Senior IT Service Manager

Are you a confident leader with a depth of experience in IT Service Management?

Could you make a positive difference to IT Services used across every household in the UK?

If so, wed love to hear from you!

The role is part of the IT Service Management capability and provides support for all DVLAs IT services, used by internal users, external customer organisations and members of the public. This will include the transition, development and implementation of new and changed services.

You will be responsible for service management across platforms and through multiple channels to ensure service availability, performance and process maturity. You will provide effective management and act as a point of contact for specific services, addressing service related issues, assessing and sponsoring changes. In addition, you will support the transition of services artifacts from the DevOps pipeline into the production environment. This will involve working with multiple IT development and support teams, as well as business stakeholders.

You will be responsible for live service performance and continual improvement across a portfolio of services which underpin DVLA business outcomes.

You will act as an IT Service Management SME, providing mentorship and guidance to colleagues across the wider function.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the Kings birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at DVLA - Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency - Department for Transport Careers.

Your responsibilities will include, but arent limited to:

• Define and document Service Level and Operational Level Agreements. Monitor, measure and report on the IT services that are being provided and planned. Regularly review SLAs/OLAs to ensure that they are still relevant and achievable.
• Provide effective management and assessment of change, coordinating with different departments to ensure any changes to services are communicated to relevant stakeholders.
• Support IT Strategic Programmes of work, offering service specific expertise, assisting achievement of successful business outcomes. Attending relevant Project Meetings: Service Engagement Workshops, checkpoints, stand-ups, Risks, Quality Service Gates, Implementation Walkthroughs, Technical Readiness Reviews, Go-Live Boards. Attendance at implementation/cutover conference calls or on site. Management of backlog items.
• Act as a key stakeholder in the Incident and Problem Management practice. Take forward the delivery of recommendations from Incident and Problem reports relating to the protection of Service Levels. Engagement with 3rd parties as and when required to address service level issues.
• Work with all departments/stakeholders to ensure that each service meets the quality standards, actively participating in service reviews (Internal and with Third Party Supplier where appropriate).

For an in-depth insight into the role please refer to the Role Profile.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

Would you like to find out more about the role, the team and what its like to work in our department? If so, we are organising an open session where you can virtually 'meet the team' on 23/07/2026 at 12:30 pm. Sign up here.

Required experience:

• You must hold a foundation qualification in a relevant industry best practice framework / philosophy, such as ITIL or SRE, or be willing to work towards completing this within 18 months.
• You will come with extensive experience of Service Level Management including Service Transition, Change and Incident and Problem Management and evidence of utilising ITSM tooling
• You will be able to establish rapport quickly with key people both internally and externally. You will have strong organisational skills, thrive managing a varied and challenging workload and welcome autonomy in your role. You will have a proactive mindset and a willingness to take direct ownership of issues and activities to drive change and continual improvement.

Additional Information

Working for the DVLA Digital Team

At DVLA, licensing is just the start. Every project you implement, touch and deliver has a ripple effect thatll wash across the nation. Here the work youre doing has the capacity to change the way 53 million people interact with our services. As we aim to keep our roads some of the safest in the world, our innovative, transformative digital-led services help optimise a nation of individuals and business every single day.

To see how our people are transforming our digital services, head over to our DVLA Digital Services Blog and, to understand more about the great opportunities and benefits of working at DVLA read our Inside DVLA blog.

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week. Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 35 hours per week.

There could be an opportunity to be part of an on-call rota to undertake out of hours incident management activities (5pm 7am Mon-Fri and 24/7 on Saturday/Sunday) for which an allowance will be paid.

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time a month will be spent at either your designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, in another office/work location. There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

If you have a question about hybrid working, part time/job share hours, flexible working, travelling for work, or require a reasonable adjustment, please contact the Vacancy Holder during the recruitment process to avoid possible disappointment later in the process should your working arrangements not be compatible with the requirements of the role (see below for contact details).

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker Licence sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship. Candidates must ensure they have the appropriate rights to work in the UK before application.