Cloud Operations Manager

Cloud Operations Manager

Work Level: 2B

Location: PSL

Reporting to the Cloud Operations Lead, the UK based Cloud Operations Manager role is part of the global 24/7  ‘follow the sun’ Cloud Operations function, which has teams deployed in Brazil, UK, India and China. These are part of the core Global Digital Technology (GDT) hub strategy that supports Unilever business operations.

As a Cloud Operations Manager, you’ll be the interlock between our Cloud Service Managers, Cloud hosting provider, Foundation Services stakeholders, security teams and trusted third-party suppliers and vendors. You’ll need a deep understanding of cloud, remote data centre and on-premise infrastructure operations, while being constantly on the lookout for continuous improvement opportunities.

Day-to-day, you will ensure operational practices are compliant, secure and resilient across the estate. This includes remote data centre and on-premise hardware management, security operations (SecOps) by liaison with the Threat and Vulnerability Management team, vulnerability assessment and remediation planning, and patch management governance through overseeing the scheduling and execution of patch management activities. You’ll achieve this through monitoring, accountability, auditing and reviewing all practices that fall under your remit.

The Cloud Operations Manager will be responsible for the operational effectiveness of ongoing cloud, remote data centre and on-premise services. You will operate as a Foundation Services owner, be accountable for the overall service, and identify opportunities across the operations spectrum to drive operational and service excellence.

Additional responsibilities include collaborating with Business Platforms, foundation layer teams as required (e.g. Cybersecurity & Data), and collaborating with CPS Product, Architecture & Engineering as well as the cloud hosting provider to consistently improve services and operations.

The role will also act as the reactive Site Reliability Engineering lead for operational incidents, attending/supporting MiM bridge calls (sometimes OOO), driving root cause analysis, creating RCA outputs, and liaising with business, technology and supplier stakeholders to ensure corrective actions are understood, owned and progressed.

You will be an experienced IT operations & service expert with a ‘customer-first’ mentality. You will have a firm grasp of cloud & hybrid cloud concepts.  You have extensive experience in supplier & vendor management, service outsourcing and have demonstrable experience in obtaining successful outcomes with outsourced teams.  

Main Accountabilities  

• Manage the remaining Unilever Clouds and 3rd party Cloud partner operational services 
• Work closely with the Cloud Operations Lead to drive operational excellence and outstanding service delivery.
• Act as a point of escalation for the business into Cloud Operations and on to third party suppliers to drive resolution and improvement opportunities where applicable.
• Measure and actively drive opportunities to improve customer satisfaction and build Cloud Operation’s and CPS’s reputation.
• Engage in operational discussions with the Product & Platform Teams in conjunction with Business Relationship Managers (BRM’s) and CSM’s where appropriate.
• Play an active role in the event of an IT issue/outage to ensure customer communication is proactive and business impact is assessed and managed appropriately.
• In-line with the Technology strategy, collaborate with CSM’s and the Cloud Operations Lead to identify opportunities to improve support models and service.
• Works collaboratively with the Cloud Operations Lead to forecast resources and skills needed for upcoming engagements

Key Skills:

• Understanding of Cloud based operations, through 3rd party suppliers
• Awareness of Cloud technology components across compute, network, storage and backup.
• High criticality systems and ‘always on / lights out’ cloud processes. 
• Designing, building, and operating global IT infrastructures
• Provisioning, operating, and managing large cloud environments
• Cloud operations, including data assurance, monitoring, alerting and notification
• Applying modern ITSM frameworks
• Proven experience of managing complex services and building customer relationships, including management of 3rd party operations teams
• Strong interpersonal, communication (verbal and written), and presentation skills applicable to a wide audience.
• Be diplomatic when building relationships
• Demonstrate positive energy and focus when engaging with customers
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Skilled at problem solving, with experience in finding creative solutions
• Ability to be collaborative and to encourage collaboration
• Speaking and presenting skills, especially at medium to senior level
• Solid and practical understanding of cloud fundamentals and cloud best practices (Microsoft Azure & Google)
• Demonstrable experience in working with globally distributed teams
• Customer first mindset
• Experienced at setting and managing customer expectations

Experience:

• 3+ years of working with Cloud Service Providers
• 3+ years' experience of external supplier management, preferably with a Cloud Service or cloud hosting provider.
• Ideal - 3+ years’ experience of managing critical environment infrastructures (e.g., UPS, Generator, AHU) and experience working in physical IT infrastructures (e.g., Servers, SANs, Networking, Capacity, DC Rack/Enclosures, structured cabling).
• Ability to independently create proposals, documentation and presentations.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills are essential.  Experience in communicating across many cross functional areas, including external partners and customers.
• Strong understanding of cloud concepts & cloud technology.

Minimum qualifications:

• (ideal) Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Certification requirements
• ITIL v4, 
• CompTIA

Desirable qualifications:

• Experience of applying modern ITSM frameworks to cloud operations. 
• Certification requirements:

• ITIL v4
• ASICS/Inventory Control
• Project or Resource Management qualification