Head of ICT Operations

Principle Accountabilities

• Oversee day-to-day management of various ICT systems and solutions such as Telecommunication and Computing infrastructure, database configuration, tuning & management, application and end user data backups, Data center management e.g. end of day processes and system administration tasks of the entire bank. Resolution of any incidents, problems and upgrades in line with best practice standards and agreed SLA’s (30%).
• Oversee Design, Development and Maintenance of the various artefacts required to manage banks IT Operations such as Networks, Computing infrastructure, Databases, Backups, Storage solutions, Applications and various Security solutions; these include but not limited to architecture diagrams, operational manuals, business continuity procedures, and patch management processes. (20%).
• The design/analysis, development, delivery, support and ongoing improvement of the bank’s infrastructure and application systems along ITIL and other best practice standards. (20%).
• Oversee and manage infrastructure database and data center teams or any external parties providing technical support for various bank solutions (20%).
• Apply knowledge and experience, showing deep understanding of HFC’s technology architecture to effectively design and integrate new service lifecycle artefacts (5%).
• Effective management of relationships and protocols with other technical platform owners and internal business owners, especially within the context of bank projects and system/process changes (5%).

Key Competencies and Skills

Technical Competencies

• In-depth understanding of data centers, servers, networks (LAN, WAN, VPN), storage systems (SAN/NAS), and virtualization technologies (VMware, Hyper-V).
• Competence in data backup strategies, disaster recovery (DR), and business continuity planning (BCP) to ensure data integrity and system availability. Knowledge and experience with ITIL as a best practice framework for Systems development.
• Familiarity with monitoring tools (Nagios, Zabbix, SolarWinds) to track system performance, availability, and capacity planning.
• Is able to analyze, diagnose, plan, execute and evaluate work to time, cost and quality targets, exhibiting familiarity with available tools, standards and procedures and making correct choices from alternatives.
• Ability to assess and select appropriate technology vendors based on service offerings, costs, and alignment with business objectives.
• Experience in negotiating service contracts, licensing agreements, and managing third-party relationships for hardware, software, and services.
• Proficiency in project management methodologies (Agile, Waterfall) to manage IT projects and deliver solutions on time and within scope.

General & Leadership Competencies

• Ability to lead, inspire, and manage diverse teams, ensuring alignment with the bank's IT strategy and business objectives.
• Strategic thinking and strong business acumen.
• High levels of Integrity and Professionalism.
• Good communication skills both written and verbal.
• Strong stakeholder management.
• Process orientation.
• Results orientation.
• Problem solving and analytical thinking.

Minimum Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience

Qualifications - Academic and Professional

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field.
• IT related certifications such as ITIL, COBIT, CCNA/P, server and storage management.
• Proficiency in Project Management.

Experience

• Minimum of 8 years’, with at least 5 years’ experience in a leadership role in IT Operations in a busy ICT environment with thorough knowledge and experience in infrastructure management, databases & backup management, IT Services Management, enterprise controls and security.
• At least 8 years' experience in supporting IT systems in general.
• At least 5 years of proven experience in installing, setup, support and troubleshooting various applications and banking systems.
• At least 4 years’ experience working in UNIX and windows environment.
• At least 4 years’ experience in Storage and Backup management.
• Thorough experience in formal Software Lifecycle methodology and infrastructure design & administration.