familiarity with the principles, functions, and operation of IP network including newer technologies such as SDWAN, SASE and other cloud first network solutions.
• Awareness of network elements (routers, switches, firewalls, DNS/AD servers, proxies, etc) and good appreciation of how this architecture supports critical business applications,
• Understanding of security threats and vulnerabilities, and relevant strategies and controls to detect, mitigate, and resolve security incidents.
• Strong communicator with the ability to translate complex network matters to those without an IT background.
• Communicating and influencing, including managing messages when presenting to stakeholders and up to Senior Manager level
• Experience of service management, including an understanding and experience of ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) Service Management framework
• Solid understanding of process management and controls.
• Experience of identifying continuous improvement through innovation or service improvements
• Ability to implement processes that are logical and understood by a broad audience.
• Proactive in owning workload and managing multiple delivery and service demands in parallel.
• Ability to coach and mentor other team members effectively and develop training and learning plans to ensure the team can manage and support emerging technologies.

Location: London or Coventry office and remote