Chief Information Officer

Department: IT

Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time

Location: Derby, UK

Description

Due to continued growth and firmwide expansion, we are looking to make a key and senior leadership appointment for our IT departments.

The Chief Information Officer, reporting directly to the Chief Executive, is accountable for managing the IT Infrastructure team, Service Desk team & Systems Development teams on behalf of the firm.

Responsible for the development and management of a digital strategy, delivery of all transformational change across the business, technological oversight and governance for all technologies and solutions across the firm, including IT related M&A activities and the provision of excellent service delivery in alignment with the Firm's operational requirements.

Key Responsibilities

Senior Leadership

• Direct reports include the Strategic Delivery Manager & the Systems Development Manager.
• Responsible for ongoing strategic leadership, project management & mentoring for direct reports.
• Overseeing a team of circa 8 individuals, responsible for delivering infrastructure & systems support across the business.
• Robust senior leadership in order to both challenge and progress leadership within the infrastructure and systems development teams.
  
  

Stakeholder Management

• Accountable to the Chief Executive & Wider Management board.
• Prepare and execute annual IT & Systems strategy.
• Ensure business plans, projects and roadmaps are in alignment with Firm ambitions and objectives, as outlined by the CEO.
• Manage team & projects in accordance with key deliverables outlined and report at board level on a monthly basis.
• Be seen as a "trusted partner" for the business, delivering high-level solutions and roadmaps in accordance with individual HOD/department requirements, whilst still navigating future direction of the Firm.
  
  

Strategic Vision & Execution

• Involvement with and monitoring of solution designs and transformation programs for mergers and acquisitions. Conduct IT due diligence where required with acquisition targets.
• Ensure harmonization across all systems during & following M&A activity with operational support from the systems development line manager.
  
  

Solutions and Service Management

• Technical ownership and accountability for the successful harmonisation of a number of significant acquisitions supporting the growth agenda and business strategy for the firm.
• Solution Management of all new IT initiatives across the firm to ensure appropriate consideration is given throughout the inception, elaboration, construction and delivery stages, including overall governance and stakeholder management, to deliver robust, scalable, performant and secure solutions.
• Ensure all key business requirements and success criteria are successfully delivered within time and budget, maximizing benefits back to the business.
• Responsible for adopting and managing continuous improvement for 1st, 2nd & 3rd line support requirement of the Firm. Ensure help desk is operating at 100% alignment with agreed SLAs by conducting frequent audits with infrastructure line management.
  
  

Systems Integration

• Procurement, design and delivery of strategic platforms to deliver pioneering services to our internal and external customers in more efficient, effective and automated ways for improved legal service delivery in a standard and consistent way.
• Support for the delivery of large transformation programmes and Mergers and Acquisitions including delivery of End User Compute Environment, harmonisation of key business systems and the introduction of Outsourced and Cloud-based services.
  
  

Technology Evaluation and Selection

• Thought leadership around strategic objectives and pioneering in technological advancements to help the firm with its growth ambitions and sector positioning.
• Present strategic considerations to CEO as required, including full budgets.
• Responsible for continuous improvement regarding information security and achieving/maintaining certifications & accreditations.
  
  

You Will

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• Have at least 12 months experience within a C-Suite or Executive Level IT role.
• Be able to demonstrate strong leadership acumen, particularly in driving senior-level team members to achieve department objectives.
• Ideally have held a role within the professional services sector for a minimum of 6 months.
• Be able to evidence continuous improvement projects that align with various stakeholder requirements.
  
  

Benefits

What we offer?

• Competitive salary
• Bonus potential
• Car parking
• Great working environment at our Derby Head offices
• Career Development opportunities
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
• Options to buy & sell 1 week's holiday
• 1 week's holiday carry over
• Extra day off for your birthday
• Staff card discount scheme for local shops
• Social days and evenings on the firm
• Staff discounts on legal services