HEAD OF IT

In applying for this position, you understand and accept that, if your application results in an offer of employment, relevant pre-employment checks will be conducted including a basic DBS check

OVERALL OBJECTIVES:

The overall responsibility for the Head of IT is to support the delivery of OnPath’s strategic aims. This will be delivered through the availability of fit for purpose, resilient and cost-effective IT systems that support business development and efficiency.

Reporting into the CFO and managing a small in-house team, as well as several support partners. The overall objective will be to lead, motivate, and manage the IT team to enable the delivery of a first class proactive, professional, and comprehensive IT service to the business.

Maintain a strong internal and external stakeholder network and lead the evolution of IT in line with the evolving business needs.

Manage the relationship with the Brookfield parent company IT and process functions to ensure that our business needs are considered within the wider group context and be prepared to robustly defend our interests where required.

KEY DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

Customer Support

• Oversee a proactive IT Help Desk service provision and provide visibility to Service Desk performance.
• Interact with internal clients at all levels to help with the understanding and resolution of IT-related issues.

Commercial

• Oversee development and management of software and systems that support the commercial aims of the business.
• Formulate and manage appropriate capital and revenue budgets for the department.
• Develop and maintain relationships with the business to support their development, planning and operations functions.
• Continually assess the use of AI in the business to establish areas where efficiency can be made, workflow improvements achieved, and commercial advantages accessed.

Portfolio Management

• Work with other departments in the business to find and develop opportunities for IT enabled process improvement. Maintain regular contact to support their needs and proactively suggest solutions to support departmental operations.
• Manage an appropriate project prioritisation process to ensure activities are aligned with strategic business objectives.
• Manage the lifecycle of the existing applications landscape, including financial and development forecasting.

Information Security and cyber security defence

• Oversee the management of the backup and archiving of system data, ensuring data is secured in line with corporate compliance. Develop appropriate plans for the migration of backups to cloud based, immutable, data stores.
• Develop and manage the Business Continuity Plan, implementing improvements as required to ensure it provides a high level of protection to the business.
• Ensure Business Continuity targets are met through the provision of a Disaster Recovery facility.
• Ensure that the physical boundary of the IT estate is secure and regularly tested.
• Manage the protection of the company’s information estate to external and internal threats ensuring that it is defended from attacks and is secure.
• Adhere to core data protection principles, ensuring compliance throughout, with UK GDPR, cyber essentials, and other regulatory standards.

Network & Communications

• Ensure the company’s network provision is secure and has capacity to meet the medium and long-term business objectives.
• Oversee the design, maintenance and administration of the company’s network and communication systems both in administrative offices and on all new or temporary sites.
• Management of the relationships with network and telephony service providers and ensure service levels are delivered.
• In conjunction with the grid and operations teams, ensure that on-site communications for the individual projects are robust and reliable and meet the requirements of Asset Management Agreements.

Asset Management

• Ensure the IT estate is road mapped to identify external change factors and investment needs.
• Oversee the procurement of all software, hardware, and other IT supplies.
• Ensure that company assets are maintained appropriately and disposals are compliant with legislation.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

• Delivery of a commercially focussed IT service to all parts of the business
• Providing strong mitigation to the threat of attacks on the business’s systems and leading the implementation and maintenance of Cyber Essentials Plus certification.
• Providing and supporting the physical infrastructure estate and developing a roadmap to cloud delivery where appropriate.
• Improvement in the quality and functionality of the business’s systems
• Positive feedback from departments on overall IT support
• Resilient IT and communications infrastructure with minimal downtime
• Development of AI solutions to the business
• Strong interaction with wider Brookfield IT teams

PERSON SPECIFICATION

• Able to build and develop the technical capability of IT teams, ensuring skills evolve in line with changing business needs, fostering continuous learning and building future leadership capability.
• Have proven experience in leading IT within a multi-site organisational structure.
• Have a strong track record in driving process improvement and digital transformation initiatives.
• Able to collaborate effectively with the senior leadership team, building strong relationships with key internal stakeholders.
• Able to demonstrate a strong understanding and experience in project management and delivery. This includes aligning resources, budgets, and priorities of the IT team with the annual business plan and business-wide initiatives.
• Able to adapt to a changing business landscape and provide new solutions and options to support new initiatives.
• Possess excellent communication skills, be commercially aware, and be highly customer focussed.
• Able to maintain high focus and resilience in pressure situations and from both internal and external parties.
• Able to demonstrate excellent internal and external stakeholder management skills with the ability to build and maintain positive customer relationships, operating as highly customer focused.
• Demonstrate a proven ability in vendor management and negotiation to optimise value and performance.
• Possess strong analytical skills to identify inefficiencies and implement technology-driven solutions.
• Demonstrate commitment to service excellence, inspiring a team of ‘enablers’ to support OnPath Energy in achieving its strategic objectives.

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