Infrastructure Operations Manager (IOM) - London

A government department client is looking for an Infrastructure Operations Manager to join them on a 4 month contract. This position will be in London.
Job Summary:
Our client's Digital Services (DS) Operations has an opportunity for an Infrastructure Operations Manager (IOM) to lead the operational delivery and continual improvement of its' infrastructure, cloud and end-user computing services. This role strengthens the in-house capability to govern multi-supplier delivery, assure service quality and operational resilience, and drive automation and standardisation in line with the Approved Operating Model.

The successful candidate will demonstrate expert-level proficiency in the design, implementation, and management of Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 environments. The role requires a deep understanding of cloud infrastructure, identity and access management, automation, and security best practices.

Leadership & Governance

• Proven line management of technical specialists: Setting standards, coaching, and building a proactive, user centred culture.
• Strong multivendor governance: SLAs/OLAs, service reviews, improvement plans, risk/issue management and commercial awareness.
• Practical command of ITIL practices: Incident, Problem, Change/Release, Request, and Service/Asset & Configuration Management.
• Strong understanding of continual improvement frameworks and automation strategies.

Infrastructure, Cloud & Networking Knowledge (managerial depth with technical breadth)

• Working knowledge of Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365: Core platform services, identity, policy/governance, monitoring and Exchange Online, Teams, OneDrive/SharePoint, Intune.
• Understanding of on?prem infrastructure services: Windows Server/AD, storage/backup, virtualization and enterprise networking concepts.
• Familiarity with telemetry/monitoring and event/alert workflows: Support SRE?style operational assurance.
• Proven experience managing senior technical specialists and problem management functions.
• Familiarity with ITSM tooling and CMDB governance: Supporting operational assurance, asset accuracy, and service readiness.

Security & Compliance

• Experience enforcing endpoint and cloud security controls: e.g., Conditional Access/MFA, device compliance, baseline configurations.
• Coordinating vulnerability remediation at scale: Provide measurable outcomes; supplying evidence for audits/certifications.
• Understanding of privileged access: Segregation of duties and change controls in regulated environments.

Data driven Operations

• Ability to define and interpret operational metrics and dashboards: Availability, performance, change success, risk posture, user satisfaction.
• Comfortable using ITSM and analytics tooling: Prioritisation, forecasting and reporting.

Projects & Communication

• Stakeholder management and clear communication-translating technical topics to nontechnical audiences; producing SOPs/runbooks and user facing guides.
• Contributing to business cases/estimates and phased delivery plans: balancing risk, cost and user experience.
• Project Leadership: Experience leading cloud migration, modern workplace, or security enhancement projects.
• Internal and External collaboration: Proven experience of managing external technical vendors to deliver high quality digital solutions.

Certifications (Desirable)

• ITIL 4 Foundation or higher.
• Microsoft: AZ-104: Microsoft Azure Administrator.
• Microsoft: AZ-305: Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions.
• Microsoft: MS-102: Microsoft 365 Administrator.
• Microsoft: MS-102: Microsoft 365 Administrator.
• PRINCE2 / AgilePM (or equivalent delivery discipline).

Key behaviours

• Ownership & initiative: Accountable for outcomes; anticipates risks and acts early.
• User focus: Designs operations around clear user journeys and business value.
• Collaboration: Builds trust across DS, InfoSec, suppliers and the business.
• Continuous improvement: Automates, simplifies and standardises.
• Clear communicator: Concise, structured and audience appropriate.
• Coaching mindset: Grows capability, documents knowledge and empowers others.