IT Systems Engineering Manager

What's in it for you

At Booker, along with being a great place to work and giving you an opportunity to get on in your career, we also offer the following fantastic package of benefits:

• A Booker colleague card with 10% off purchases at Booker and double discount events up to three times a year.
• After 3 months service, a Tesco colleague discount card with 10% increasing to 15% off most purchases at Tesco for a 4 day period after every four-weekly pay day, ie. thirteen times a year. In addition to 10% off at Tesco Cafe and 20% off all F&F purchases.
• 10% off pay monthly & SIM only deals with Tesco Mobile for yourself, along with further great deals through-out the year.
• Up to 30% off car, pet and home insurance at Tesco bank. Terms and conditions apply.
• Free eye test when you spend £50 or more. You can also save 30% when you spend £50 or more on glasses, prescription sunglasses and contact lenses.
• 50% off health checks at Tesco Pharmacy.
• Exclusive access to discounted RAC breakdown cover rates
• An exclusive deals and discounts website saving you money on everyday purchases including a cycle to work scheme.
• After 3 months service, you can join our annual Save As You Earn share scheme which allows you to buy Tesco shares in the future at a discount.
• Retirement savings plan (pension) - save up to 5% and Booker will match your contribution.
• Life Assurance - You are covered for death in service life cover of up to three times annual pay
• Health and Wellbeing support and resources including our 24/7, confidential Employee Assistance Programme and Virtual GP for you and your family.
• A great holiday package

About the role

As a Systems Engineering Manager within the Booker Technology Infrastructure team, you’ll play a key role in shaping and running the platforms that keep our business moving. You’ll be responsible for a range of core IT systems — including servers, storage, security, data, and network connectivity — ensuring they are reliable, secure, and evolving in line with business needs.

This is a people-focused leadership role with a strong technical foundation. You’ll lead and support engineering teams, manage budgets and suppliers, and turn long-term strategy into practical, deliverable technology plans. From day-to-day operations to future-ready roadmaps, you’ll help create a stable, resilient infrastructure that supports growth across the organisation.

Working closely with fellow Systems Engineering Managers, application teams, and a blend of internal and third-party engineers, you’ll coordinate delivery of a secure, well-governed platform. You’ll also own service-level reporting — including Disaster Recovery and Total Loss Recovery testing — and maintain open, regular engagement with stakeholders to continuously improve reliability and performance.

You will be responsible for

• Strategic Planning & Leadership Contribute to long-term infrastructure strategy, set technical direction, manage budgets, and ensure technology priorities support business outcomes.

• Infrastructure & System Oversight Oversee servers, network connectivity, data storage, and database platforms to ensure they are robust, scalable, and well supported.

• People Leadership Lead, coach, and develop internal and external systems engineers, fostering an inclusive, collaborative, and high-performing team culture.

• Operations & Service Management Ensure high levels of performance, availability, security, and resilience, with timely patching and lifecycle management of hardware and software.

• Project Delivery Plan and deliver infrastructure projects, including major upgrades, migrations, and new technology implementations.

• Incident, Problem & Change Management Lead effective incident response, minimise service disruption, and embed consistent, well-controlled change processes.

• Security & Compliance Champion strong security practices, protect data and systems, and help ensure compliance with relevant standards and policies.

You will need

• Solid understanding of enterprise infrastructure technologies (for example: Red Hat Linux, Solaris, network connectivity, SAN, Total Loss Recovery).
• Proven leadership experience, with strong project management and budget ownership skills.
• Clear, confident communicator with the ability to engage stakeholders and manage vendors effectively.
• A strong commitment to stability, security, and high-quality service.
• Calm, thoughtful, and effective when solving complex problems.
• Comfortable balancing strategic thinking with hands-on involvement when needed.
• Familiar with prioritisation techniques, dependency management, and outcome-based measurement.
• Motivated to deliver what matters most, with a pragmatic bias for action and results.

About The Company

Booker is the UK's leading food & drink wholesaler. We are privileged to serve independent retailers, caterers and small businesses, from locations across the country.  We operate over 190 cash and carry branches, eight distribution centres, five Best Food Logistics sites, as well as six support centre locations across the UK.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) at Booker means that whoever you are and whatever your background, we always want you to feel represented and that you can be yourself at work. In short, we’re a place where Everyone’s Welcome.

We know life looks a little different for each of us. That’s why at Booker and Best, we always welcome conversations about flexible working. Some people are at the start of their careers, some want the freedom to do the things they love. Others are going through life-changing moments like becoming a carer, nearing retirement, adapting to parenthood, or something else. So, talk to us throughout your application about how we may be able to support you.

We’re proud that Booker is a  Disability Confident Committed  employer and we’re committed to providing a fully inclusive and accessible recruitment process.

Please note

We can only accept candidates over the age of 18 if the role requires working before 6:15 am or after 9:45 pm or involves working in areas such as the warehouse, beers, wines & spirits, and driving roles.

On the occasions where we have high volumes of