Delivery Program Director (Head of Service Operations)

About the role

SBS is looking for a new Head of Service Operations to join its UK Lending Senior Leadership Team. The role owns the delivery, performance, resilience and governance of all UK Lending services and shapes the operating model of a market-leading fintech organisation. It is based in Sheffield or London, on a hybrid pattern with flexible domestic and international travel.

Key responsibilities

• Own the delivery, performance, resilience and operational governance of all UK Lending services.
• Define and execute the Service Operations strategy and build a scalable operating model.
• Lead and develop a team of around 50+ professionals, fostering accountability, customer focus and continuous improvement.
• Drive transformation initiatives focused on standardisation, automation, AI adoption and service optimisation.
• Ensure services meet contractual commitments, customer expectations and regulatory obligations.
• Own service acceptance, operational readiness and the transition of new customers and solutions into live service.
• Lead major incidents, executive escalations, business continuity and operational resilience activities.
• Act as a senior voice on security, risk, compliance, customer assurance, audits and regulatory discussions.
• Partner with customers and senior stakeholders to improve service outcomes and support long-term growth.
• Improve service economics, operational efficiency and cost-to-serve while keeping service quality high.

Required profile

• Extensive experience in Service Operations, Service Delivery, Managed Services, IT Operations or a related technology leadership function.
• People leadership experience managing managers and cross-functional operational teams.
• Proven experience leading large-scale service operations in SaaS, managed services, cloud services, fintech, banking technology or enterprise software.
• Accountability for service performance, customer outcomes, operational resilience and contractual delivery.
• Experience leading major incidents, service recovery, customer escalations and operational transformations.
• Experience managing operational budgets, cost optimisation and service economics.
• Experience in regulated industries, preferably banking, lending or financial services.

What we offer

• Health coverage, retirement plans and paid time off.
• Flexible work and career development.
• Competitive pay and global culture perks.