Application Support Manager

At AQA, we’re committed to advancing education and we’re committed to our people. As the largest provider of academic qualifications in the UK , we mark over 10 million exam papers each year and it’s our people who make this happen.

Application Support Manager

Permanent

Manchester

Salary: £77,100 - £87,200

Working arrangements: Hybrid, with two days a week in the office including Thursday as the team anchor day

Shape a proactive application support function for AQA’s growing technology portfolio.

This is a new senior leadership role with the freedom to shape how AQA supports and manages its enterprise applications. You’ll move the function towards proactive service excellence, ensuring reliable, resilient and well-governed live services that give users the support they need. The portfolio includes Dynamics 365, Power Platform, Workday and enterprise AI, with scope continuing to grow.

You’ll join the Enterprise Applications leadership team and lead the application support function. You’ll bring together internal teams, service owners and suppliers, put governance and customer experience at the centre of live service and ensure new and changed applications can move smoothly into support.

In this role, you'll be responsible for:

·       leading the application support function and developing its people, with clear expectations and a focus on continuous improvement

·       defining and improving end-to-end support and application management processes across the portfolio

·       keeping governance, audit, risk, resilience and continuity at the centre of live service

·       providing proactive support and clear communications for system users and citizen developers

·       planning demand, priorities, capacity and the right blend of internal and third-party resources

·       holding suppliers to account for quality, value, pace, risk and agreed outcomes

·       designing support models for new applications and ensuring effective transition from change delivery into live service

You’ll thrive in this role if you have:

You’ll combine service leadership with a proactive customer mindset, using evidence to make decisions and helping others navigate competing priorities.

·       demonstrable experience leading an enterprise application support or IT service management function, including internal teams and third-party partners

·       expert applied knowledge of application management and governance, including audit, risk, resilience and continuity

·       a practical understanding of ITIL and service management principles. ITIL certification is welcome but equivalent practical knowledge will also be considered

·       knowledge of supporting cloud-based SaaS products, ideally including Dynamics 365, Power Platform, Workday or enterprise AI, or comparable platforms

·       the ability to influence senior stakeholders, challenge constructively and improve supplier and service performance

What’s in it for you?

The opportunity to build a modern support function, influence a growing technology portfolio and make a meaningful contribution to education while developing your leadership impact.

·       a 35-hour working week with flexible, hybrid working

·       25 days’ annual leave, rising to 30, plus Christmas closure days

·       a benefits package including up to 11.5% pension contribution, Bupa healthcare support, wellbeing programmes and volunteering opportunities

·       the chance to shape support for a growing SaaS portfolio, including emerging AI capabilities and citizen development

·       an inclusive, values-led culture with employee networks including LGBTQ+, neurodiversity, empowering women, wellbeing, ethnic diversity and Interfaith

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

At AQA, we're committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can do their best work. We value the different perspectives, experiences and backgrounds our people bring, knowing they strengthen our culture, decision-making and impact. We foster an inclusive environment where everyone is treated with respect, has access to opportunities to grow and contribute, and feels able to be themselves. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and lived experiences.

What’s Next?

Apply with your CV and a cover letter

Application deadline: 26th October

Interviews: Two stages are anticipated. The first is expected to be an online competency and technical interview w/c 2/11. The final stage will be face to face in our Manchester office w/c 9/11.

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Recruitment Agencies

We have a preferred supplier list (PSL) in place.

Unsolicited CVs will be treated as a gift. We will not be subject to or liable under your terms and conditions for agency fees.

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Full Job Description

Summary
Purpose: To provide leadership and accountability for the application support function for the Enterprise Applications product portfolio, ensuring live services are reliable, resilient, secure, well governed and proactively supported. The role drives service performance excellence, proactive support and engagement for users, whilst putting best practice application management principles and wider governance practices at the heart of operational system support and management.Landscape:
The Enterprise Applications function is evolving as it supports a broader and increasingly complex application portfolio, encompassing additional business-critical applications, emerging technologies, AI-enabled capabilities and wider governance responsibilities. As the live service expands, greater emphasis will be placed on operational resilience, supplier performance, service governance and proactive customer experience.

