Operations Manager in Banbury

Location: Banbury. Office: based five days a week with visits to customer projects that span Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire and the Cotswolds.

Salary: Starting from £50,000 (flexible for the perfect candidate). Working hours: Monday to Friday 08:00 – 17:00 (40‑hour week).

The company is growing its team to include a proactive, diligent, and effective Operations Manager to oversee its team of fully accredited engineers delivering reliable, professional plumbing and heating solutions keeping homes and businesses running smoothly across Oxfordshire and the surrounding areas.

Role Summary

They are seeking an experienced Operational Manager with a background in commercial and domestic plumbing/heating to oversee the day‑to‑day delivery of projects and field operations. The ideal candidate will be a former plumber/heating engineer with a minimum of five years industry experience who has progressed into an operational or supervisory leadership role within a small or growing commercial plumbing/heating engineering business. This position is responsible for managing site teams, coordinating project timelines, ensuring health and safety compliance, and maintaining high standards of workmanship and client service. The Operational Manager will work closely with senior leadership to support business growth, improve operational efficiency, and implement scalable processes suitable for an expanding firm. The successful candidate will combine hands‑on technical knowledge with strong planning, people management, and commercial awareness, enabling them to bridge the gap between field delivery and strategic operations. Experience working in fast‑paced environments, managing multiple projects, and supporting workforce development is essential.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide direct line management to a team of approximately 10 field‑based engineers, including plumbers, apprentices and subcontractors where applicable.
• Plan, coordinate and oversee the day‑to‑day operational delivery of multiple commercial/domestic plumbing/heating projects.
• Work closely with the Estimator to review project scopes, labour allocations, cost assumptions and programme requirements prior to project commencement.
• Collaborate with office staff to ensure the smooth scheduling of works, materials procurement, documentation and client communications.
• Monitor project progress to ensure works are delivered on time, within budget and to company quality standards.
• Drive operational efficiency across the wider business and all projects by reviewing workflows, resource allocation and site productivity.
• Conduct regular site visitations to review workmanship, compliance, progress against programme and health and safety standards.
• Provide technical guidance and problem‑solving support to site teams, maintaining a proactive, solutions‑focused approach.
• Foster a positive, can‑do culture within the operational team, promoting accountability, teamwork and high morale.
• Identify and elevate project risks, delays or commercial issues, implementing corrective actions where required.
• Support workforce development through mentoring, performance management and skills progression of team members.
• Ensure all works comply with relevant regulations, industry standards and company policies.
• Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives as the business grows, helping to implement scalable operational processes.
• Attend internal planning meetings and client/site meetings where operational representation is required.

Additional day‑to‑day responsibilities

• Managing holidays and absence across the team to ensure the business can always run efficiently and without large gaps in output.
• Oversight of the company van fleet, ensuring servicing, MOTs and insurances are up‑to‑date.
• Oversight of the daily operations of the travelling team of engineers.