IT Release Management Lead

Summary

Salary: Competitive plus comprehensive benefits package

Grade: 3A

Reporting Line: Incident and Problem Lead

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: Hybrid

Location: London/Chesterfield

Closing Date: 27th July 2026

What To Expect

As an IT Release Management Lead, you will join us on our transformation journey and undertake a high-impact role responsible for leading and governing the end-to-end Release Management function across our technology estate.
You will ensure technology releases are planned, managed and deployed safely, efficiently and in line with business priorities, enabling the successful delivery of change while protecting service stability and customer experience. Working collaboratively with business stakeholders, project teams, service operations, suppliers and technology partners, you will coordinate complex release activities, manage risks and dependencies, and provide clear oversight of release performance across the organisation.
This role offers a unique opportunity to make a tangible impact by driving continuous improvement in release governance, processes and tooling, helping to shape the future of our technology services and the communities we serve. You will play a critical role in delivering technology innovation safely and effectively, ensuring releases support both current business needs and long-term strategic objectives.
How our people behave is as important to Post Office as what is delivered. The IT Release Management Lead will role model Post Office behaviours, demonstrate a Postmaster First mindset, and champion a culture of collaboration, accountability, continuous improvement and service excellence.

What you'll do

• Own and govern the end-to-end Release Management process, ensuring alignment with ITIL v4, Change Enablement practices and organisational governance standards.
• Manage and maintain the enterprise release calendar, coordinating multiple releases across projects, technology teams and third-party suppliers.
• Ensure all releases are effectively planned, risk assessed, approved, communicated and deployed with minimal impact to live services and customers.
• Lead release planning, readiness reviews and deployment activities, ensuring operational acceptance criteria and business preparedness are met. Coordinate internal and external delivery teams, proactively managing dependencies, risks, conflicts and competing priorities across a complex technology landscape.
• Act as the primary escalation point for release-related issues, driving timely resolution and informed decision-making.
• Chair release governance forums and provide oversight of release quality, compliance, deployment readiness and risk management.
• Produce and present release performance metrics, KPI reporting and management information, identifying trends and opportunities for improvement.
• Drive continual improvement across release processes, controls, tooling and ways of working to enhance service stability, efficiency and delivery outcomes.
• Work closely with Change, Incident, Problem, Project Delivery and Service Operations teams to ensure effective service transition and operational readiness.
• Support post-implementation reviews and major incident investigations, identifying lessons learned and implementing actions to improve future release success.
• Lead, coach and develop the Release Management team, fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement and professional growth.

What we can do for you

• 27.5 days annual leave (rising to 30 after 2 years), plus bank holidays
• Up to 18% on target bonus opportunity
• Annual car allowance
• Generous pension scheme with minimum 9% employer contribution
• Access to 24/7 digital GP services and our Employee Assistance Programme
• 6 x Life assurance and income protection after 12 months service
• Over 400 online courses, mentoring, apprenticeships, and development programmes
• Access to our benefits platform for exclusive discounts & savings

What you’ll need to succeed

• ITIL v4 qualified with strong knowledge of Release Management, Change Enablement and Service Transition best practices.
• Extensive experience managing end-to-end release processes within large, complex and multi-supplier IT environments.
• Strong understanding of release governance, CAB processes and organisational risk controls.
• Proven ability to coordinate releases across technical teams, business stakeholders and third-party suppliers while managing complex dependencies. Experience working across Agile, Waterfall, DevOps and CI/CD delivery environments.
• Expertise in release planning, scheduling, deployment coordination, release readiness and dependency management.
• Strong analytical and risk management skills, with the ability to identify, assess and mitigate release risks and service impacts.
• Experience managing enterprise release calendars and delivering successful production deployments with minimal business disruption.
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication and influencing skills, with the ability to engage effectively with senior leaders, suppliers and business partners.
• Proven experience chairing release governance meetings, readiness reviews and managing escalations in a fast-paced environment.

Application Guidance

Our commitment to embracing diversity extends beyond just words. While we’ve outlined key skills above, we recognise that great candidates come from a variety of backgrounds. We value diverse perspectives and are committed to building an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive. As a Disability Confident Employer, we recognise the value people with disabilities can bring to our business. If you require any reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process or would like further details on the job description, please contact the recruitment team.