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- Tasks: Lead service continuity strategies and ensure M&S services are resilient during crises.
- Company: Join the innovative team at Marks & Spencer, a leader in retail.
- Benefits: Enjoy a 20% discount, competitive holidays, and a generous pension scheme.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on organisational resilience and customer experience.
- Qualifications: Proven leadership in ITSCM and strong communication skills required.
- Other info: Be part of a diverse team committed to innovation and excellence.
The predicted salary is between 36000 - 60000 ÂŁ per year.
The Head of Service Continuity is a senior role within the D&T Service Management organisation, ensuring that there is an Enterprise approach to all Service Continuity activities that underpin the needs of the M&S Business. The Head of Service Continuity is accountable for ensuring that the availability and performance of all M&S services are maintained at sufficient levels in case of a disaster. Our key outcome is to build organisational resilience with the capability of producing an effective response that safeguards the interests of our Stores and Colleagues, protecting the organisation's reputation, brand, and value‑creating activities.
This role requires regular engagement with Senior Business Leaders and D&T leadership to understand current challenges and risks to the continuity of M&S Services and to reinforce the value of Service Continuity planning and testing.
What you’ll do:
- Strategic leadership in ITSCM: Proven ability to lead enterprise‑wide continuity strategies, develop robust ITSCM roadmaps, govern service continuity practices, and drive prevention, prediction, and recovery capabilities across a complex digital and retail environment.
- Deep expertise in continuity, incident management, and risk: Strong command of ITSCM, incident response, command‑and‑control models, regulatory considerations, business impact assessment, risk management, and the design of standardised response processes and testing programmes.
- Exceptional stakeholder influence and communication: Skilled at engaging senior leaders, cross‑functional teams, business stakeholders, and partners; able to simplify complex concepts, guide decision‑making during crises, and lead communications across colleagues, stores, D&T, and service providers.
- Operational excellence and data‑driven improvement: Experienced in using metrics and analytics to enhance release quality, service availability, partner performance, and continuity readiness, while embedding best practice, automation, quality frameworks, and continuous improvement across the ITSCM lifecycle.
- People leadership and collaborative delivery: Demonstrated capability to lead and develop continuity professionals, build high‑performing multi‑disciplinary collaborations, ensure ITSCM integration across architecture, delivery, assurance, and operations, and support readiness for major trading periods and new initiatives.
Who you are:
- Strategic leadership and enterprise thinking: Able to operate at an enterprise level, set long‑term direction for ITSCM, align service continuity with business goals, and balance immediate operational needs with future strategic improvements.
- Expertise in ITSCM, ITSM, and resilience practices: Deep understanding of ITSCM principles, ITIL/ITSM frameworks, incident and risk management, and experience building and leading continuity capabilities in large, complex organisations.
- Strong technical and analytical capability: Solid knowledge of IT infrastructure, applications, networks, and ITSM platforms (e.g., ServiceNow, BMC Helix), combined with data‑driven decision‑making skills to translate insights into meaningful improvements.
- Exceptional communication, influence, and stakeholder engagement: Skilled in partnering with senior leaders, cross‑functional teams, and external providers; capable of conveying complex information clearly and fostering collaborative, high‑trust relationships.
- Continuous improvement and innovation mindset: Proven ability to drive operational excellence through shift‑left practices, automation, quality‑first thinking, knowledge‑sharing, and proactive risk mitigation to enhance service availability and resilience.
Everyone's welcome. We are ambitious about the future of retail. We're disrupting, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era, transforming how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. Marks & Spencer strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen. We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best.
Head of Service Continuity in Salford employer: MARKS&SPENCER
Contact Detail:
MARKS&SPENCER Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Service Continuity in Salford
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections on LinkedIn or at industry events. We all know that sometimes it’s not just what you know, but who you know that can help you land that dream job.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for those interviews by researching the company and its culture. We want you to show up confident and ready to discuss how your skills align with their needs, especially in service continuity.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice makes perfect! Do mock interviews with friends or use online platforms. We can’t stress enough how important it is to articulate your experience and how it relates to the role of Head of Service Continuity.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, we love seeing candidates who are genuinely interested in joining our team.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Service Continuity in Salford
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your Application: Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter to highlight your experience in service continuity and risk management. We want to see how your skills align with the role, so don’t hold back on showcasing your relevant achievements!
Showcase Your Leadership Skills: As a senior role, we’re looking for someone who can lead and inspire teams. Use your application to demonstrate your leadership style and any successful projects you've led in the past. This is your chance to shine!
Be Clear and Concise: When writing your application, keep it straightforward and to the point. We appreciate clarity, so avoid jargon and make sure your key points stand out. Remember, less is often more!
Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to submit your application through our website. It’s the best way to ensure your application gets to us directly and allows you to keep track of your progress. Plus, it’s super easy!
How to prepare for a job interview at MARKS&SPENCER
✨Understand the Role Inside Out
Before your interview, make sure you thoroughly understand the Head of Service Continuity role. Familiarise yourself with key responsibilities like enterprise-wide continuity strategies and incident management. This will help you articulate how your experience aligns with their needs.
✨Prepare for Stakeholder Engagement Scenarios
Given the importance of engaging senior leaders and cross-functional teams, prepare examples of how you've successfully influenced stakeholders in the past. Think about specific situations where your communication skills made a difference during a crisis or project.
✨Showcase Your Analytical Skills
Be ready to discuss how you've used data-driven decision-making in previous roles. Prepare to share metrics or analytics that demonstrate your ability to enhance service availability and operational excellence, as this is crucial for the position.
✨Emphasise Continuous Improvement Mindset
The company values innovation and continuous improvement, so come prepared with examples of how you've implemented shift-left practices or automation in your previous roles. Highlight any initiatives that led to enhanced resilience or service quality.
