James Fisher and Sons plc
Head of Infrastructure and Service Management
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Permanent position UK based, Hybrid working
The Role
At James Fisher, we see IT as central to unlocking the speed, agility, efficiency and differentiation needed for our organisation to compete and win in its core markets. To fully realise this ambition, we are modernising our foundations, unifying and digitising processes, and applying emerging technologies to transform how the business operates and performs.
James Fisher is part-way through a major IT Transformation programme that will deliver a federated IT operating model, a target enterprise architecture, an integrated IT investment process and a group-wide project governance framework. The Head of Infrastructure and Service Management will join at the point where design and early implementation are complete, and will take ownership of completing the implementation, building out the team, and transitioning the function into steady-state operation.
The Head of Infrastructure and Service Management is a senior leadership role within the IT Function, accountable for the reliable, secure and efficient delivery of infrastructure platforms and IT service management across the Group. The role encompasses all core infrastructure domains (including cloud, networks, hosting, end-user computing, mobile and field technology, backup and recovery, monitoring and observability, and resilience) and end-to-end service management disciplines (including service desk, incident, problem, change and asset management), ensuring effective business-as-usual (BAU) operations alongside the successful execution of related projects and programmes.
Reporting to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and a member of the IT Senior Leadership Team, this role will define and deliver robust, scalable and “silent running” IT services, while driving transformation and continuous improvement. It requires strong technical credibility and leadership to build organisational capability, embed best practices, and lead high-performing teams and suppliers to deliver resilient, efficient and customer-focused IT services aligned to business priorities and growth ambitions.
The scope of this role is global and group-wide, encompassing with 3 Divisions (Maritime Transport, Energy, Defence) plus Group Functions, 77 sites across UK, Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, Middle East, Asia and Australia and circa 2,000 employees.
Key Duties And Responsibilities
Implementation and Team Build:
- Lead infrastructure and service transformation: Take ownership of completing the infrastructure and service management transformation, delivering the target operating model, strengthening governance and processes, and implementing enabling tools to improve service quality, resilience and efficiency.
- Build and mature the capability: Establish and develop a high-performing Infrastructure and Service Management function, leveraging internal talent and external hires, and defining effective ways of working across infrastructure operations, service management, platform engineering and supplier management.
- Embed best practice and drive improvement: Embed robust ITIL-aligned service management, operational governance and continuous improvement practices across the Group, working with Divisional IT leaders and business stakeholders to ensure consistent adoption, enhanced service performance and measurable business value.
Infrastructure, Operations & Platform Leadership
- Lead enterprise infrastructure delivery: Own the end-to-end delivery and performance of all infrastructure services (cloud, on-premises compute, networks, storage, databases, end-user computing, mobile and field technology platforms and connectivity), ensuring services are secure, reliable, scalable and cost-effective, including the infrastructure services, connectivity and integration capabilities required to securely connect operational technology (OT) environments with enterprise IT services where appropriate.
- Ensure resilient and high-performing platforms: Establish robust monitoring, observability, patching, capacity, availability and performance management across infrastructure, platforms and critical business services to deliver stable, “silent running” infrastructure that supports business operations.
- Deliver infrastructure change and projects: Lead the delivery of infrastructure-related projects and technology change, ensuring alignment with enterprise architecture, business priorities and transformation objectives.
- Embed secure-by-design operations: Work in close partnership with Cyber Security to implement and operate identity, authentication/authorisation and privileged access controls across all infrastructure platforms, ensuring infrastructure services operate in accordance with Group cyber security policies, standards and control requirements.
- Ensure operational resilience and recoverability: Own backup, recovery and disaster recovery capabilities, including regular testing, validation and continual improvement of recovery arrangements across infrastructure services.
- Enable secure IT/OT integration: Partner with divisional technology and operational teams to provide secure connectivity, identity, access, segmentation and data exchange capabilities between enterprise IT and operational technology environments, while maintaining appropriate separation, resilience and security controls.
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Service Management & Operational Excellence
- Own IT service management disciplines: Lead all ITSM capabilities including service desk, incident, request, problem, change, knowledge, asset and configuration management (CMDB), ensuring consistent and effective execution.
- Operate a robust service model: Define and maintain a clear service catalogue, SLAs and OLAs, ensuring services are measurable, predictable and aligned to business expectations, and establishing globally consistent service definitions, support models and performance measures across all regions and divisions.
- Drive operational excellence: Embed ITIL-aligned best practice, leveraging standardisation, automation and proactive problem management to minimise disruption and improve user experience.
