IT Head of Operations

THE ROLE

This sits at the core of Next Energy Group’s evolving Technology & Digital Services (TDS) function. Reporting directly to the CTIO, you will be a member of the senior leadership team. You will play a key role in shaping and delivering a three-year technology transformation programme, working closely with TDS leaders and partnering with the business and central functions to deliver a modern, service-oriented infrastructure and high-performing operational capability.  

The Head of Operations will be accountable for designing, leading, and continuously improving the organisation’s technology operations model. This role oversees a team of 10+ technical service desk analysts and is responsible for governance, service quality, vendor and contract management, and operational budgeting. The Head of Operations ensures the stability, scalability, and maturity of the service function while driving modernisation, efficiency, and customer‑centred delivery.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Operational Strategy & Leadership 

• Develop and deliver the operations strategy aligned to business and technology goals. 
• Establish clear operational standards, frameworks, and processes supporting scalable, resilient delivery. 
• Lead transformation initiatives across tooling, automation, workflows, and data‑driven decision‑making. 

Team Leadership & Management 

• Lead, coach, and mentor a team of 10+ technical service desk analysts, fostering capability growth, strong performance, and customer‑centred behaviour. 
• Act as the senior escalation point for complex technical issues and major incidents. 
• Manage resource planning, team scheduling, workload balancing, documentation quality, and performance reviews. 
• Build a high‑performance culture focused on collaboration, continuous learning, and service excellence. 

Commercial Management: Contracts, Vendors & Budget 

• Negotiate, manage, and optimise contracts with technology, software, and service suppliers, ensuring commercial value and strong service-level commitments. 
• Maintain proactive relationships with third‑party vendors, including performance reviews, compliance management, risk tracking, and escalations. 
• Own the operations budget, including forecasting, cost monitoring, variance analysis, and cost‑efficiency planning. 
• Identify opportunities to optimise spend through contract improvements, vendor performance, automation, and tooling rationalisation. 

Service Excellence & Process Optimisation 

• Design, refine, and standardise operational processes and service desk workflows aligned with best practice (including ITIL). 
• Own SLA and KPI governance, ensuring measurable improvements in performance and service quality. 
• Lead operational maturity uplift across incident, request, change, problem, and knowledge management processes. 
• Drive automation and tooling initiatives that improve efficiency and reduce manual effort. 

Reporting, Insights & Operational Transparency 

• Build and maintain reporting dashboards covering KPIs, SLAs, service quality, risks, trends, and operational capacity. 
• Provide senior leadership with actionable insights and recommendations driven by data, analytics, and forecasting. 
• Ensure operational documentation, service maps, and governance artefacts are accurate, current, and audit‑ready. 

Customer Experience & Stakeholder Engagement 

• Champion a customer‑focused mindset and ensure the service desk delivers a consistent, high‑quality user experience. 
• Work closely with Technology, central functions, and business teams to resolve issues, improve processes, and streamline delivery. 
• Serve as an escalation point for recurring and high‑impact service issues, driving root‑cause analysis and preventive actions. 
• Build strong relationships across the organisation to ensure seamless operational integration. 

Governance, Risk & Compliance 

• Oversee operational governance and ensure compliance with organisational policies, regulatory requirements, and security standards. 
• Identify operational risks, develop mitigation strategies, and lead incident‑response processes. 
• Ensure readiness for internal and external audits with well‑maintained controls and documentation. 

SKILLS & COMPETENCIES

Required 

• Strong leadership experience in operations or service‑delivery environments. 
• Experience managing technical service desk teams. 
• Proven ability to negotiate, manage, and optimise supplier and third‑party contracts. 
• Experience managing budgets, forecasting, and operational spend. 
• Deep understanding of operational governance, process optimisation, and service‑management practices. 
• Strong communication, stakeholder‑management, and influencing skills. 
• Highly analytical and data‑driven. 
• Deep knowledge of cloud platforms (Azure, AWS), container orchestration, IaC, and ITSM practices. 
• Solid understanding of cybersecurity principles and compliance frameworks (ISO, SOC, GDPR). 

Preferred 

• Experience with ITSM/ESM platforms and service management tooling. 
• Certifications such as ITIL, Lean, or Six Sigma. 
• Background in automation, tooling modernisation, or service transformation initiatives. 

EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS 

• Degree in a relevant field (e.g. Computer Science, Engineering, UX Design).
• Proven experience leading cross-functional technology teams in Operations and Infrastructure
• Deep expertise in human-centred design and full product lifecycle delivery
• Strong knowledge of cloud-native platforms, microservices, APIs, and DevOps
• Experience working in regulated or fast-growing technology environments
• The right to work in the UK.

