Role: IT Service Manager

Company: Pearson

Division: English Language Learning

Location: Poland (Remote or Hybrid)

About Pearson: Our purpose: At Pearson we ‘add life to a lifetime of learning’ so everyone can realise the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. Pearson was founded in 1844 and has been built on our ability to grow with and adapt to a constantly evolving market. Our 20,000+ employees are dedicated to creating the high-quality, digital-first, accessible and sustainable resources for lifelong learning.

About ELL: We aspire to become the world's leading destination to learn and improve English language skills. Our main focus is on committed learners from around the world, who are motivated by outcomes because they want to reach their full potential through learning English.

About the role: Are you passionate about technology and eager to be part of an exciting venture? We are thrilled to announce a great opportunity to join our team as an IT Service Manager in our brand-new technology hub in Poznan. We are looking for talented individuals from all backgrounds and experiences to join us on this exciting journey as we grow our Engineering team within our ELL Division. As part of our technology hub, the IT Service Manager will play a key role in shaping the future of technology and innovation in ELL. You will be responsible for one of the key digital products within ELL division and the delivery of expected outcomes around the managed service. You will contribute through all different layers of the service and vendor management, being accountable for the throughput of the service to meet business needs, the technical compliance, the contract management, SLAs follow-up, continuous improvement of the service, reporting and budget management of the service. You will have the chance to collaborate with top-notch professionals, work on cutting-edge projects, and contribute to building a thriving tech community.

Job Description: As an Experienced IT Service Manager, you will play a vital role in leading key IT services for the institutional business within Pearson ELL provided by a third party with the collaboration of the different teams within Pearson to guarantee we meet the expected business needs, as well as the quality and timeline of agreed deliverables. You will be the responsible for the relationship with the vendor for all aspects of the provided services like the definition of Statement of Works in alignment with product and business teams, contract reviews, SLAs definition and follow-up, budget management, technical compliance fulfilment, quality assurance and follow-up and reporting to Product and Business teams. Your negotiation expertise and managerial skills will be crucial in ensuring the successful execution of agreed needs with product teams, meeting deadlines, and fostering a collaborative and inclusive work environment.

Responsibilities :

• Responsible for the vendor and provided services management in strong collaboration with business product owners of corresponding digital platforms.

• Be the single point of contact to the rest of the organization for the owned Digital Platforms and services, collaborating with key stakeholders to understand business needs and translating them into technical and functional solutions across the provided platforms through the managed services you will be owner of.

• Ensure that the right services and corresponding SLAs are defined and agreed with the vendor for the corresponding platforms and ensure that services are delivered within these agreed SLAs.

• Collaborate with internal cross-functional teams, including product managers, engineer managers, designers, content managers, architecture, data, QA, Operations and Customer Service teams to guarantee the quality of the services and deliverables.

• Understand security and compliance requirements and drive their fulfilment within your services and platforms.

• Be accountable for the data generated as part of the product offering, understanding its journey into different platforms and its uses to help business to make decisions in an outcome driven way.

• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and knowledge sharing within all involved key stakeholders and team members.

• Stay on top of operational services and channel internal and external customers' escalations toward a successful resolution.

• Provide regular and accurate management reporting of owned services to Track and report on roadmap progress, budget, and capacity allocation, ensuring timely and successful value delivery.

• Responsible for the budget of the platform and services, understanding the total cost of ownership, making the right financial choices.

• Taking ownership of all kinds of incidents specially the critical ones, coordinating with resolution parties, and establishing effective communication between stakeholders for post-incident reviews.

• Identifying customer needs and overseeing service delivery within the business context in strong collaboration with Key IT and business areas to develop a roadmap for all responsible services.

• Taking accountability for service delivery performance, meeting customer expectations, and driving future demand.

• Assessing customer feedback and using your creativity to establish, improve, and refine services in collaboration with the vendor and all key stakeholders.

• Develop a deep understanding of business needs within institutional space to gain insights into the scope of service delivery.

• Analyse internal processes as well as third-party and create strategies for service delivery optimization and continuous improvement.

Requirements:

• Minimum 5 years in IT service management roles with strong knowledge of IT service management processes.

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Business Administration or relevant education and work experience.

• Several years of experience in IT service management role working with international teams.

• Service Management or Support in a large-scale and diverse environment of incident management, escalation procedures and related disciplines.

• Experience of managing 3rd parties and 3rd party-delivered services.

• Advanced knowledge and hands-on experience on ServiceNow and Jira.

• Excellent leadership and customer service skills.

• Strong leadership and managerial skills, with the ability to motivate and inspire a team.

• Ability to make strategic decisions, prioritize tasks, and manage multiple projects simultaneously.

• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with a keen attention to detail.

• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to effectively collaborate and build relationships with stakeholders at all levels. Able to communicate technical concepts to non-technical individuals.

• Getting commitment to action through consideration of impacts. Combine formal and informal communication channels to achieve the desired outcome.

• In-depth knowledge of escalation procedures, incident management, and other disciplines related to service delivery.

• Mastery of ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) principles: Practitioner in Service Level Management, Practitioner in IT Incident Management. (Ideally ITIL4).

• Excellent communication and organizational skills.

Our Benefits:

• 24 Days annual leave (increasing by 1 day with every 2 years of continuous service up to 30 days)

• Life insurance

• Food & Transport Allowance

• Flexible work schedule

• Discounts on books and access to digital content and other development and training

Location: Poland, remote o hybrid*.

*If you live in Poznan you will be able to enjoy our office because we a have a hybrid working model policy in place.

What to expect from Pearson

Did you know Pearson is one of the 10 most innovative education companies of 2022?

At Pearson, we add life to a lifetime of learning so everyone can realize the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are on a journey to be 100 percent digital to meet the changing needs of the global population by developing a new strategy with ambitious targets. To deliver on our strategic vision, we have five business divisions that are the foundation for the long-term growth of the company: Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills and Higher Education. Alongside these, we have our corporate divisions: Digital & Technology, Finance, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications, Human Resources, Legal, Strategy and Direct to Consumer. Learn more at We are Pearson.

We value the power of an inclusive culture and also a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to building a workplace where talent can learn, grow and thrive.

Pearson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. We want a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. All employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We strive for a workforce that reflects the diversity of our communities.

To learn more about Pearson’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce, navigate to: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Pearson.

If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing ppsmhr@pearson.com.

Note that the information you provide will stay confidential and will be stored securely. It will not be seen by those involved in making decisions as part of the recruitment process.

Job: TECHNOLOGY

Organization: English Language Learning

Schedule: FULL_TIME

Req ID: 12993

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