Operations Programme Manager in Farnborough

About IDGateway

IDGateway delivers SaaS solutions into security-sensitive and operationally demanding environments. We work closely with airports, aviation operators and enterprise customers to improve operational efficiency, compliance and workforce management through modern technology. We are a growing software business and we need someone to take ownership of how we run day to day — keeping every team focused, on schedule and accountable to their commitments.

The Role

This role is about one thing: making sure the right people are doing the right things at the right time across the whole business. You will spend the majority of your time actively managing people against plans and deadlines. That means knowing what everyone is working on, chasing progress, calling out slippage early and keeping things moving. You are not here to set strategy or write reports. You are here to organise, coordinate, push and follow through. You will work directly with the Managing Director and leadership team to translate priorities into clear plans and then hold the business to those plans. You will run operational reviews across every team, track progress against schedules and act on what you find — every single day. This is a hands‑on, high‑energy role. The right person will be energised by staying on top of a complex, fast‑moving environment and will take real pride in keeping the whole organisation running in an organised and disciplined way.

Is This Role Right for You?

Please read this carefully before applying. This role will suit you if you have:

• Direct, hands‑on experience managing teams and individuals against plans and deadlines within a software or SaaS business.
• A background in active project or operations management — where you were personally responsible for chasing people, tracking progress and driving delivery.
• Experience working embedded within software development or SaaS product teams and a solid understanding of how they operate.
• A natural instinct to organise, follow up and get things done without being asked.

This role is unlikely to suit you if your background is primarily in:

• Service delivery, customer success or account management — this is an internal operations role, not a client‑facing one.
• Senior leadership or strategic operations — this role is about doing, not directing. You will be hands‑on every day.
• Industries outside of software or technology — experience in a SaaS or software development environment is essential.
• Programme management or PMO functions where your role was primarily governance and reporting rather than active delivery management.

Key Responsibilities

Day-to-Day Operational Management

• Maintain a live, accurate picture of what every team and individual is working on and whether they are on track.
• Actively manage people against agreed schedules, milestones and deadlines across all functions in the business.
• Chase progress, call out slippage and remove blockers before they affect delivery.
• Hold teams and individuals to their commitments in a direct but constructive way.
• Run regular operational reviews across all teams and act on what you find.
• Escalate issues to leadership promptly and with clarity.

Planning and Operational Control

• Work with leadership to translate business priorities into clear, actionable plans with defined owners and deadlines.
• Ensure that plans, priorities and resource allocation are kept current and visible across the business.
• Coordinate workloads and dependencies across teams to avoid bottlenecks and gaps.
• Produce concise operational status updates and progress reports for the Managing Director and leadership team.

Customer and Project Delivery

• Ensure that customer commitments are tracked and consistently met across all active projects.
• Work alongside the Delivery Manager to maintain grip on SaaS delivery workstreams.
• Act as a point of escalation for operational issues that affect customer timelines or commitments.

Operational Improvement and AI Adoption

• Drive the adoption of AI tools and AI‑assisted workflows to improve efficiency and productivity across the business.
• Identify opportunities for automation and smarter ways of working and lead their implementation.
• Work with the Head of Software Engineering to ensure AI adoption is effective and well‑governed.

Required Experience

• Proven experience in an active, hands‑on operations or project management role within a software or SaaS business — this is essential.
• Direct experience managing teams and individuals against schedules and delivery commitments, including chasing progress and resolving slippage.
• Strong understanding of how software development and SaaS delivery teams work, including Agile environments.
• Experience coordinating across multiple teams and functions simultaneously with a high volume of concurrent activity.
• A track record of driving accountability and delivery discipline — not just tracking and reporting, but actively pushing things forward.
• Confident using project and task management tools such as Jira, Monday, Asana or similar in an operational context.
• Clear, direct communication skills and the ability to give leadership an honest picture of operational performance.
• Experience using AI tools and AI‑assisted workflows to improve day‑to‑day operations.

Ideal Profile

• Proactive and energetic — you spot what needs doing and act without being asked.
• Organised and structured — you naturally bring order to complexity.
• Direct and confident — you are comfortable chasing people, raising concerns and holding colleagues to account.
• Resilient and focused — you do not lose grip when priorities shift or pressure increases.
• A strong communicator at all levels — from engineers to senior leadership.
• Interested in technology and how it can make operations smarter and more efficient.
• Focused on outcomes — you care about things actually getting done, not just being planned.

Desirable

• Experience within aviation, security, identity management or regulated industries.
• PRINCE2, AgilePM, PMP or equivalent qualification.
• Experience within a scaling SaaS business.
• Experience introducing automation or AI‑enabled operational improvements.

What Success Looks Like

• Every team knows exactly what they are working on and is being actively managed against their commitments.
• Slippage is caught early and resolved — not discovered late and escalated upward.
• Leadership has a clear, real‑time picture of operational performance without having to ask for it.
• Customer commitments are met consistently and delivery is reliable.
• The Managing Director is free to focus on the business rather than chasing day‑to‑day progress.