Information Technology Operations Lead

About the Role

We’re looking for an Operations Lead to join our client in the Energy Trading sector. In this role, you'll take ownership of operational strategy and service reliability for middleware platforms supporting critical trading systems. You’ll work closely with engineering, support, and leadership teams to ensure stability, observability, and excellence in a dynamic, cloud-native environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and lead the operational strategy for a high-availability middleware platform
• Ensure the reliability and smooth operation of business-critical integrations
• Oversee incident, problem, and change management processes across middleware services
• Implement service level targets aligned with business needs and performance expectations
• Collaborate with Site Reliability and Platform Engineers on monitoring, automation, and predictive maintenance
• Act as the main point of contact for middleware operations, coordinating between IT, business stakeholders, and support teams
• Drive operational improvements, automation, and observability solutions for better service resilience
• Foster a culture of reliability, proactive monitoring, and continuous improvement

Required Skills & Experience

• 5+ years of experience in IT operations leadership roles (Operations Lead, IT Service Manager, or SRE Manager)
• Strong background in ITIL, incident response, operational governance, and service excellence
• Expertise in observability tools, logging frameworks, and monitoring strategies
• Hands-on knowledge of middleware technologies (APIs, Kafka, message queues, event-driven systems)
• Familiarity with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP) and modern integration environments
• Proven track record managing L2/L3 support teams, vendors, and offshore delivery centers
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
• Passion for coaching, upskilling teams, and driving collaboration across functions

This role is hybrid, 3 days per week on-site in Düsseldorf, and requires eligibility to work in Germany without sponsorship.

Apply now or send your CV to d.jeffery@annapurnarecruitment.com for more information.