Contract Service Delivery Manager

Job Title: Service Transition Manager

Location: London, Waterloo - Hybrid, 2 days per week

Salary: Competitive

Why Apply?

This is a key delivery role within a major NHS technology transformation, responsible for taking new IT services from contract award through implementation, transition and into live operation.

You'll sit at the point where technology, suppliers, commercial management and operational readiness come together, making sure new services are genuinely ready to support the people and clinical services that depend on them.

You'll have the opportunity to shape how service transition and operational management work within a growing organisation, rather than simply inheriting an established model.

Service Transition Manager Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end transition plans covering milestones, dependencies, resources, risks and acceptance criteria.
• Lead suppliers throughout implementation, holding them accountable for delivery, quality, timelines and cost.
• Coordinate technical, operational and organisational readiness across architecture, security, information governance and clinical safety.
• Oversee testing, assurance, data migration, configuration, integration, training and knowledge transfer.
• Define service acceptance criteria and lead go-live readiness and decision-making.
• Establish operational processes including incident, change, escalation, service catalogue, configuration and reporting arrangements.
• Plan early life support and ensure services are successfully handed into steady-state operations.
• Manage supplier performance against contracted SLAs, driving service reviews and continuous improvement.
• Support commercial management, including change control, renewals, forecasting and cost management.
• Provide clear reporting across programme governance covering progress, risks, issues, dependencies, cost and quality.

Service Transition Manager Requirements

• Proven experience delivering service transition and implementation within complex IT environments.
• Strong IT Service Management/ITIL background with experience taking services into live operation.
• Demonstrable experience managing third-party suppliers, contracts, SLAs and service performance.
• Experience coordinating technical and operational teams across areas such as architecture, security, information governance and service operations.
• Strong understanding of service acceptance, operational readiness, testing, knowledge transfer and early life support.
• Experience managing risks, dependencies, budgets and programme-level reporting.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to challenge suppliers and communicate confidently with senior stakeholders.
• Experience within the NHS, healthcare or another highly regulated environment would be advantageous.

What's in it for me?

• A high-profile role supporting the development of critical NHS technology services.
• The opportunity to shape service transition and operational capability from the ground up.
• Exposure to major technology, supplier and service-management transformation.
• Hybrid working with 2 days per week in Waterloo, London.
• A role with genuine ownership across implementation, go-live and live service performance.