Head Of Information Technology

Department: Business Information Technology Reports To: Managing Director Reports to this role : IT Team / As assigned KEY RESPONSIBILITIES A. IT STRATEGY & GOVERNANCE • Develop, implement and periodically review the company's IT strategy, technology roadmap, priorities and investment plans, aligned with business objectives and growth plans. • Provide strategic advice to Management on technology trends, digital opportunities, IT risks, system capabilities and future technology requirements. • Establish and maintain appropriate IT policies, standards, procedures, governance controls and technology architecture principles. • Assess existing infrastructure, applications and business processes and recommend improvements, replacement or investment where appropriate. • Define short-, medium- and long-term IT priorities and ensure technology initiatives deliver measurable operational and business value. B. DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION, AI & AUTOMATION • Lead the company's digital transformation agenda and identify opportunities to improve productivity, process control, customer service and operational efficiency through technology. • Identify, evaluate and implement practical AI, automation and workflow solutions across business functions, with clear business cases and measurable benefits. • Work with departments to review manual or duplicated processes and recommend opportunities for simplification, digitisation, integration and automation. • Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend solutions that are relevant, secure, scalable and commercially viable for the business. • Drive user adoption, change management and training to ensure new digital solutions are successfully embedded into day-to-day operations. • Track benefits from transformation initiatives, including time savings, productivity improvements, error reduction, cost savings and other agreed outcomes. C. SAP & ENTERPRISE BUSINESS SYSTEMS • Provide leadership and technical oversight for the company's SAP environment and other core enterprise applications. • Lead or support SAP implementation, optimisation, enhancement, integration, upgrades, user support and continuous improvement activities. • Work closely with Finance, Commercial, Procurement, Warehouse, Logistics, Operations and other departments to improve SAP workflows and business processes. • Identify opportunities to maximise SAP functionality, strengthen process controls and reduce unnecessary manual work or duplicate data entry. • Manage system interfaces and integrations between SAP and other business applications, ensuring data flows are reliable, controlled and fit for purpose. • Coordinate external SAP consultants, vendors and technical specialists and ensure issues and enhancement requests are prioritised and resolved effectively. D. BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE, DATA & SYSTEM INTEGRATION • Lead the development and continuous improvement of business intelligence, management dashboards, operational reporting and data analytics capabilities. • Partner with business functions to define reporting requirements, KPIs and information needs that support timely and effective management decision-making. • Improve the accuracy, consistency, accessibility and governance of business data across systems and departments. • Develop or oversee automated reporting and data-integration solutions to reduce manual report preparation and improve visibility of business performance. • Explore appropriate use of AI and analytics for forecasting, trend identification, exception reporting and other business-use cases. E. IT INFRASTRUCTURE, CYBERSECURITY & BUSINESS CONTINUITY • Oversee the company's IT infrastructure, networks, servers, cloud services, communications systems, hardware, software and end-user devices. • Ensure IT systems are secure, reliable, available and appropriately maintained to support daily business and operational requirements. • Develop and maintain cybersecurity controls covering user access, identity management, endpoint protection, network security, data protection, backup, patching and vulnerability management. • Monitor IT and cybersecurity risks, coordinate incident response and ensure significant risks, incidents and remediation actions are reported to Management. • Establish and regularly review disaster recovery, backup and IT business-continuity arrangements, including appropriate testing and recovery procedures. • Maintain effective IT asset, software licence and technology lifecycle management and ensure compliance with applicable company, legal and regulatory requirements. F. IT PROJECT, VENDOR & BUDGET MANAGEMENT • Lead IT projects from business requirements, planning and solution evaluation through implementation, testing, training, go-live and post-implementation review. • Establish clear project scope, timelines, responsibilities, budgets, risks, expected benefits and success measures and monitor delivery against agreed plans. • Manage relationships and performance of IT vendors, consultants, software providers and technology partners, including contracts, service levels and issue resolution. • Evaluate vendor proposals and technology solutions based on functionality, integration, security, total cost, support, scalability and business value. • Prepare and manage the annual IT operating and capital expenditure budget and monitor expenditure against approved plans. • Identify opportunities to optimise IT cost while maintaining appropriate service quality, security, resilience and business support. G. BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP, SERVICE DELIVERY & TEAM LEADERSHIP • Partner with department heads and key stakeholders to understand business priorities, operational challenges and system requirements and translate them into practical technology solutions. • Proactively identify technology-enabled process improvements across the food distribution, warehouse, logistics, commercial, finance and support functions. • Ensure responsive and effective IT support to end users, with appr…