IT Infrastructure Lead

We are seeking an IT Infrastructure & Systems Administrator Lead to help us redefine the music industry. elasticStage is building the world’s first on-demand vinyl and CD platform, unlocking physical music for the Digital Creator era. By 2030, there will be over 250 million music creators globally, most locked out of physical formats due to high minimum runs and operational complexity. elasticStage solves this through patented on-demand vinyl and CD manufacturing technology, powering a free-to-use platform where creators can produce and sell physical releases worldwide with no upfront costs or minimum quantities.
And we are scaling fast:

• 100,000+ creators are using the product within our first year of commercialisation.
• Aiming for 20X growth by 2027.
• Partnerships with SoundCloud and Amuse (with more major partners to come!).
• Shipped to over 90 countries.
• 4.7★ on Trustpilot and Google.
• Recently raised a new funding, bringing the total capital raised to £30M.
• Just moved to new office in Kings Cross.

You will be elasticStage's lead for all things IT. The brief is to own the technology foundations that keep the business and its people running as we scale. This is a senior role with broad ownership. You will shape the company’s infrastructure standards and operational practices while working on their day-to-day implementation.

What you'll own

• Systems and Networking. You own the IT side of our existing manufacturing facility, which is established and running at capacity, and the build-out of a new 54,000 sq ft facility in London to come online by December 2026. The new site brings 10M+ units of annual capacity online, the operational backbone for our 2027 ambition. It will also be the first of several: the standards, architecture, and operating model you set here become the template for every facility that follows. Your remit covers network design, segmentation between business and production environments and integration between software, manufacturing and robotics stack. 

• Desktop and security, currently delivered through an MSP. Day-to-day desktop support and security operations sit with a managed service provider. You hold the relationship, set the standards, and ultimately own all aspects: identity, SaaS, endpoint, joiner/mover/leaver, access management, and the security and compliance maturity the business needs as it scales.

• The IT function itself. You are building it. You start with MSP and will then hire a direct report. As the business scales, you define the shape of the team, the operating model, the tooling, and the roadmap. The headcount plan and budget are yours to shape.

This role is for you if you:

• Have built and led IT in a scaling business before. 
• Are energised by the challenge of building something new.
• If you want to be close to the work, designing the network, configuring identity, and owning the systems alongside the strategy.

Desktop and security, delivered through an MSP

• Own the MSP relationship for day-to-day desktop support. Define scope, SLAs, performance reviews, cost, and own escalations
• Set the standards for identity, access, endpoint, and SaaS across the business. Identity provider, SSO and provisioning, MDM across Mac, Windows, and Linux, joiner/mover / leaver in partnership with the People team, periodic access reviews, and licence rationalisation.
• Build a security and compliance practice as we scale

Manufacturing operations

• Own the network architecture across all sites. Includes switches, firewalls, VPN, wireless, VLANs, segmentation between corporate and production, and secure remote access. 
• Run the production infrastructure stack. Includes servers, storage, virtualisation, Linux-based systems and business-critical applications across cloud and on-premise environments. Routine sysadmin, patching, monitoring, capacity management, and backups 
• Lead the IT side of the new London facility build-out from day zero. Site planning, vendor selection, cabling and connectivity, network and server rollout, integration with manufacturing and robotics systems, and change management for production-critical equipment.
• Senior escalation point for complex production issues. The problems where multiple services, applications, and devices interact, or where IT and production equipment meet. Work in close partnership with Hardware and R&D when issues sit at that boundary.
• Work in close partnership and collaboration with stakeholders across Software, Hardware and R&D, supporting team-specific network requirements for our bespoke media and automation infrastructure. 
• Own reliability and recovery for production-critical systems. Monitoring, alerting, backup, recovery, and tested disaster recovery aligned to business requirements. Structured change, backup, and access management practices to minimise operational risk on a 24/7 production environment.

The IT function itself

• Build and lead the internal IT team. Manage and develop your direct report, plan the team's growth alongside business scale, and hire as the function expands.
• Manage IT vendors and contracts end to end. 
• Own the IT roadmap and budget. 
• Set the IT operating standards. Documented architecture, runbooks, change and access management practices, asset inventory, decision logs, and automation that lets the function scale faster than the headcount.

• 8+ years of experience in IT, infrastructure engineering, or systems administration, with at least 2 years in leadership and function-building in a scaling business
• Hands-on technical depth across the stack: networking (switches, firewalls, VPN, VLANs, segmentation, Wifi), servers and storage (Hyper-V virtualisation, High Availability, NAS, Backup covering both Windows and Linux ), identity and access (IDP, SSO, MDM), and security operations.
• A track record of setting operating standards for change, access, patching, monitoring, backup, recovery, and incident response in environments where uptime matters.
• Strong communication and judgement. Comfortable presenting to the executive team and rolling up your sleeves with the people closest to the systems. Calm and structured in incidents.

Desirable Experience

• Experience integrating IT with specialised operational or production equipment (manufacturing lines, robotics, broadcast, lab or scientific instrumentation).

• Experience supporting manufacturing, industrial, production, data centre, media, broadcast, or financial services environments.
• Experience supporting specialised operational or production equipment integrated with IT systems.
• Experience with automation or scripting (Bash, Python, PowerShell, or similar).
• Experience with monitoring, logging, and infrastructure observability tools.
• Experience with backup and disaster recovery solutions.
• Relevant certifications such as Network+, Security+, Linux, Microsoft, AWS/Azure, VMware, or similar.

• Industry-Leading Salary Package: Enjoy a highly competitive salary package that rewards your expertise and hard work.
• Flexible time off: 25 days of paid holiday, a paid birthday off, and remote-friendly working.
• Comprehensive Pension Scheme: Secure your future with our robust pension scheme.
• Convenient On-Site Parking: Benefit from hassle-free on-site parking.
• Cutting-Edge Tech Office Environment: Work in a modern, tech-driven office environment equipped with the latest tools and technology.
• Medical Insurance: Protect yourself with our comprehensive medical insurance plan.
• Free Snacks and Beverages: Enjoy free snacks and beverages to keep you energised throughout the day.

Work Location 

This role is onsite, split between our King’s Cross and Elstree (WD6), four days a week and one day working from home.