Modern Workplace Manager - Newcastle / hybrid
Candidate specification
Essential:
- Proven leadership of Microsoft services in a complex enterprise, including roadmap, governance, service improvement and adoption
- Strong knowledge of Microsoft 365, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange Online, Entra ID, Power Platform, Purview, Viva, Copilot and endpoint tooling
- Strong technical leadership across platform architecture, security, compliance, resilience and operational readiness
- Strong stakeholder engagement, with the ability to explain technical issues and trade-offs in clear business language
- People leadership experience, including setting direction, developing capability and driving accountable delivery
- Uses service data, adoption insight, incidents, problems and feedback to prioritise work and demonstrate outcomes
Desirable:
- Relevant Microsoft certifications or equivalent experience across administration, identity, security, compliance, Power Platform, Purview or Copilot
- Experience managing Microsoft, strategic partners and enterprise support arrangements, including demand planning, supplier performance and value realisation
- Exposure to AI, Copilot, GitHub or comparable collaboration and developer platforms
- Experience operating in a complex, global or matrix organisation
As Modern Workplace Lead, you will shape how the organisation works, collaborates and innovates. You will own the strategy, governance, maintenance and continuous improvement of Microsoft 365 and collaboration services, including Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, GitHub, Purview, Copilot, endpoint productivity tooling and the wider Microsoft ecosystem—turning a fast-moving technology landscape into simple, secure, resilient and effective experiences for colleagues.
You will be the senior service authority and a trusted adviser to business and technology leaders, working across Architecture, Cyber and Information Security, Digital, IT Operations, Microsoft and strategic partners. You will shape priorities, investment and standards, develop a strong Microsoft team, and ensure platforms remain secure, compliant, supportable and resilient throughout their lifecycle. You will also turn new capabilities, including AI and Copilot, into practical improvements in productivity, collaboration, service performance and user experience
Key responsibilities and duties include:
- Own the end-to-end strategy, lifecycle and roadmap for Microsoft 365, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Purview, Copilot, workplace endpoint tooling, GitHub and collaboration services—from strategy and design through transition, live operation, maintenance and retirement
- Set and assure platform standards, configuration baselines, guardrails and governance across collaboration, identity, privileged access, information protection, automation, AI and Copilot services
- Manage Microsoft evergreen change and internally initiated configuration, integration, automation and partner-delivered change, ensuring impacts, dependencies and risks are understood
- Ensure new services, features and material changes are secure, supportable, documented and recoverable before release
- Maintain evidence for audits and assurance activities, and ensure vulnerabilities, control exceptions, audit findings and gaps in service ownership are addressed promptly
- Lead Copilot and AI readiness, covering security, information protection, governance, support, user enablement and adoption
- Use service data and feedback to improve platform health, resilience and user experience
- Manage technical debt, capacity, availability, service dependencies, privileged access and security remediation
- Maintain continuity and recovery arrangements, including recovery objectives, service dependencies, supplier commitments and regularly tested recovery plans
