IT Service Operations Manager

Job purpose: The IT Service Operations Manager leads the IT Service Desk for the company and the Field Support teams across the UAE, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar. The role is accountable for the quality of IT support and the end-user experience for all GIG Gulf employees, and serves as the primary point of contact between IT and the business for support and service requests. The role supports all end users and provides first-line support for all applications managed by the IT platform teams. It is responsible for IT communications to the business, user account and access management across all applications, the IT asset management platform, office IT services across locations and the Service Operations budget. The jobholder is expected to lead through the team, take decisions and actions to documented closure, escalate risks in a timely manner and report on service performance with accurate, evidence-based information Key Responsibilities: 1. Service Desk Management • Manage the Service Desk as the single point of contact for IT support across all countries, ensuring incidents and service requests are delivered within agreed SLAs and that aged tickets are actively owned, reviewed and resolved. • Provide first-line support for all applications managed by the platform teams and coordinate second-line resolution with them. Agree support models, escalation matrices and knowledge transfer prior to the go-live of new applications. • Monitor resolver queues and escalations across all teams, and own the ITSM tool, including the service catalogue, workflows, SLA configuration and reporting. 2. Major Incident Management and IT Communications • Coordinate the response to major user-impacting incidents with Infrastructure, Security, platform teams and vendors, ensuring root cause analysis, corrective actions and verified closure. • Act as the authorised sender of IT communications to the business for incidents, planned maintenance and enhancements, ensuring communications are accurate, timely, appropriately targeted and issued in the approved format. • Review and approve user-impacting changes at CAB, ensure each change is supported by appropriate communication, and confirm service normalisation through post-change user checks. 3. End-User Computing, Field Support and Events • Lead Field Support across all four countries, covering device provisioning, managed software deployment, patching & vulnerability management, laptop backup and restoration, and device refresh programmes such as the Windows 11 transition. • Manage laptops and mobile devices, SIMs and telephony, desktops, printing and managed print services, and the daily readiness of meeting rooms and video conferencing facilities. • Plan and deliver IT support for corporate events at single or multiple locations, including requirement definition, Microsoft Teams meetings, webinars and Town Halls, VC and AV arrangements, vendor quotations, rehearsals and on-the-day support. • Provide prioritised and discreet support to the executive users. 4. Country Office IT and Facilities • Represent IT at all GIG Gulf offices, particularly where Field Support is the only IT presence, and ensure communication rooms, UPS, cooling, cabling and local circuits are maintained in coordination with Facilities, landlords, ISPs(for telco & SIP) and local vendors. • Provide on-site support for activities performed remotely by central teams, and deliver the IT requirements of office relocations, refurbishments and new site set-ups through to completion. 5. Access Management, IT Assets and CMDB • Own the joiner, mover and leaver process for all applications, as the Service Desk creates and removes all user IDs. This includes privileged access and software requests, the retention and handover of leavers' data prior to deletion, periodic access reviews and audit evidence. • Own the IT asset management platform end to end and, where it no longer meets business needs, lead the evaluation, business case, Technical Review Board approval and migration to a suitable replacement. • Maintain the accuracy of the asset register and CMDB through half-yearly validation, physical audits and reconciliation, and manage the asset lifecycle through to certified disposal. 6. Service Improvement, Reporting and Documentation • Lead ticket reduction and ticket avoidance initiatives across all CTTO teams, with defined baselines, owners, monthly targets and evidence of benefit, supported by self-service, automation and Microsoft Copilot. • Own the Service Desk KPIs, including speed to answer, SLA compliance, first-contact resolution, backlog and customer satisfaction, and manage the customer satisfaction survey process. Reporting should focus on outcomes and be based on validated data. • Own and review annually all Service Operations processes, SOPs and end-user policies, including Incident Management, Asset management, device usage and mailbox policies, and any related ones, to ensure they remain current and audit-ready. • Develop and maintain an annual Service Operations roadmap aligned with the IT Operations strategy. 7. Budget, Procurement and Vendor Management • Prepare and manage the Service Operations budget and contribute to capital planning, ensuring that decisions and expenditure are completed within the approved budget cycle. • Manage procurement in line with GIG policy, from requirements, quotations and RFPs for outsourced services through to purchase orders, receipts and invoices. Manage Microsoft 365, Copilot and other licences, contract renewals and vendor SLA performance. 8. People Leadership, Governance and Continuity • Lead, coach and develop the team by setting clear objectives, conducting regular one-to-ones, maintaining development and technical training plans, addressing team concerns and underperformance promptly, and ensuring compliance with HR processes such as leave and attendance. • Plan rosters, on-call and after-hours cover, and maintain service continuity arrangements, including cross-trained Field Support staff able to operate the Service Desk if the Bahrain site is unavailable. Support DR tests from an end-user perspective. • Drive decisions to documented closure, escalate risks in a timely manner, respond to emails and approvals within agreed timelines, maintain an up-to-date action tracker, and sustain business-as-usual operations alongside project delivery. Projects must have a plan, defined success criteria and a formal Go/No-Go decision. • Engage regularly with business heads, provide structured progress reporting to the Head of IT Operations, and support audits and security incident response. Behavioral expectations: The manner in which the role is performed is considered as important as its technical delivery. The jobholder is expected to demonstrate the following behaviors: • Ownership and accountability: Takes full responsibility for service outcomes, acts proactively and addresses root causes rather than symptoms. Deals with the stressful and demanding situations with thorough maturity. • Follow-through: Tracks commitments to closure and provides updates without the need for reminders. • Results orientation: Demonstrates measurable outcomes supported by data, rather than reporting activity. • Decision-making and transparency: Makes timely decisions under pressure and escalates risks and issues early and openly. • Leadership through others: Delegates effectively, develops team members and measures success by team performance. • Performance management: Provides fair and constructive feedback, recognizes good performance and addresses concerns promptly. • Communication and composure: Communicates clearly with all audiences and remains composed during major incidents and critical events. • Customer focus: Listens actively, understands business impact and confirms resolution with the user before closure. • Integrity and compliance: Adheres to policies on access, procurement, security and change management, and