Head of Service Assurance

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Job Description

Summary

The Head of Service Assurance is a senior role responsible for leading the Service Assurance organisation to deliver Service Management delivery assurance across D&T product, platform and infrastructure Tribes.

Assigned to and embedded within the D&T Tribes your organisation provides the primary link between Service Management practices and Tribe members; this role ensures that Service Management practices are fully embedded, complied with and that the IT Services provided by the Tribes are meeting the Service Levels required by the Business operations and it's Stores.

As ambassadors for Service Management, the Service Assurance team promotes ITIL4, DevOps, and SecOps as complimentary frameworks, working with the various product and platform owners, squad leaders and their teams to support them to effectively balance velocity and throughput needs with the standardisation and risk reduction achieved through adherence to the Service Management Practices.

The team will proactively monitor performance levels, identifying trends, risks and issues and will work collaboratively with the relevant Tribe leaders and its members to develop Insights, establishing root causes, and planning and tracking the implementation of required improvement initiatives and interventions.

The Head of Service Assurance is accountable for development and implementation of the strategic improvement roadmap and will be able to demonstrate the increased performance and maturity of each Tribe over time.

This role requires regular engagement with D&T leadership and key business stakeholders to understand current challenges and risks and to reinforce the value of Service Management practices ensuring alignment, buy in and sponsorship for improvements.

What's in it for you

Being a part of M&S is exactly that - playing your part to bring the magic of M&S to our customers every day. We're an inclusive, dynamic, exciting, and ever evolving business built on doing the right thing and bringing exceptional quality, value, service to every customer, whenever, wherever and however they want to shop with us.

Here are some of the benefits we offer that make working for M&S just that little bit more special...

• After completing your probationary period, you'll receive 20% colleague discount across all M&S products and many of our third-party brands for you and a member of your household.
• Competitive holiday entitlement with the potential to buy extra holiday days!
• Discretionary bonus schemes awarded based on how you achieve your personal objectives and our performance as a business.
• A generous Defined Contribution Pension Scheme and Life Assurance.
• A dedicated welcome to our teams with a tailored induction and a wide range of training programmes to develop your skills.
• Amazing perks and discounts via our M&S Choices portal to maximise your financial and personal wellbeing.
• Industry-leading parental, adoption and neonatal policies, providing support and flexibility for your family.
• Access to a fantastic range of wellbeing support for all colleagues including access to our 24/7 Virtual GP and PAM Assist to support you and your family.
• A charity volunteer day to support a charity or cause you're passionate about through a dedicated day away from work.

What you'll do

• Lead and manage the Service Assurance organization, including overseeing Service Assurance Leads and their respective teams. Develop and own the strategic service delivery improvement roadmap, and act as the senior point of contact for business stakeholders regarding service management performance and issue resolution.
• Ensure the delivery, continual improvement, and performance monitoring of Service Management practices. Provide coaching, training, and targeted support to address gaps in quality or performance while ensuring new team members are effectively onboarded.
• Monitor and analyse compliance and performance metrics. Identify risks, develop actionable insights, and collaborate with Tribe leadership to prioritize and sponsor improvement initiatives. Ensure risks and issues are documented, addressed, and remediated effectively.
• Partner with Tribe leadership to align on service continuity requirements, resilience, and recoverability plans. Share findings, improvement strategies, and progress updates with stakeholders and the Service Management community. Support stakeholder communication during Major Incidents and ensure communication plans are current.
• Ensure the availability of the team as a point of contact for Service Desk escalations, including Major Incidents. Oversee the delivery of performance reports and insights, and contribute to reviews with Service Management Practice Owners to enhance the quality and performance of practices. Provide out-of-hours escalation support as needed.

Who you are

• Demonstrated ability to lead, motivate, and manage a Service Assurance organization, fostering collaboration, accountability, and high performance. Expertise in building and maintaining relationships with senior business stakeholders, D&T leadership, and other key partners to align on strategy and secure buy-in.
• Deep knowledge of Service Management frameworks (ITIL4, DevOps, SecOps), IT infrastructure, and operations. Proficiency in service management tools (e.g., ServiceNow, Jira, Power BI) and a proven ability to monitor service performance, compliance, and risks, while driving continuous improvement initiatives.
• Strong strategic and business awareness, with a focus on aligning service delivery with business priorities. Ability to think long-term and influence the direction of Service Management practices to enhance operational stability and achieve organizational goals.
• Experience in planning, communicating, and ensuring the adoption of process changes. Skilled in identifying and mitigating risks, resolving conflicts professionally, and managing challenges proactively to maintain service quality and operational stability.
• Exceptional ability to prepare and present clear, concise reports and insights on performance, risks, and improvements. Adept at thriving in a fast-paced, dynamic environment with strong adaptability to shifting priorities and demands. Retail experience is a distinct advantage.

Everyone's welcome

We are ambitious about the future of retail. We're disrupting, innovating and leading the industry into a more conscientious, inspiring digital era. We're transforming how we work together and offering our most exciting opportunities yet. Marks & Spencer strives to be an inclusive organisation, trusted and admired by our colleagues, customers and suppliers. Join us and make change happen.

We are committed to building diverse and representative teams, where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and be at their best. We support each other and work together to win together.

If you feel you'd benefit from any support or reasonable adjustments during any stage of the recruitment process, please don't hesitate to let us know when completing your application. This information will be picked up by our team, so we can try and put steps in place to help you be at your best through this process.

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