Service Delivery Manager (SDM) – Onsite
Role Purpose
The Service Delivery Manager (SDM) is the single-point owner for end-to-end IT service delivery for Retail, accountable for operational stability, SLA adherence, and business continuity across retail stores, distribution centres (DCs), and corporate IT systems.
The SDM plays a critical leadership role during Priority 1 and Priority 2 incidents, ensuring rapid service restoration, accurate stakeholder communication, and contractual compliance.
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Core Accountabilities
Service Delivery Ownership
• Own day to day service delivery across Retail, DC, and Corporate IT environments.
• Ensure availability and performance of POS systems, store networks, WMS, logistics integrations, and business critical applications.
• Deliver consistent compliance with SLAs, KPIs, and contractual commitments.
• Proactively identify risks impacting store operations, order fulfilment, and supply chain continuity.
Major / Critical Incident Management
• Act as Incident Commander for all P1/P2 business critical incidents.
• Lead major incident bridges, driving structured triage, restoration, and resolution.
• Ensure timely engagement of internal teams, vendors, and OEMs.
• Translate technical impact into clear business impact (stores affected, DCs impacted, revenue risk).
• Provide structured situation updates to IT and business stakeholders.
• Own Root Cause Analysis (RCA), Post Incident Reviews (PIR), and Corrective / Preventive Actions (CAPA).
Client & Stakeholder Management
• Serve as the onsite face of delivery to Retail leadership.
• Build trusted relationships with Retail Operations, DC Operations, IT, and Security teams.
• Handle escalations decisively with focus on business outcomes and transparency.
Governance, Audit & Compliance
• Lead operational governance through weekly, monthly, and quarterly reviews.
• Ensure strict compliance with Incident Reporting Guidelines, MSA clauses, and audit requirements.
• Maintain audit ready documentation and service evidence.
Team & Vendor Coordination
• Ensure 24x7 operational readiness and on call coverage.
• Coordinate onsite and offshore delivery teams.
• Manage third party vendors during escalations and outages.
Service Improvement & Stability
• Drive Service Improvement Plans (SIP) to reduce outage frequency and MTTR.
• Identify opportunities for stability, automation, and proactive monitoring.
• Support peak period readiness and continuous improvement initiatives.
Key Experience & Skills
• Proven retail or distribution IT service delivery experience.
• Hands on leadership of P1/P2 major incidents in business-critical environments.
• Strong ITIL Incident, Major Incident, and Problem Management expertise.
• Excellent stakeholder communication and crisis management skills.
• Strong understanding of retail POS, store infrastructure, and DC systems (preferred).
Certifications (Preferred)
• ITIL v3 / ITIL v4
• PMP / PRINCE2 / Agile (advantage)
Value to Customer
• Improved store and DC uptime
• Faster recovery from critical incidents
• Predictable, SLA driven delivery
• Reduced operational and audit risk
• Stronger alignment between IT operations and retail business outcomes