Outcomes First Group
Head of Applications
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In 2025, Outcomes First Group were officially certified as a ‘Great Place to Work’ for the sixth year running
Head of Applications
Location: Manchester (Hybrid - Occasional UK and world-wide travel may be required)
Salary: £63,000 per annum
Contract: Permanent, Full Time
Please note: UK applicants only | No sponsorship available
About the Role
We're looking for an experienced, commercially minded Head of Applications to join our growing Group IT team.
Reporting directly to the Chief Architect, this is a high-visibility, impactful role where you will own, govern, and continuously improve our enterprise application estate and integration capabilities across the Group. Leading a team of Application Managers and Integration Engineers, you will bridge the gap between technology and business priorities, ensuring our applications remain secure, reliable, supportable, and cost-effective.
We’re looking for a proactive tech leader who excels at vendor management, team development, and translating complex technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders to deliver sustainable change.
Why Join Us?
- High-visibility leadership role reporting directly to the Chief Architect
- Opportunity to shape and govern enterprise-wide application roadmaps
- Hybrid working environment with an established, supportive tech leadership team
- Great Place to Work certified for six consecutive years
- Meaningful work using technology to improve outcomes for children and young people
What You'll Be Doing
Application Governance & Portfolio Management
- Own the Group Application portfolio, ensuring clear technical/business ownership, support models, data classifications, and lifecycle roadmaps.
- Conduct landscape reviews to identify opportunities for system rationalization, remediation, retirement, or investment.
- Work with project teams to assess business requirements for new applications before procurement begins.
- Oversee implementations, upgrades, releases, migrations, and decommissioning.
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Integration & Automation Leadership
- Lead the Integration function, ensuring solutions and Power Automate workflows are designed, developed, monitored, and supported to approved architecture standards.
- Ensure projects produce proportionate designs, data flow diagrams, and support models.
Supplier Management & Cost Optimisation
- Manage operational relationships with strategic application and integration suppliers, overseeing service reviews and contract renewals.
- Contribute to budget setting, forecasting, and commercial negotiation to actively manage software licensing and platform costs.
Team Leadership & Service Performance
- Lead, mentor, and build a capable team of Application Managers and Integration Engineers.
- Define and report on service KPIs, operational risks, application availability, and incident trends.
About You
You’ll be a seasoned technology leader who thrives in complex multi-site environments and enjoys aligning technical capabilities with business goals.
You'll have:
- Significant experience leading enterprise application support, business systems, or integration engineering teams.
- Strong knowledge of Application Lifecycle Management, IT Service Management (ITSM), and supplier governance.
- Proven track record in supplier negotiation, contract due diligence, and software cost control.
- Exceptional stakeholder management skills, with the ability to communicate technical and commercial matters to non-technical leaders clearly.
- Experience translating business requirements into clear delivery plans and high-level designs.
- Familiarity with agile and project management techniques.
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Experience or familiarity with education systems (e.g., MIS, safeguarding, assessment platforms) is advantageous but not essential.
What You'll Bring
- A collaborative and strategic approach to technology governance.
- Excellent communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
- Strong technical acumen balanced with commercial awareness.
- A genuine passion for using technology to improve outcomes for young people.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All applicants will be subject to social media checks and successful applicants to a fully enhanced DBS check.
We are an Equal Opportunities Employer.
We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a high volume of suitable applications is received. Outcomes First Group is committed to a fair, thorough, and efficient recruitment process in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education. While we aim to keep applicants informed, we do not accept liability for any loss of earnings or costs incurred due to delays or changes in compliance processes. All stages are subject to safeguarding checks and statutory requirements, which may affect timescales.
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