Operations Manager

Operations Manager

Region covered: UK & Europe
Fire & Security

The company provides bespoke fire & security system design, installation, and support for projects across major sectors such as data centres. It focuses on delivering end‑to‑end solutions that cover the full lifecycle of a facility, from design through ongoing maintenance. Its work is centred on helping clients improve safety, resilience, and operational efficiency through integrated technology and service.

We are looking to recruit an Operations Manager who will be responsible for managing the day‑to‑day operational activities of the Strategic Accounts department, providing leadership, support, and promoting ownership of work, and overseeing all aspects of the Strategic Accounts projects’ requirements to ensure compliance with relevant regulations and standards.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Building and maintaining effective working relationships with stakeholders across various areas of the business
• Responsible for the continued professional development of team members to build a high performing and motivated team
• Leading and managing the team, setting performance targets to deliver agreed priorities, operational targets, KPI's, XLA's SLA's and any other measures as set out in the organisational plans
• Ensuring team members are aware of the company strategic objectives, mission and vision and how they can contribute towards them
• Ensuring effective and detailed team briefings relating to communications from across the business including the Senior Leadership Team and the Senior Management Team
• Developing, maintaining, and promoting good working relationships with colleagues in the Senior Management Team to ensure effective communications and teamwork
• Be the lead point of contact for all key customer contracts, anticipate customer needs, ensure customer deadlines are met and support the contract to ensure customer success and contractual compliance
• Supporting sales by building and nurturing key account relationships through strategic planning and cross‑functional leadership
• Working effectively with the Sales team to increase prospects, opportunities, and award wins
• Effectively identifying, building and maintaining internal key departmental contacts and stakeholder relationships to always ensure positive outcomes and cross functional working
• Taking ownership of the project delivery including implementing, monitoring, and developing construction programmes and financial controls to ensure individual key project performance measures are achieved
• Attending progress review meetings with external & internal customers and provide timely support and corrective actions, including complaint management and dispute resolutions, to ensure successful delivery of contracts, budgets and to optimise customer relationships and protect the business
• Ensuring compliance with industry standards and codes of practice, company quality and compliance standards and customer SLA's and take corrective action as appropriate
• Ensuring compliance with Health and Safety and Environmental (HS&E) statutory and regulatory requirements, standards and codes of practice, company procedures and customer SLA's and take corrective action as appropriate
• Leading by example setting the highest possible standards of leadership in promotion of HS&E procedures and best practice
• Proactively managing the team to ensure high levels of performance and achievement of contractual SLA's
• Managing staff allocation and assignment to projects to ensure Strategic Accounts can meet contractual obligations
• Supporting the day-to-day management of the delivery teams (Project Managers and Project Engineers, Subcontractors, etc.), including regular contract review and planning meetings
• Producing and analysing progress reports, updating costs and forecasts as and when the business and contractual requirements
• Monitoring quality and continually explore improvements in design and installation techniques and to provide regular feedback into the business to reduce cost and wastage

Person Specification

Essential

• Contracts management experience in construction or engineering including relationship management and negotiating contract terms and conditions
• Contract negotiation experience with the main contract award elements: no. of days, price, scope of works, responsibilities, performance, compliance, and payment terms
• Sound commercial awareness and costing of projects and contracts
• Previous experience of working within Fire or Security or Data Infrastructure
• Extensive experience of managing remote teams
• Excellent people management skills with the ability to influence, coach and mentor
• Clear understanding of construction methods and sequencing
• Clear understanding of construction Health and Safety requirements, including management of RAMS and sub‑contractors
• Demonstrable experience of providing professional and appropriate verbal and written communications with both internal and external customers at all levels
• Experienced in achieving SLA's, identifying gaps against standards, and implementing improvement solutions
• Demonstrable experience in achieving performance targets and driving performance through utilising metrics
• Demonstrable experience in providing strong leadership and leading by example
• Solid experience in effectively organising and coordinating multiple priorities whilst achieving tight deadlines
• Highly resilient, responsive, and proactive, able to adapt to daily changes in workload and areas of focus
• Excellent communication skills including preparing and delivering presentations
• Good Knowledge of MS products, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and confident using IT software
• Excellent attention to detail. Sound problem solving skills and analytical thinking with demonstrable experience of delivering actions plans to resolve issues and remedy disputes

Desirable

• Educated to HND level or relevant industry experience
• NEBOSH, IOSH or SMSTS certification
• Experience of resource
• Experience in Simpro or similar contract management software
• Good knowledge and experience of contract law and able to administer NEC3/4 and JCT
• CSCS card (or equivalent)