Head of Release Management

Head of Release Management / Release Management Lead

Location: Central London

Industry: Investment Banking

Our client is looking for a strategic, results-driven Head of Release Management or Release Management Lead to oversee and drive the release and environment management function across their technology estate. This senior role will be responsible for defining and executing the release strategy, ensuring compliance with regulatory standards, and leading the transformation towards a more automated Continuous Delivery (CD) model. The successful candidate will have experience in a senior technology leadership role within a highly regulated financial services institution, demonstrating fluency with banking compliance and audit cycles.

Key Responsibilities:

• Own and manage the end-to-end process of software and infrastructure releases, ensuring efficiency, security, and compliance with SDLC and regulatory standards.
• Lead the shift towards automated CD processes, improving release speed, quality, and risk mitigation.
• Ensure releases align with key regulations (e.g., DORA, FCA/PRA, ISO 27001) to meet security, operational, and business requirements.
• Partner with teams across Architecture, Engineering, QA, and Software Development to deliver high-quality, compliant releases.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing release management team.

Experience required:

• Proven expertise in managing release management functions within highly regulated industries like financial services.
• Strong leadership and experience in managing complex, cross-functional release programs.
• In-depth understanding of release governance and regulatory standards (e.g., DORA, FCA/PRA, ISO 27001).
• Experience driving Agile methodologies and automating release processes to enhance speed and quality.
• Experience with ITSM tools (e.g., ServiceNow), CI/CD pipelines (e.g., Jenkins, Azure DevOps), and enterprise architecture platforms.