Change and Release Manager - IT Service Management & Operations

We have a fantastic opportunity for an experienced Change & Release Manager to join us in our Oxford office. It's a great time to join Elsevier, as we're running a major End User Computing (EUC) and Network transformation programme that enables our business to access services and knowledge from any device, at any time and from any location.

Reporting to the Service Assurance Manager, you will be responsible for defining and managing change management and release management processes which allow us to support the business by delivering change and innovation, whilst protecting them by ensuring that it's well planned and executed.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and maintain change management policy, process and procedures which are scalable to the business needs.
• Ensure all changes include appropriate technical steps, rollback plans, testing, appropriate resource plans, and that a proper risk assessment has taken place.
• Ensure all key stakeholders are aware of the change and the impact, working with the Comms Manager and Service Design & Transition Manager as appropriate.
• Management of the forward schedule of change, in line with business priorities and activities.
• Manage the CAB Process, to ensure that changes are correctly reviewed and risk assessed.
• Ensures that unsuccessful changes are reviewed and steps agreed to prevent recurrence.
• Develop and define the release management policy, process and procedures to meet business and IT needs. This will encompass software upgrades, patching, hardware upgrades, and launch of programmes and projects.
• Managing the release portfolio(s) to ensure releases are delivered in a timely manner at the required quality and cost.
• Co-ordinate effort across different teams in different locations to plan, build and execute the release package
• Works closely with test management to ensure the release meets defined criteria.
• Ensure release risks and issues are triaged appropriately.
• Conduct Release Readiness reviews, Milestone Reviews, and Business Go/No-Go reviews
• Building and maintaining relationships across technical & business teams, to ensure positive stakeholder engagement with the Change & Release processes.
• Continually looking to optimise and improve the processes to deliver greater benefit to the business.
• Regularly report on process compliance and KPI's.

Required experience

• +5 years IT Service Operations experience with at least 3 years in an IT Change/Release Manager role.
• Demonstrable experience of managing the release lifecycle of hardware and software systems.
• Experience of defining and implementing a Change Management Process from initiation.
• Experience of managing releases across a global, multi-platform organisation.
• Experience working with ITSM tools to facilitate compliance and user process engagement.
• Proven ability to develop and document processes and procedures. Advanced knowledge of process optimisation.

Skills

• Knowledge of different types of release, and release methodologies.
• Broad knowledge of technology platforms and how they interact.
• Understanding of testing methodologies and processes.
• Working knowledge of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and how it interfaces with the Change and release processes.
• An understanding of Agile and waterfall delivery methodologies.
• Hands-on use of an IT Service Management (ITSM) tool such as ServiceNow or FreshService.
• Must be detail-oriented, have excellent organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills. Candidates should have proven understanding of IT business needs and knowledge of IT industry standard best practices.
• Enjoys asking questions and getting to the bottom of things. Not afraid of getting a full understanding of a given situation and orchestrating the right resources to resolve issues and problems.
• Resilient and positive, able to set boundaries without appearing obstructive. Can collaborate with people who may have differing objectives or priorities, aligning people to work together to a common goal.
• Innovative and positive team player with excellent communication and support skills, confident in communicating / presenting technical issues and managing the demands of non-IT staff and senior stakeholders. From 1-to-1 conversations with colleagues, clients and stakeholders, to presenting complex ideas, data and hard facts to larger groups, you thrive on this and are not put off by the idea of standing up before an audience.

Education and Qualifications

• BSc in Computer Science, Information Technology or related technical field or equivalent experience required
• ITIL V3 Intermediate Release Control & Validation or Service Transition preferred.