- Embed secure and controlled service operations: Ensure service management processes support and enforce relevant cyber security policies and controls, including joiner/mover/leaver processes, access fulfilment, asset governance, change control, incident response and audit requirements.
- Deliver continuous service improvement: Use performance data, KPIs, service observability insights and stakeholder feedback to drive ongoing improvements in service quality, efficiency and maturity.
Change, Transformation & Continuous Improvement
- Deliver ISM transformation outcomes: Lead the infrastructure and service management components of the IT transformation roadmap, balancing change delivery with protection of BAU service stability.
- Drive optimisation and simplification: Identify and execute opportunities to reduce complexity, technical debt and cost across infrastructure and service management through standardisation and automation.
- Align with architecture and change governance: Partner closely with Architecture and Projects functions to ensure all infrastructure and service designs are strategic, scalable and compliant with governance standards.
Suppliers, Commercials & Service Governance
- Own service governance and delivery model: Establish and run governance frameworks covering internal teams and managed service providers, ensuring clear accountability, performance management and integrated end-to-end service delivery across suppliers, regions and support teams.
- Manage supplier performance and value: Oversee supplier contracts, SLAs and commercial arrangements, ensuring delivery against agreed outcomes, value for money and continuous improvement.
- Lead sourcing and optimisation activity: Drive supplier selection, re-tendering and restructuring where services are underperforming or misaligned with strategic needs.
- Chair service performance forums: Lead regular operational and service review forums to track performance, resolve issues and ensure alignment with business expectations.
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Stakeholder Engagement & Federated Delivery
- Partner with Divisional IT and business leaders: Work closely with Heads of IT and business stakeholders to ensure infrastructure and services meet operational and strategic requirements.
- Enable federated service delivery: Ensure consistent standards, policies, service levels and processes are applied across Group and Divisions, with clear accountability across the federated IT operating model and a predictable, globally consistent user experience regardless of geography or business unit.
- Act as senior escalation point: Provide leadership in the resolution of major service or infrastructure issues, ensuring effective coordination, communication and recovery.
Cost, Performance & Capability Management
- Own cost and efficiency of ISM services: Manage infrastructure and service management cost base, optimising cloud consumption, licensing, tooling and support models to deliver value for money.
- Drive performance through data and insight: Establish KPIs, reporting and dashboards to enable transparent, data-driven service performance and decision-making.
- Build organisational capability: Develop the skills, structure and capacity of the Infrastructure and Service Management function to support both steady-state operations and ongoing transformation.
This is an opportunity to take ownership of a newly established function with a fresh operating model, target architecture and governance framework. The successful candidate will lead, mature and evolve a clean, well-defined function, with a seat on the IT Senior Leadership Team, partnership with the CIO on IT strategy, and group-wide influence on how technology supports James Fisher’s ambitions in Maritime Transport, Energy, Defence and across Group Functions.
What We’re Looking For
You will need to be confident operating amid complexity and ambiguity along with being pragmatic, structured and outcomes focused.
Be trusted and credible with senior leaders and energised and excited by change and transformation.
Passionate about making IT a key strategic enabler and partner to our business and take pride in delivering reliable, “silent running” IT services that enable business performance and user satisfaction.
Key Skills, Knowledge And Experience
- Sector experience in engineering, maritime, defence, energy or other industrial sectors.
- ITIL v3/v4 certification demonstrating strong grounding in IT service management principles and best practice.
- Relevant cloud certification such as AWS, Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud certifications, reflecting understanding of modern cloud platforms and architectures.
- Recognised portfolio/programme/project framework certification, such as P3O (Portfolio, Programme and Project Offices), MSP (Managing Successful Programmes), PRINCE2 or equivalent.
Senior IT leadership experience: Extensive experience leading large-scale IT functions within complex, global or federated organisations.
Transformation delivery: Proven track record of delivering IT transformation, including operating model design, organisational change and capability build.
Stakeholder management: Strong experience engaging senior business leaders, operating across matrixed or federated structures.
IT Service Management (ITSM)
- End-to-end ITSM ownership: Demonstrable experience leading ITSM functions across all core disciplines (incident, request, problem, change, service desk, CMDB, asset lifecycle).
- Service design and improvement: Experience designing service architectures, implementing ITIL-aligned processes, and driving continuous service improvement.
- Service tooling implementation: Experience delivering and optimising ITSM platforms, automation and workflow tooling.
Infrastructure
- Enterprise infrastructure leadership: Deep experience managing enterprise infrastructure environments including cloud, hybrid, on-premises, networks, compute, storage, databases, end-user computing, mobile and field technology, backup and recovery, and observability platforms.
- Operational resilience: Proven
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