Central Operations Director- Garages

Halfords is a leading UK provider of motoring and cycling services, with a diverse portfolio spanning specialist retail, an extensive garage network, Commercial Fleet Services and a growing B2B offering. Together, these businesses enable us to support customers and offer integrated, convenient solutions, ranging from e‑bike and electric vehicle servicing to on‑demand motoring services.

With a national footprint and an expanding services proposition, our ambition is to build a best‑in‑class automotive services business that customers trust and colleagues are proud to be part of. As a specialist retailer, we lead the market through customer‑driven innovation, expert service and a distinctive product range, giving customers compelling reasons to return throughout a lifetime of motoring and cycling. We are trusted experts that take pride in keeping the nation moving.

This role plays a central part in how our garages network develops, creating a more customer‑focused, commercially driven and high‑performing operation.

About the role

This is not a traditional central operations role. It is a high‑impact transformation position focused on reshaping how a 500‑site garage network is planned, resourced, measured and improved. You will lead the evolution of Central Operations, moving the function from a support‑focused model to a more strategic, commercially driven capability that sits at the heart of performance across our garages business.

A key focus of the role is the transformation of our labour model. You will define and deliver a more flexible, data‑led approach to workforce planning, ensuring the right capacity, capability and cost base to support both performance and growth. Working closely with Operations, Commercial, Marketing and Technology teams, you will play a critical role in shaping how we improve productivity, drive performance and embed more consistent, scalable ways of working across the network.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the transformation of workforce planning and labour modelling across a 500‑site garage network, moving from fixed, site‑based models to flexible, demand‑led deployment.
• Use data and performance insight to define optimal capacity, skill mix and resource allocation, balancing cost, customer experience and operational effectiveness.
• Drive a step‑change in operational performance by translating insight into targeted, high‑impact interventions across the network.
• Build and evolve a robust performance framework, using a balanced set of metrics to identify opportunity and track delivery.
• Lead the continuous improvement agenda, defining best‑in‑class processes, testing new approaches and scaling proven improvements across the estate.
• Ensure process improvements are translated into tangible capacity and productivity gains, feeding directly into labour and operating models.
• Act as the key interface between the garage network and the wider business, ensuring new propositions, initiatives and changes are effectively deployed and embedded.
• Partner with senior operational leaders to challenge, influence and align on performance, resource planning and delivery of business targets.
• Lead and develop a multi‑disciplinary Central Operations team spanning performance, planning, change and operational support.

About you

• Proven experience in a senior operations, workforce planning or transformation role within a large, complex, field‑based service environment.
• Strong track record of designing and implementing labour models, workforce strategies or operational performance frameworks at scale.
• Highly commercial mindset, with the ability to balance cost optimisation with customer experience, safety and quality.
• Strong analytical capability, with experience using data and insight to drive decision‑making and performance improvement.
• Experience leading change in complex, multi‑site environments, with the ability to navigate ambiguity and deliver sustainable outcomes.
• Credibility and confidence to influence and challenge senior stakeholders, including operational leaders with significant field responsibility.
• Experience within automotive, garages, service or adjacent sectors, with a clear understanding of operational dynamics in similar environments.
• A strategic thinker who can move beyond day‑to‑day execution to redesign how a function operates and delivers value.