Application Support Analyst

Join a challenging yet collaborative and team-orientated work environment.

12 Manse Rd, BT6 9RT, Belfast, County Antrim, United Kingdom

Role Title

Application Support Analyst - Fixed Term & Permanent Postions Available

Reports to: Head of Technology Operations and Cybersecurity

Location: Belfast (Hybrid, 3 days in office 2 days at home)

Background

SONI is responsible for operating Northern Ireland's electricity transmission system and ensuring the safe, secure, reliable and efficient operation of the power system and jointly with EirGrid operates the all-island wholesale electricity market through the Single Electricity Market Operator (SEMO), supporting market operations, market settlement and regulatory obligations across Ireland.

We are seeking an Application Support Analysts to join our Technology Operations function, supporting mission-critical applications that underpin the secure operation of the electricity transmission system, administration of the all-island wholesale electricity market and delivery of critical business services across Ireland's electricity sector.

Successful candidates will work closely with business users, operational teams, technology specialists and third-party suppliers to ensure the continued availability, resilience and enhancement of key systems and services.

The successful candidate will work closely with colleagues in Operations and Technology Services across SONI and EirGrid, together with technology suppliers and project delivery teams, to ensure the continued availability and resilience of critical operational applications. The role operates within the EirGrid Group IT Operating Model and will require occasional travel to Dublin.

Role Description

As an Application Support Analyst, you will help support the technology systems that enable the safe operation of Northern Ireland's electricity network and the all-island electricity market. Your work will help ensure critical services remain available, secure and resilient while contributing to the transition to a sustainable energy future.

You will work as part of the support team, providing technical support across operational and project activities including incident, problem, change and release management, application monitoring, supplier coordination, data management and specialist application support. You will work with operational teams, business users, technology specialists and external suppliers to support, maintain and improve critical applications and services. Your work will help ensure systems remain secure, resilient and available while supporting the delivery of strategic technology and business change initiatives.

This role forms part of the wider EirGrid Group IT Operating model and supports the delivery and operation of mission-critical applications across the island of Ireland and is an excellent opportunity to develop your career within a critical national infrastructure organisation that plays a vital role in delivering a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide first-line and second-line support for business-critical applications, investigating, diagnosing and coordinating the resolution of incidents, service requests and technical issues. Manage incidents, requests, problems and changes in line with agreed processes, service levels and operational performance targets.
• Monitor application health, availability and performance, taking action to minimise service disruption.
• Support major incident management, helping restore critical services and maintaining effective stakeholder communication during disruptions.
• Undertake root cause analysis and support the implementation of preventative measures to reduce recurring issues.
• Support application upgrades, releases and project delivery, including requirements gathering, design reviews, testing, change implementation, operational readiness and transition into production.
• Maintain technical documentation, operational procedures and knowledge repositories.
• Act as technical owner for assigned applications and services, maintaining knowledge of their functionality, dependencies, operational risks and lifecycle requirements.
• Manage relationships with software vendors, service providers and support partners, coordinating issue resolution, monitoring performance against agreed service levels and contributing to service improvements.
• Work with business stakeholders to understand requirements and deliver improvements to services, support processes, automation, monitoring, system resilience and operational effectiveness.
• Support audits, regulatory compliance, business continuity planning, disaster recovery exercises and resilience testing within a critical infrastructure environment.
• Participate in an out-of-hours support rota and undertake planned maintenance, major incident response and other out-of-hours work as required.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Essential:

• Third-level qualification in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Information Systems, Electrical Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Experience supporting business-critical applications within a highly available 24/7 operational environment.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with experience methodically investigating, diagnosing and resolving complex technical incidents and service issues.
• Ability to assess operational risk, prioritise competing activities and make effective decisions in a mission-critical environment.
• Experience working collaboratively with users, stakeholders, third-party suppliers and support providers as part of a multidisciplinary team.
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple priorities within agreed service levels.
• Good verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to produce clear technical and operational documentation.
• Willingness to participate in an on-call and out-of-hours support rota.

Desirable:

• Experience supporting operational technology or electricity market systems.
• Knowledge of ITIL Service Management processes, particularly Incident, Problem and Change Management.
• Experience working with databases and SQL.
• Experience of Linux administration and scripting.
• Experience supporting application integrations, interfaces and data exchange services.
• Experience participating in testing, release and deployment activities.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity and information security best practices.
• Experience supporting systems subject to regulatory, resilience or critical national infrastructure requirements.

Why join us?

• Play a vital role in shaping sustainable energy projects that benefit communities and the environment.
• Enjoy a competitive salary, performance-related bonus, private medical cover, and pension matching.
• Benefit from flexible working arrangements, including hybrid options (3 days office / 2 days home).
• Enhanced holidays, maternity and paternity leave and wellbeing days.
• Benefit from our award-winning wellbeing programme, designed to support your physical and mental wellbeing.
• A one-off payment of up to £5,000 is available to support employees undergoing fertility treatment.
• Employees are entitled to two weeks' paid bereavement leave following a miscarriage, reflecting our commitment to supporting colleagues through significant life events with compassion and care.
• Access salary sacrifice schemes (such as cycle to work, EV scheme), free car parking, onsite EV charging and complimentary lunch.
• Access professional development opportunities and clear career progression pathways.
• We offer an inclusive culture that values diversity, supports flexible working and empowers you to grow. We know flexible working means different things to different people. Contact us if you’d like to talk about how this role could work for you.

SONI is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to an inclusive workplace where diverse perspectives are valued, and everyone can thrive. As a STEM organisation, we are continuing to strengthen gender diversity across our engineering and technology roles and welcome applications from women who want to build and apply their expertise to Northern Ireland’s energy system.

We have a duty to prevent illegal working and applicants must demonstrate they have a legal right to work in the UK. SONI is not providing sponsorship for this vacancy.

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