Operations Management Specialist

Job Summary

As an Operations Management Specialist, you will lead teams responsible for ensuring operational performance, stability, and continuous improvement of assigned service offerings across pre-production and production environments. You will oversee incident, problem, change, and service request management to ensure services consistently meet defined SLAs, KPIs, security, and compliance standards. The Operations Manager drives automation, observability, operational readiness, and cost efficiency, and works closely with Product, Delivery, Delivery, Agile Release Trains (ARTs), and vendors to embed operational excellence throughout planning, delivery, and ongoing support.

Main Responsibilities
Collaboration & Service Leadership
Provide day-to-day leadership and direction to managed service partners to ensure effective execution of operational activities
Coordinate and align vendor teams supporting pre-production and production environments
Foster strong collaboration and communication across CN teams, vendors, and stakeholders
Ensure clear expectations, accountability, and alignment with operational priorities and service outcomes
Support onboarding and knowledge transfer activities to maintain continuity and operational effectiveness
Promote continuous improvement and knowledge sharing across delivery, support, and vendor teams

Operational Excellence
Ensure operational execution aligns with defined SLAs, KPIs, and performance objectives
Own and prioritize incident, problem, and escalation management to minimize business impact
Lead root cause analysis and drive remediation and defect reduction initiatives
Drive automation, observability, and tooling improvements to improve operational health and efficiency
Ensure service continuity and disaster recovery readiness, including execution of RPO/RTO testing
Ensure ITIL practices are followed across incident, problem, change, and release management
Ensure production changes adhere to formal change control processes
Maintain IT asset compliance, license adherence, inventory accuracy, and lifecycle management
Ensure ServiceNow service and CI mapping data integrity
Produce and report operational metrics, KPIs, and stability insights

Delivery/Modernization/Operational Excellence
Review business and project requests to confirm operational feasibility and cost implications
Provide operational input during intake, planning, and delivery phases
Define and validate operational transition and readiness requirements for new and changed services
Ensure projects transition into operations in compliance with support, security, and operational standards
Coordinate operational resource requirements with project and product teams
Consult on backlog prioritization, lifecycle work, and defect remediation within ARTs
Actively contribute to sprint planning and ongoing operational improvement initiatives

Customer Service
Foster strong, trusted relationships with business partners and internal stakeholders
Provide effective day-to-day operational leadership and support oversight
Act as the primary operational escalation point and communication authority during major incidents
Manage vendor and partner relationships, including performance tracking and issue resolution
Ensure alignment and communication with business and I&T leadership during outages and key events

Vendor, Finance, Secuity & Compliance (integrated accountability)
Manage vendor contracts, renewals, performance metrics, and invoice approvals
Manage operational budgets, cloud consumption, and cost optimization initiatives
Track and report total cost of ownership (TCO) and current cost of ownership (CCO)
Ensure compliance with CN IT standards, SOX policies, TSA, Transport Canada, and regulatory requirements
Participate in audits, oversee patch management, and ensure timely remediation of vulnerabilities
Ensure security policies and standards are applied across all production systems

Education/Certification/Designation
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent work experience
Minimum 10-15 years overall IT experience
Minimum 5+ years' experience in IT operations, including coordination or oversight of managed service teams

Requirements
Strong customer-service orientation and stakeholder management skills
Ability to communicate effectively with senior management
Ability to communicate complex technical concepts in user-friendly language
Strong problem-solving, prioritization, and decision-making skills
High-energy, results-driven leadership mindset
Excellent written, verbal, listening, and interpersonal skills
Experience supporting 24/7 production environments and on-call models
SAP functional knowledge (e.g., HR, SuccessFactors, Finance, Procurement, or related domains)
Understanding of SAP infrastructure and technical environments
Knowledge of end-to-end enterprise business processes