Senior Manager: IT Operations & Infrastructure

Sabenza IT & Recruitment; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

Sabenza IT & Recruitment seeks a Senior Manager: IT Operations & Infrastructure to own the technology backbone of a growing organisation in Johannesburg. You will lead a hands-on team, ensuring security, stability, and growth readiness across both on‑prem and cloud environments.

You’ll balance strategy with execution, manage incidents, drive resilience, and partner with executives to ensure technology choices enable operational excellence. After-hours availability may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, IT, or related field (NQF Level 7)
• 8–10+ years in IT Operations and Infrastructure
• At least 5 years in a senior leadership or management role
• Experience in regulated environments is a strong advantage
• Proven track record managing enterprise-scale operations and governance

Responsibilities

• Own the infrastructure— network, servers, cloud, identity & access, telephony.
• Lead cybersecurity operations— SIEM, DLP, endpoint protection, vulnerability management.
• Drive reliability— monitoring, incident management, root-cause analysis.
• Protect the business— backup strategy, disaster recovery, high-availability design.
• Lead people— mentor and develop IT team; set accountability and service.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic thinking

Incident management

Cloud platforms

Security

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Network infrastructure

Microsoft 365

Monitoring tools

Backup/DR

SIEM/DLP

Job description

Senior Manager: IT Operations & Infrastructure

Johannesburg, South Africa | Posted on 15/10/2026

Ready to Own the Engine Room of a Growing Organisation?

This isn’t a “manage from the spreadsheet” role.

We’re looking for a hands-on senior leader who gets energy from keeping complex environments running smoothly, who loves diagnosing the hard problems, and who still wants to get into the detail when it matters. You’ll own the performance, resilience, and security of a full enterprise IT landscape while leading a small but high-impact team.

If you enjoy the mix of strategy, execution, and the occasional late-night incident call, this is the job.

What You’ll Actually Do

You’ll be the person responsible for making sure the technology environment is secure, stable, and ready for growth. Day to day that means:

• Own the infrastructure — network, servers, cloud platforms, identity & access, and telephony. You set the standard for availability, performance, and continuous improvement.
• Lead cybersecurity operations — SIEM, DLP, endpoint protection, vulnerability management, and the governance that goes with operating in a regulated environment.
• Drive reliability — monitoring, observability, incident management, root-cause analysis, and the culture that stops issues before they become outages.
• Protect the business — backup strategy, disaster recovery, high-availability design, and business continuity planning and testing.
• Lead people — mentor and develop a tight IT team covering support, security, and infrastructure. Set the tone for accountability, ownership, and service.
• Influence the organisation — work closely with executives and business leaders so technology decisions actually support growth and operational excellence.
  

Requirements

Who We’re Looking For

You’re a technical leader who still likes being technical.

Experience & Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field (NQF Level 7)
• 8–10+ years in IT Operations and Infrastructure
• At least 5 years in a senior leadership or management role
• Experience in financial services, insurance, or other highly regulated environments is a strong advantage
• Proven track record managing enterprise-scale operations and governance

Hands-on Technical Strength You’ve worked with (and can talk confidently about) most of the following:

• Network infrastructure (routing, switching, firewalls, VPNs)
• Microsoft server environments and Active Directory / LDAP
• Microsoft 365
• Monitoring tools (Zabbix, SolarWinds, ManageEngine)
• Backup, disaster recovery, SIEM, and DLP solutions

The Person Behind the Skills

• Strong technical leader who enjoys being hands-on
• Strategic thinker with excellent problem-solving instincts
• Delivery-focused, proactive, and highly accountable
• Calm and clear under pressure
• Strong communicator who can work effectively with executives, technical teams, and vendors
• Genuinely interested in security, reliability, and continuous improvement

What the Role Demands

• Availability after hours for urgent incidents, planned changes, or critical business support when needed
• Ability to provide executive-level support with professionalism, urgency, and discretion
• ITC and criminal checks will be required
• Psychometric assessments may form part of the process

Preference will be given to internal candidates who meet the requirements.

If you’re the person who likes owning the outcome — not just the strategy document — we’d like to hear from you.