Head of Regional Operations

Role Overview

• Take full ownership of local IT operations across Europe, AMWA, and APAC.
• Consolidate what is currently a patchwork of country-level teams, vendors, and operating models into one coherent, centrally governed operations organisation with clear accountability and consistent standards.
• Build and form regional IT operations leadership teams: recruit, develop, and empower strong regional leads who can run day-to-day operations with autonomy while delivering against global standards.
• Run local onsite support and field engineering across offices, plants, quarries, and production sites.
• Deliver against SLAs that meet country expectations.
• Restructure regional operations to drive savings: identify overlaps, eliminate duplication, optimise team sizes, renegotiate vendor contracts, and design smarter support models—while maintaining or improving service quality.
• Own vendor management and third-party relationships for regional IT operations: manage outsourcing partners, negotiate contracts, enforce SLAs, and ensure that external providers deliver the same quality and responsiveness as internal teams.
• Establish a unified incident management and escalation framework across all regions.
• Collaborate with the global Infrastructure team to drive infrastructure standardisation across sites.

Requirements

• Proven experience running regional or global IT operations in a large, complex organisation—ideally spanning both office environments and industrial sites (plants, quarries, production facilities).
• Demonstrated experience in restructuring IT operations organisations: you have consolidated teams, redesigned operating models, and delivered cost savings while maintaining or improving service quality.
• Deep expertise in IT operations across the full stack: end-user computing, onsite support, field engineering, network and infrastructure operations, and industrial/OT-adjacent IT.
• Strong vendor management and negotiation skills: you have managed large outsourcing relationships, renegotiated contracts, and held third parties accountable for delivery against demanding SLAs.
• Proven crisis management capability: you have led responses to major IT incidents, disaster recovery scenarios, and cyber security events.
• Experience defining, negotiating, and delivering against SLAs in multi-country environments.
• Strong understanding of IT security, compliance, and risk management as they relate to infrastructure and operations.
• Experience with ITIL or comparable service management frameworks—not as a theoretical exercise, but as a practical foundation for running disciplined, measurable operations.
• Excellent senior stakeholder management: you are credible with country Managing Directors, plant managers, and central IT leadership alike.
• Outstanding organisational and coordination skills: you manage complexity across regions, time zones, vendors, and internal teams without losing control or visibility.
• A leader who builds strong teams: you attract, develop, and retain operational talent.
• Financial discipline: you manage operational budgets, track cost per user, and deliver savings targets.
• Resilience, stamina, and a genuine appetite for a demanding role.

Tech Stack

• Cyber Security

Benefits

• Flexible working time models with up to 50% remote working within Germany
• 30 vacation days plus additional special vacation days
• Attractive compensation with profit share/bonus, Christmas, and vacation payment
• Multiple learning & development options: support of job-related further training, various technical and leadership development program
• JobTicket, JobBike and further special conditions and discounts for e.g., gyms
• Company fitness room, various sports classes, health, and prevention campaigns
• Individual onboarding with buddy program as well as various networking initiatives (Network of Women, International Network etc.)
• Modern headquarters next to the river Neckar with ergonomic workplaces and height-adjustable desks
• Canteen with discounted and healthy meals
• Bicycle and underground parking with charging stations – for e-bike and car