IT Service Desk Lead (Freelance/Contract) in Maidenhead

The IT Service Desk Lead is responsible for the effective operation of the Service Desk in line with the strategic direction of the IT Support function. The role leads the configuration and standardisation of the service desk tooling (ZohoDesk or equivalent), ensuring consistent service quality, efficient ticket resolution, and adherence to agreed SLAs. Working closely with Project Managers and support teams, the role coordinates people, processes, and resources to deliver reliable day-to-day service while driving continuous improvement and user satisfaction.

Key Responsibilities:

• Incident and Service Management:

• Act as the escalation point for complex incidents and service requests, ensuring timely resolution in accordance with agreed SLAs.
• Perform root-cause analysis and drive resolution of recurring problems.
• Monitor service delivery performance, proactively identifying potential disruptions and coordinating corrective actions.
• Lead the configuration, optimisation, and rollout of ZohoDesk (or equivalent ITSM tool), including ticket workflows, SLAs, automations, queues, escalation rules, and dashboards.
• Define and implement standard service desk templates, including incident, service request, change, and problem templates, ensuring consistency across projects and support teams.
• Establish and enforce service desk best practices, documentation standards, and operating procedures to improve ticket quality, response times, and resolution efficiency.
• Act as the primary point of contact for service desk tooling, working closely with support teams and stakeholders to support adoption, continuous improvement, and reporting.

• Provide advanced technical support and guidance to internal users and external clients across systems, software applications, and infrastructure.
• Analyse data, identify trends, and recommend enhancements or solutions to improve overall service quality and reliability.

• Collaborate closely with internal stakeholders, technical teams, third-party vendors, and external clients to manage service expectations.
• Support relationship management activities by clearly communicating technical solutions and service updates.

• Lead or participate in projects aimed at improving service delivery processes, documentation, and tools.
• Contribute to the knowledge base by developing and maintaining accurate, accessible documentation.

• Ability to create, interpret, and present ITSM metrics, identifying root causes for performance issues and implementing improvements.
• Familiarity with ITSM tools (ServiceNow and/or Zohodesk), operational dashboards, and automation.

• Ensure compliance with company standards, industry best practices, and applicable UK regulations (e.g., ISO 27001, GDPR, ITIL frameworks).
• Maintain accurate records of service-related activities for auditing purposes.

• Provide training and support to operational teams to ensure they optimise service delivery according to best practice guidance.

Essential Skills and Experience:

• Proven experience as a Service Analyst, Senior Service Analyst, or equivalent role within an enterprise-level service management or IT support environment.
• Comprehensive understanding of ITIL practices, particularly Incident, Problem, Change, and Service Level Management.
• Demonstrable experience using ITSM tools (e.g., ServiceNow, Zohodesk, Jira Service Management, Freshdesk).
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with experience conducting root-cause analyses and recommending effective solutions.
• Strong technical background with proficiency in common enterprise technologies (Microsoft 365, Azure/AWS, network troubleshooting, databases, application support).
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills; adept at conveying complex information clearly to diverse audiences.
• Experience in developing, maintaining, and enhancing knowledge bases and service documentation.

Desirable Qualifications:

• ITIL Foundation Certification (essential), ITIL Intermediate or Practitioner Certification (desirable).
• Certification or familiarity with Agile practices, Scrum methodologies, and project management (e.g., PRINCE2).
• Technical certifications (e.g., Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert, AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Cisco certifications).

Personal Attributes:

• Proactive, self-motivated, and driven to continuously improve.
• Collaborative, team-oriented, with strong stakeholder management capabilities.
• Ability to prioritise workload effectively under pressure and manage conflicting priorities.
• Flexible and adaptable to changing business demands and priorities.

Benefits:

Opportunity to work in a dynamic, fast-growing technology organisation. Competitive remuneration package, including attractive benefits and flexible working. Professional development support and career progression opportunities.

We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals and will consider flexible working arrangements.