Head of MEA Geo Operations

Role Purpose

· Managing customer operational relationship and end to end service management for all SITA customers in the geography.

· Operating GEO and locally based infrastructures and services

Responsibilities:

1. Strategic Leadership:

• Develop and implement regional strategy for IT operations and end to end service customer service management across SITAs product portfolio and across all customer segments addressed in the geo.
• Provide leadership in assessing, planning, and executing initiatives to support SITA business growth, ensure service efficiency, customer engagement and proactive customer issue identification and resolution.

2. Operations Management:

• Oversee and coordinate IT operations across multiple sites - mainly airports - and customers, ensuring consistent and efficient service delivery, especially in the realm of field service.
• Ensure the availability, performance, upkeep and security of relevant IT systems and networks.
• Deliver the end to end customer experience as per product offering

3. Commercial Support:

• Support geography with leadership and oversight from operations perspective for commercial bid processes, ensuring alignment with IT capabilities, operational and service level considerations.
• Collaborate with sales, product and business development teams to develop compelling and competitive bid proposals.
• Review and approve new business cases such that we maximize our win probability, can deliver our contractual obligations, and ensure alignment to our service operations strategy.

4. Proactive Customer Management:

• Manage the engagement with customers; develop and grow customer loyalty in SITA through effective service management and service performance management
• Own, share and maintain the customer data and knowledge,
• Establish proactive measures for identifying and remedying customer problems, ensuring a high level of customer satisfaction.
• Implement advanced monitoring and analysis tools to identify potential issues before they impact customers, leading to swift remediation.
• Collaborate with customer and internal support teams to address root causes and implement preventive measures based on escalated issues.
• Establish and maintain executive level customer relationships for the key regional accounts.

5. Budget Planning and Management:

• Develop and manage the regional IT operations budget, ensuring cost-effectiveness and efficient resource allocation.
• Monitor and report on budget variances, providing strategic recommendations for optimization.

6. Team Leadership:

• Build and lead a high-performing IT operations team, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement, with a keen emphasis on field service excellence, bid support, customer-centric proactive support, and issue resolution.
• Provide mentorship and professional development opportunities for team members, including people managers, those specializing in field service, bid support and customer service managers.
• Collaborate with peers in other geographies to establish common practices leverage experience sharing

7. Vendor and Partner Management:

• Evaluate, select, and manage external vendors and partners to ensure the delivery of high-quality IT services and field service solutions.
• Negotiate contracts and agreements to optimize cost-effectiveness and service levels for both traditional IT operations and field service functions.

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Proven experience in a customer facing leadership role overseeing IT operations ideally across multiple geographic locations.
• Strong strategic planning, execution, business and budget management skills, particularly in the context of IT field service and bid processes.
• Excellent team leadership and people management abilities.
• In-depth knowledge of IT infrastructure, software and hardware support, security, and emerging technologies.
• Demonstrated success in managing vendor relationships and negotiating contracts.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., ITIL, PMP, CISSP) are a plus.
• Experience in Air Transport Industry is a plus