Reporting into the Head of Enterprise Applications and part of the Enterprise Apps Leadership team, this role manages and drives the team support function.  Using both internal and 3rd party resource, this includes direct line management of Senior Functional Specialist and Governance & Data Leads and matrix management of Service Owners. The role works closely with the Product and Delivery areas of the team to ensure products in the Enterprise Apps portfolio are supported to deliver maximum value and benefit for our customers and stakeholders across the organisation and, where applicable, the Group.   Wider stakeholders include colleagues in Enterprise and Assessment Technology, Change Programme/ Portfolio Managers and business teams.  Core products in the current stack include Dynamics 365, Power Platform, Enterprise AI and Workday.  The product stack coverage within the remit will expand and evolve over time.   
The support delivery approaches must support AQA’s ongoing alignment with legal/ regulatory requirements and standards such as UK GDPR, ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.  Active risk management and robust continuity planning are key to this provision of reliable and secure applications

Activities:
·       Define, implement, drive and evolve the end-to-end support delivery approaches and processes in line with best practices, and continually improve ways of working to ensure service efficiency and excellence across the portfolio of applications
·       Lead support planning, prioritisation and resource allocation.  This includes delivery mechanism decisions (e.g. internal Vs 3rd party resource blend) for cost-effective optimisation of outcomes.
·       Ensure ongoing delivery of maximised product value aligned with strategic objectives. 
·       Provide clear support and app management leadership by making evidence-based prioritisation decisions, challenging unrealistic demand/ requirements, resolving resource contention and escalating material risks and support/ governance challenges with recommended options.
·       Develop and maintain a forward view of support demand, capability, capacity and sourcing needs, ensuring the support delivery model remains fit for strategic priorities and future portfolio growth
·       Own supplier delivery performance for assigned support/ system management activity, ensuring partners are held to account for quality, pace, value, risk management and agreed outcomes
·       Design, cost and implement support delivery models for new applications/ deliveries as they arise. 
·       Ensure smooth service transition of change delivery into live support.  Work with the Change team to ensure ability to provide excellence in Level 1/ L2 service, plus escalations to Level 3 & 4.
·       Drive application management, governance, quality assurance (incl. documentation) and continual improvement, ensuring AQA’s ongoing alignment with legal/ regulatory requirements and standards.

Key Accountabilities:
·       Ongoing delivery of high quality application management & governance approaches that ensure stable, secure, resilient and value-add systems for the organisation, to support operational delivery
·       Provision of first class front line (and escalation) application support services, as well as proactive engagement/ communications with system users and citizen developers
·       Visible, accountable, inspirational leadership of multidisciplinary teams, setting clear expectations, developing capability, and creating a culture of ownership, collaboration and CI.
·       Optimal utilisation of internal capability and delivery partners to leverage skillsets & capacity.
·       Excellent stakeholder engagement and management – need to communicate, negotiate, influence and challenge effectively
·       Accountable lead for overall governance, audit, regulatory and standards compliance.  Proactive risk and continuity management including ownership of ITDR and continuity plans.
·       Accountable for translating strategic priorities and data driven decision making into realistic delivery plans and measurable outcomes
·       Drive data driven decision making through service delivery modelling and long term planning.
·       Drive and create culture for the continuous improvement of support and Application Management capability, approaches and standards, proactively implement innovations e.g. use of AI.
·       Embed successful change transitions into live service.  Protect Delivery team from operational demand
·       Demonstrates commercial flexibility by undertaking other responsibilities which are of a commensurate level as business needs change

To be successful in this role, you will need to demonstrate:
Essential Criteria
·       Experience leading successful enterprise SaaS application support and management teams, including managing multidisciplinary internal teams and partners (3rd parties)
·       Strong commercial, governance and risk management judgement
·       Ability to influence senior stakeholders and challenge constructively where requirements, priorities, scope or resources are misaligned
·       Expert level product knowledge of SaaS products, ideally including Dynamics 365, Power Platform, AI tools (copilot studio, foundry).  Experience of change delivery, application management & support tooling (incl. Azure DevOps, ServiceDesk+).
·       Experience holding suppliers and delivery partners to account for outcome-based performance
·       Expert knowledge and experience of driving and embedding Application Management and governance standards to achieve and exceed audit and recognised external standards, such as ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.
·       Exceptional interpersonal skills for stakeholder engagement, influence and negotiation.
·       ITIL certified