Service Transition Lead

Join a major technology transformation programme as a Service Transition Lead. In this critical role, you will ensure that new and changed services are transitioned into live operation in a controlled manner. You will work across various technical workstreams, coordinating activities to move services from design and delivery into operational use. Your responsibilities will include defining the service-transition strategy, developing transition plans, coordinating service design and operational readiness activities, and ensuring appropriate support models are in place. You will also oversee the production of operational documentation, coordinate training and knowledge transfer, and track transition risks and readiness decisions. This role requires strong coordination skills, experience in complex technology environments, and a good knowledge of ITIL-aligned service management practices.

• Coordination of activities required to move services safely from design and delivery into operational use.
• Development and maintenance of transition plans covering pilots, migration waves, cutovers, and subsequent handover into business-as-usual operations.
• Establishment of clear entry and exit criteria for each stage of service transition, ensuring that operational readiness is demonstrated rather than assumed.
• We are looking for an experienced Service Transition or Service Management professional with a strong background in complex technology programmes
• Strong experience coordinating technical documentation, runbooks, knowledge articles and operational procedures
• Experience working across complex technology environments, ideally including cloud, Microsoft 365, identity, endpoints and hybrid infrastructure
• Ability to identify supportability and operational-readiness gaps and drive actions across multiple technical teams
• Experience developing or assuring support models, escalation paths, SLAs, OLAs and service ownership arrangements
• Experience working closely with Change, Test, Cutover and technical delivery teams
• Strong planning and coordination skills, with the ability to manage multiple services and migration waves simultaneously
• Proven experience defining and managing operational acceptance criteria
• Good knowledge of ITIL-aligned service management practices, including service design, transition, change, incident, problem and knowledge management
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with the ability to communicate operational requirements clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Experience planning and managing early-life support, hypercare, warranty and formal service handover
• Experience coordinating go-live and operational readiness across multiple technical and business teams
• Strong understanding of how services move from development or project delivery into live operational support
• Understanding of operational requirements around monitoring, backup, recovery, security, availability and resilience
• Experience transitioning services across organisational or supplier boundaries would be advantageous
• Strong facilitation and stakeholder-management skills
• Strong experience leading service transition, operational readiness or service management within complex technology transformation programmes
• You will be comfortable working across technical and operational communities and will be able to challenge delivery teams when a service is technically ready but not operationally ready
• You will have strong attention to detail, but you will also be able to maintain sight of the bigger picture and understand how individual service-readiness issues could affect a wider migration wave
• You will be an organised, pragmatic and delivery-focused service professional who understands that successful transformation does not end at go-live
• You will also have the judgement to distinguish between genuine operational risks and lower-impact gaps that can be managed through agreed workarounds or post-go-live actions
• You will be confident asking difficult questions and holding teams accountable for readiness actions without creating unnecessary bureaucracy
• Most importantly, you will be someone who can build confidence between programme delivery and operational teams, ensuring that services are transitioned with clear ownership, appropriate controls and the capability to support users effectively