Service Delivery Manager - ITSM ITIL

Service Delivery Manager – IT Managed Services

Location: Cardiff (3 days office based, 2 days remote + occasional client site meetings)

Salary: Negotiable on experience around £35000

Role overview

We are seeking an experienced Service Delivery Manager (SDM) to join our IT Managed Services team. Reporting to the Director of Customer Success, the SDM will be responsible for overseeing the delivery of IT services to our key customers, ensuring that service levels are met and continually improved. The successful candidate will act as the customer’s champion within The company, maintaining robust relationships and ensuring our services align with customer needs and ITIL standards.

Main Tasks and Objectives

• Serve as the primary customer-facing contact, building trusted relationships and acting as the champion for assigned customer accounts within Vista.
• Contract and SLA Management: Manage customer contracts and Service Level Agreements, including regular reviews, negotiations, and reporting on SLA performance and compliance.
• Lead major incident management processes for designated accounts, coordinating with technical teams and keeping customers informed throughout (supported by the wider team).
• Engage regularly with customer executives and senior stakeholders, articulating priorities, service performance, and improvement plans in a clear and confident manner.
• Build relationships with and Manage third-party suppliers and partners to ensure service quality and contractual obligations are met.
• Use data and analytical skills to establish facts, identify trends, and drive service improvements.
• Develop and maintain IT service delivery processes in line with ITIL best practices and ITSM frameworks, working with Department managers to drive improvement and service maturity.
• Collaborate with internal Company personnel to ensure alignment on customer requirements, agreed actions, and service enhancements.
• Continuous Service Improvement: Lead continual improvement initiatives, such as process re-engineering, automation, and innovation within service delivery, to drive efficiency and customer satisfaction.
• Risk and Compliance Management: Identify service delivery risks, maintain compliance with relevant standards (e.g., ISO 270001,ISO20000, GDPR), and lead remediation actions where required.
• Stakeholder and Relationship Management: Manage a wide range of stakeholders, both internal (technical, sales, and operations teams) and external (vendors, partners, and regulatory bodies).
• Reporting and Governance: Produce and present detailed service reports, participate in governance meetings, and contribute to strategic account reviews.
• Team Leadership and Development: Coach, mentor, and develop service delivery staff where direct reports or matrix leadership applies.
• Change Management, work with the change management team to ensure all planned changes are managed inline with policy and all stakeholders are kept informed.
• Escalation lead for assigned accounts and for the duration of service hours, organising suitable trained cover for hours when not available.
• Onboarding and Transition Management: Manage the onboarding of new customers and the transition of services into steady state, ensuring a seamless customer experience.
• Develop a team of less experienced ITMS SDM’s, set standards and expectations for the role and service SDM’s provide for our customers.

Qualifications and Skills

• Minimum 5 years’ recent experience in IT Managed Services within either private or public sector environments.
• Deep understanding of IT Service Management (ITSM) practices and processes, with proven expertise in applying the ITIL framework.
• Demonstrable experience in customer-facing leadership roles, with the ability to build rapport and maintain long-term client relationships.
• Strong analytical and data-driven approach to problem-solving and service improvement.
• Experience in managing suppliers and engaging with customer executives at all levels.
• Confident communicator, able to articulate priorities and required actions clearly to both internal teams and customer representatives.
• Adaptability and resilience in fast-paced, ever-changing customer environments.
• Proven stakeholder management skills, both internally and externally.
• A continuous improvement mindset, always seeking ways to enhance service delivery and customer satisfaction.
• ITIL certification or relevant ITSM qualifications.