IT Manager

About the position Our client, a leading BPO company based in Durban, is looking to fill the position of IT Manager. Purpose of the Role: The IT Manager is responsible for the overall management, coordination, and delivery of IT services across the Group. This is a hands-on technical leadership role that oversees the day-to-day operations of the IT department, including infrastructure, cloud services, end-user support, application management, and security and compliance functions. Operating within a 600-seat BPO call centre environment, the IT Manager ensures that all technology platforms supporting contact centre operations are stable, secure, and continuously improved. The role balances operational management with technical delivery, acting as the primary escalation point for critical incidents and driving IT projects that enable business growth. The IT Manager directly oversees the Infrastructure & Cloud Engineer, Application & Service Desk Specialist, and Security & Compliance Coordinator, ensuring alignment across all IT functions and accountability against service level commitments. Key Responsibilities: IT Operations & Service Delivery: Oversee all IT operations, ensuring the stability, availability, and performance of infrastructure, applications, and end-user services across the group. Own and manage IT service level agreements (SLAs) with internal stakeholders and external clients, ensuring consistent delivery against agreed targets. Act as the primary escalation point for P1/P2 incidents, coordinating cross-functional response and driving resolution. Implement and maintain ITIL-aligned processes for incident, problem, change, and release management. Produce regular IT performance reports for executive leadership, covering uptime, ticket volumes, SLA compliance, and risk posture. Manage the on-call schedule and ensure 24/7 support coverage aligned to business operating hours. Team Leadership & Development: Lead, mentor, and performance-manage a technical team comprising the Infrastructure & Cloud Engineer, Application & Service Desk Specialist, and Security & Compliance Coordinator. Conduct regular one-on-ones, set clear objectives, and drive accountability across all IT functions. Identify skills gaps and facilitate training, certifications, and professional development opportunities. Foster a culture of ownership, collaboration, proactive problem-solving, and continuous improvement. Manage team capacity and workload allocation to ensure balanced coverage across BAU and project activities. Infrastructure & Cloud Oversight: Provide technical oversight of the organisation's hybrid infrastructure (on-premises and cloud) including Azure, AWS, and/or GCC environments. Review and approve infrastructure designs, change requests, and architecture decisions. Ensure disaster recovery and business continuity plans are documented, tested, and audit ready. Oversee network infrastructure (WAN/LAN/VPN), telephony systems, and data centre operations. Drive cloud cost optimisation and ensure infrastructure is right-sized and scalable. Application & Service Desk Oversight: Ensure the service desk function delivers efficient, high-quality support to 600+ contact centre agents and back-office staff. Oversee application administration for contact centre platforms (diallers, CRM, WFM, quality assurance tools). Ensure device provisioning, asset management, and onboarding/offboarding processes are streamlined and compliant. Coordinate with client operations teams to align IT support with campaign requirements and staffing changes. Monitor and drive improvements in first-call resolution, mean time to resolution, and user satisfaction scores. Security, Compliance & Risk Management: Ensure the organisation maintains compliance with PCI-DSS, SOC 2, POPIA, and other applicable frameworks. Oversee the Security & Compliance Coordinator in maintaining the risk register, audit calendar, and policy documentation. Coordinate internal and external audits, due diligence requests, and client security assessments. Ensure cybersecurity best practices are implemented across all IT functions, including patch management, vulnerability scanning, and access control. Act as the IT lead for incident response and security breach management. Vendor & Stakeholder Management: Manage relationships with key IT vendors, service providers, and technology partners. Negotiate contracts, SLAs, and renewals to optimise cost and service quality. Act as the primary IT contact for client stakeholders, managing expectations and communicating service performance. Coordinate with external consultants for specialised projects (e.g. security assessments, platform migrations).IT Project Management & Strategy: Plan, execute, and deliver IT projects including platform migrations, new client onboarding, technology refreshes, and office setups. Manage project timelines, budgets, resources, and stakeholder communication. Contribute to the IT strategy and technology ro