Platform Operations Manager (Live services)

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Enterprise Integration Services (EIS) are at the heart of the HMRC Chief Digital Information Officer (CDIO) group. EIS manage HMRCs core integration services, taking care of over a billion transactions every year and connecting hundreds of HMRC services and platforms.

EIS provide platforms for delivering Application Programming Interface (API) access and File Transfer (FT) capability to HMRC Systems.

We provide artefacts and support for API customers (software developers and Other Government Departments) to build and manage authorised software that seamlessly integrates with HMRC digital services.

We use modern open-source products and work in an Agile way to deliver flexible, effective integration solutions. We are also transforming our legacy services into cloud-based platforms.

The Platform Operations Technical Manager will provide senior technical leadership across DevOps and production support teams responsible for critical live services. The role will ensure the team has the technical capability, operational processes and cross-platform knowledge required to maintain secure, reliable and resilient services.

The postholder will act as the senior technical escalation point for complex incidents, provide assurance for releases and changes, improve monitoring and automation, and drive continuous improvement across the platform estate. You will lead a team of DevOps Engineers.

You will have a record of using your own initiative to good effect and making fact-based decisions on service management and support issues. You will be a credible, influential, and encouraging team-player. You will also be proactive, a confident communicator with good people skills and a dedication to continuous improvement in self and others.

This role involves being On-call. EIS has a Departmental Working Agreement whereby the out of hours working are Monday to Friday 6pm to 8am and Saturday and Sunday all day. This is normally 1 week in every 4 weeks.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone with recent experience in a similar role who enjoys working in a dynamic, multifaceted environment.

What makes EIS Live Services particularly engaging is the chance to lead within a high-profile, fast-paced setting where operational resilience is essential.

The role brings together service stability, governance, supplier management and continuous improvement, supporting critical services that the business depends on every day.

It is both challenging and rewarding, requiring strong collaboration, confident decision-making and a consistent focus on ensuring services remain safe, resilient and effective.

Responsibilities

• The successful candidate will be an experienced technical leader with a strong background in DevOps, production support and the operation of critical live services. You will be able to lead and develop a team of DevOps Engineers, make evidence-based decisions and provide confident technical leadership within a complex, fast-paced environment.
• Strong technical leadership skills, with experience of managing, coaching and mentoring DevOps Engineers or other technical specialists.
• Experience of supporting secure, reliable and resilient live services across complex technology platforms.
• Strong knowledge of IT service management practices, including incident, problem, change, release, risk and service continuity management.
• Experience of acting as a senior technical escalation point during complex incidents, supporting effective service recovery and identifying improvements.
• Experience of providing technical assurance for releases, changes and platform improvements, ensuring risks and service impacts are understood and effectively managed.
• Experience of improving monitoring, alerting, automation and operational processes to increase service reliability and reduce manual effort.
• Ability to use performance data, technical evidence and service insights to make informed decisions and drive continuous improvement.
• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to work collaboratively and influence technical teams, suppliers and senior stakeholders.
• Experience of managing service performance across multiple platforms and working effectively within a multi-supplier environment.
• A proactive and collaborative leadership style, with the confidence to use initiative, manage competing priorities and remain calm under pressure.
• A commitment to developing personal and team capability, building cross-platform knowledge and creating a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
• Willingness and ability to participate in the EIS on-call rota, providing out-of-hours technical leadership and escalation support when required.

Essential Criteria

• Proven senior technical leadership experience across DevOps, platform operations and production support within complex, business-critical live-service environments.
• Strong technical knowledge of platform technologies, observability, monitoring, CI/CD pipelines, automation, scripting and infrastructure operations.
• Demonstrable experience of leading complex Major Incident resolution, problem management and root-cause analysis, with strong diagnostic and problem-solving skills.
• Experience of governing releases, deployments and changes, while improving service reliability, operational resilience and recovery capability.
• Proven ability to lead and develop technical teams, coordinate suppliers and specialists, and communicate complex technical risks and recommendations clearly to senior stakeholders.

Desirable Criteria

• Knowledge of ITIL service-management practices, particularly Major Incident, Problem, Change and Release Management and ITSM toolsets such as Service Now.
• Experience of operating containerised and cloud-based platforms using technologies such as Kubernetes, Rancher, AWS or equivalent.

Office Closures

If your location preference is for the following site, its important to note that this is not long-term site for HMRC and we will require you to move to a new building in the future, subject to our location strategy and the applicable employee policies at that time.

For more information on where you might be working, review this information on our locations (opens in a new window)

This site is:

• Telford Plaza, Telford - moving to Parkside Court, Telford

You will be given more information about what this means at the job offer stage.

Leeds Location

Moves Adjustment Payment will be available for this role, provided the successful applicant is a current HMRC colleague in Bradford and meets the eligibility requirements outlined in the HMRCs Moves Adjustment Payment guidance.

Further Location Information

Please ensure that you only apply for a location that you are willing and able to work from, as we will only make one offer of employment. Any additional notes included in a Further Location Preferences (optional) field within the application form, will not be considered. Please be aware that you cannot change your location preference after submitting your application.