Director of Infrastructure and IT Operations

Job Description

We are looking for a Director of Infrastructure and Operations to assist with the management of current and future infrastructure needs.

This leader must bring a technical depth spanning large scale enterprise networks, datacenter infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Azure hybrid-cloud offerings, end user technology, complimented by strong leadership, strategic thought leadership and collaboration skills. The leader will serve as the critical expert and point of contact across WHSmith NA for all things infrastructure transformation and IT operations. This will be a highly visible role and will work collaboratively with WHSmith’s Executive Leadership, Enterprise Architecture, Cybersecurity, and Infrastructure tower leads to deliver on transformation and operational objectives. Direct transformation and operational projects/programs, manage/direct senior managers, solution leads, contractors, project managers, and direct infrastructure resources across multiple managed services providers.

Responsibilities:

• Implement information systems that increase the efficiency of WHSmith’s employee's enterprise wide
• Lead a team of 8, ensuring project fulfillment
• Proven experience in cloud migration and developing platform solutions to support retail POS/store systems & applications
• A strong background in creating secure cloud architectures for customers facing applications that are enterprise grade and highly scalable.
• Familiarity with Infrastructure Services (Cloud, Network, Data Center, Systems, Voice, IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS)
• Strong leadership, communication, consulting and influencing skills
• Strong Program/Project management, with experience leading multiple large projects
• Develop and oversee execution of IT infrastructure strategy to support company’s business strategy and growth goals
• Create strategy and oversee staff who manage public cloud and on-premises infrastructure, systems and solutions
• Definition and tracking for quarterly team goals, SLAs and KPIs for Infrastructure Support team
• Experience with hosted and private cloud managed services across multiple data centers.
• Remain current on industry best practices and trends, recommending improvements and upgrades accordingly
• Review and negotiate vendor contracts and agreements
• Define infrastructure strategies and develop appropriate roadmaps to ensure our infrastructure is capable of meeting key business and technology objectives.
• Ensure ongoing performance monitoring of the infrastructure and ensure service level agreements are met. Provide appropriate analytics, executive dashboards, and set measurable KPIs to provide operational scorecards.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor of Science Information Technology, Infrastructure Management (or related)
• 8 years of working in a large scale, multi-supplier environment, with at least 5 years managing large scale infrastructure and operations and 5 years designing, developing, configuring, and implementing cloud enterprise IT infrastructure with diverse solutions from multiple vendors.
• 3 years of experience in managing multi-cloud delivery and support
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Proven experience leading a technical team in a corporate environment (retail industry preferred)
• Master's Degree strongly preferred (computer science, engineering, information systems, business administration or other industry related curriculum)
• Experience in developing the architecture of large-scale web/mobile and retail POS/store systems & applications

Technical Skillset:

• Expertise in Juniper Networks, routing and switching for corporate environments.
• Proficiency with Cisco Meraki switches and wireless access points for distributed retail locations.
• Experience managing Cradlepoint (Erison) cellular WAN solutions for remote connectivity.
• Strong understanding of network architecture, including VPNs, SD-WAN, and high-availability designs.
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Azure cloud services (IaaS, PaaS, networking, security, cost optimization).
• Familiarity with VMware vSphere for on-premises virtualization and hybrid cloud integration.
• Experience with cloud migration strategies and hybrid infrastructure management.
• Rubrik backup and recovery solutions.
• Designing and implementing business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) plans.
• Proficiency in Jira Service Management for ITSM processes (incident, change, problem management).
• Strong understanding of ITIL frameworks and best practices.
• Expertise with CrowdStrike endpoint protection and threat detection.
• Knowledge of network security, identity management, and compliance standards (PCI DSS, GDPR).
• Ability to implement zero-trust security models across cloud and on-prem environments.
• Experience managing IT infrastructure in retail environments, including casinos and airports.
• Skills in remote monitoring and management of distributed networks and devices.
• Capacity to develop infrastructure roadmaps aligned with business objectives.
• Vendor management and contract negotiation for hardware, software, and services.
• Budgeting and cost optimization for IT operations.