Head of Information Technology Operations

Interim Head of Technology Operations | IT Service, Infrastructure, Cyber Security | Up to £1,000/day | Hybrid, Watford

A private equity-backed veterinary group with more than 400 UK locations is looking for an Interim Head of Technology Operations to lead the services that keep its clinics running every day.

The business is delivering major digital and practice-management programmes. This role will take ownership of day-to-day technology operations, improve the experience for clinic teams and give the CIO space to focus on transformation.

This is a hands-on leadership role, not one managed solely through reporting and governance. You will work closely with service, field engineering, infrastructure and cyber teams to raise standards, resolve issues and balance business-as-usual delivery with programme demands.

Interim Head of Technology Operations | Key responsibilities

• Own operational performance across IT service, clinic technology, infrastructure and cyber security operations.
• Improve service desk performance, application support, end-user computing and the technology experience across clinics.
• Lead major incident response and service recovery, including significant clinic-facing and cyber incidents.
• Strengthen infrastructure resilience across networks, cloud, servers, identity, backup and disaster recovery.
• Establish clear ownership and priorities where operational teams and transformation programmes share resources.
• Review supplier performance, service levels and costs, and build business cases for operational improvements.
• Lead and develop a team of approximately 20–25 people across the operational functions.

Interim Head of Technology Operations | Requirements

• Senior leadership experience spanning IT operations, service delivery and infrastructure in a geographically distributed organisation.
• A track record of improving service standards through direct engagement with teams.
• Experience supporting operationally critical, customer-facing sites—ideally in healthcare, veterinary, retail, hospitality or a similar multi-site environment.
• Strong major incident, supplier and commercial management experience.
• The ability to oversee cyber security operations and work effectively with specialist security leaders.
• A pragmatic, service-focused approach: comfortable moving at pace, managing risk and delivering improvements within tight budgets.

Interim Head of Technology Operations | Why this role is interesting

You will have a broad remit and the opportunity to make a visible difference to the technology used by clinic teams every day. The business needs someone who can take ownership quickly, bring clarity to a complex operational estate and improve service while major change programmes are underway.

This is an initial six-month contract, likely to extend. The role is hybrid from Watford, with approximately one to two days a week on site; more time with stakeholders may be helpful initially.

If you are an experienced interim technology operations leader who enjoys getting into the detail and improving services at pace, please get in touch.

Interim Head of Technology Operations | IT Service, Infrastructure, Cyber Security | Up to £1,000/day | Hybrid, Watford