Service Delivery Manager

Service Delivery Manager 6 - 12 months Leeds (hybrid 2day travel per week) with occasional travel to Manchester Inside IR35 - Umbrella only Active SC clearance required, eligible candidates will be considered Job Summary: We are seeking an experienced Service Delivery Manager to act as a senior Subject Matter Expert across Service Management disciplines. The successful candidate will provide strong service leadership, maintain customer confidence, and ensure consistent, high‑quality service delivery during a complex transition period. The role requires a pragmatic, delivery‑focused professional with deep ITIL knowledge, strong stakeholder management skills, and proven experience operating in high‑pressure, customer‑facing environments. Key Responsibilities: Act as a Service Management SME across Incident, Problem, Change, Risk, Service Performance & Reporting, Service Level Management, Service Process Improvement, Service Continuity, and Availability Management. Provide on‑call Major Incident Management cover, ensuring rapid coordination, clear communications, and effective resolution. Maintain strong, trusted customer relationships, acting as a primary escalation and assurance point. Deliver accurate, timely service reporting, including performance, SLA compliance, risks, issues, and improvement initiatives. Support knowledge transfer and offboarding of the core Technical Service Desk (TSD) team where required as part of insourcing. Proactively identify and manage risks, proposing mitigation plans to protect service outcomes and contractual commitments. Apply ITIL best practice across helpdesk and support services, ensuring consistency, governance, and continual improvement. Take accountability for ensuring technical solutions continue to meet business requirements throughout the service lifecycle. Collaborate across internal teams, customers, and third‑party suppliers to deliver a cohesive "One Team" service experience. Oversee the end‑to‑end service lifecycle, including service support, delivery, and transition activities. Experience / Education: Mandatory Degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience in a complex operational environment Minimum 5 years' experience in a Service Delivery / Service Management role Proven experience leading an IT helpdesk or support service, driving KPI and SLA achievement Strong customer‑service orientation with a pragmatic problem‑solving approach Proven advocate and practitioner of ITIL best‑practice processes Experience in a customer‑facing environment Desirable ITIL v3 Certification ITIL v4 Certification (Preferred) Experience in Major Incident Management, Incident Management, and Service Transition Strong technical background with the ability to communicate effectively to non‑technical stakeholders Hands‑on experience with ITSM / helpdesk tooling (e.g. ServiceNow)