WHAT WE OFFER

• A busy role in a supportive team, with plenty of opportunities to learn
• International scope – we operate in over 8 countries
• Hybrid working – we will need you in the central London (Mayfair) office at least twice a week, but you will normally be able to work remotely for the remainder of the week
• 30 days’ holiday per year (3 of which are taken during the festive shutdown in December)
• Private pension
• BUPA Healthcare for you and qualifying dependents
• Cycle to work and electric vehicle leasing schemes
• Annual discretionary bonus.

HOW TO APPLY

If you are interested in this opportunity, please follow the link to apply or send your application to [email protected]. If you have been shortlisted for the next stage, we will be in contact within 14 days. 

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DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Our approach to diversity and inclusion is a natural extension of our values. Our entrepreneurial culture inspires us to try new things, be open to different viewpoints and be bold. Our Group is committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of connectedness that values difference and gives space for individual expression. The collective sum of our individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, innovation, self-expression, and talent and hard work form the bedrock of who we are and who we aspire to be.

We are committed to equal employment and advancement opportunity irrespective of race, color, ancestry, social background, religion, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability and gender identity.

ABOUT US

NextEnergy Group was founded in 2007 to become a leading market participant in the international solar sector.  Since its inception, it has been active in the development, construction, and ownership of solar assets across multiple jurisdictions.  NextEnergy Group operates via its three business units: NextEnergy Capital (Investment Management), WiseEnergy (Operating Asset Management), and Starlight (Asset Development). 

NextEnergy Capital manages the Group's investment activities and has invested in over 520 solar plants, exceeding 2GW in capacity across its institutional funds.

• NextEnergy Solar Fund (NESF): Listed on the London Stock Exchange, NESF manages 102 solar and energy storage assets in the UK and Italy, with a total installed capacity of 983MW and a gross asset value of £1,014m.
• NextPower II (NPII): A private fund of 105 solar plants (149MW) focused on Italy, successfully divested in January 2022, delivering net IRRs exceeding its 10-12% target.
• NextPower III ESG (NPIII ESG): A private fund targeting solar infrastructure in OECD countries (e.g., US, Spain, Italy), with $896m raised, exceeding its $750m target.
• NextPower UK ESG (NPUK ESG): A private fund dedicated to new-build solar plants in the UK, with ~£600m raised.
• NextPower V ESG (NPV ESG): A private OECD solar fund investing in solar and adjacent technologies like battery storage. To date, it has raised $745m, targeting $1.5bn ($2bn ceiling).

WiseEnergy® is NextEnergy Group’s operating asset manager.  WiseEnergy is a leading specialist operating asset manager in the solar sector.  Since its founding, WiseEnergy has provided solar asset management, monitoring, technical due diligence and under construction services to over 1,500 utility-scale solar power plants with an installed total capacity in excess of 3.4 GW.  WiseEnergy clients comprise leading banks and equity financiers in the energy and infrastructure sector.  

Starlight is NextEnergy Group’s development company that is active in the development phase of solar projects.  It has developed over 100 utility-scale projects internationally and continues to progress a large pipeline of c.10GW of both green and brownfield project developments across global geographies. 

NextSTEP is the venture capital fund of NextEnergy Group, dedicated to investing in innovative startups in the field of environmental sustainability. The fund primarily focuses on investments in Italy and the United Kingdom but also extends its reach to the rest of Europe and the United States, targeting startups in the pre-seed and seed stages. NextSTEP pays particular attention to emerging entities from incubators, startup accelerators, universities, and research centers, supporting projects that address global challenges in crucial areas such as Climate Change, Energy Transition, CO2 Capture and Sequestration, Circular Economy, Sustainable Cities, Sustainable Mobility, Sustainable Fashion, Waste Management, Water and much more. 

NextEnergy Foundation is a non-profit organisation founded in 2016 by the NextEnergy Group that operates internationally and whose mission is to proactively participate in the global effort to reduce carbon emissions by providing clean energy sources in regions where they are not yet available and thereby contributing to poverty reduction. As the main sponsor of this foundation, the NextEnergy Group donates at least 5% of its consolidated net profits each year. The NextEnergy Foundation has no overhead costs and therefore 100% of the funds raised go to donations for the various projects. Since 2016, in 8 years of operation the foundation has donated more than £1.2 million, supporting over 30 projects in 27 different countries around the world.