The Applications Management function is the custodian of the enterprise application portfolio - accountable for its health, performance, security, and evolution across all business domains. The role bridges the gap between IT capability and business value: keeping systems running reliably today while building the roadmap for what comes next.
Sitting within Digital Business Solutions (DBS), the Applications Management role is responsible for the operational performance, continuous improvement, and strategic evolution of the enterprise application portfolio. This includes business-critical systems across Finance, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, HR, and Sales & Distribution - ensuring that applications are stable, secure, compliant, and aligned with the needs of the business.
Application Operations & Incident Management
Maintain the operational health, availability, and performance of the enterprise application portfolio across all supported business domains. This is the core accountability of the function.
- Triage, prioritize, and resolve application incidents within agreed SLA targets, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations.
- Lead P1/P2 critical incident coordination end-to-end - from initial detection through containment, resolution, and post-incident review.
- Conduct structured root cause analysis (RCA) and drive permanent remediation for recurring problems, not just symptomatic fixes.
- Monitor application portfolio health metrics, SLA adherence, and user satisfaction data; produce regular operational performance reports for DBS and business leadership.
- Maintain system documentation, known error databases, and knowledge base articles to accelerate future incident resolution.
Change, Release & Enhancement Delivery
Govern and execute the end-to-end process for all application changes, from minor configuration updates to significant platform enhancements.
- Plan, test, and deploy application enhancements, patches, and configuration changes in accordance with change management governance standards.
- Manage and prioritize the BAU application enhancement backlog; work in agile or sprint-based delivery cycles with business and IT teams.
- Maintain complete change records, release notes, and rollback plans for every deployment - ensuring traceability and auditability.
- Transition newly delivered application capabilities into stable BAU support, including handover documentation and operational readiness validation.
- Collaborate with Application Architects, Infrastructure, and Information Security to ensure all changes meet enterprise design and security standards.
Business Partnering & Stakeholder Engagement
Act as the primary technology partner to business function leaders, translating operational realities and strategic needs into application solutions and roadmap priorities.
- Engage regularly with functional leads, process owners, and application champions across Finance, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, HR, and Sales & Distribution.
- Translate business requirements and pain points into application enhancement priorities, roadmap inputs, and investment recommendations.
- Present portfolio health status, roadmap progress, and investment cases to senior business and technology stakeholders with clarity and commercial awareness.
- Proactively communicate change impacts, system risks, and upcoming maintenance windows to affected business users and stakeholder groups.
- Serve as the intelligent client in all vendor interactions - representing business and technology interests in supplier negotiations and performance reviews.
Security, Compliance & Risk Management
Maintain the security posture, regulatory compliance, and risk management obligations of the enterprise application portfolio.
- Maintain patch currency across all supported applications; ensure no system operates with known unmitigated vulnerabilities beyond agreed remediation timelines.
- Enforce access governance, user provisioning standards, and role-based security controls across the application portfolio.
- Ensure applications comply with applicable regulatory and data privacy obligations including GDPR, SOX, and any sector-specific requirements.
- Participate in internal audits, risk assessments, and compliance reviews; own remediation actions arising from findings within the application portfolio.
- Coordinate with Information Security (InfoSec) and Enterprise Architecture to ensure security-by-design principles are embedded in all change and enhancement delivery.
Vendor & License Governance
Manage third-party application support providers and software licensing obligations to protect commercial value and service quality.
- Monitor vendor SLA performance against contracted commitments; escalate quality and commercial issues through appropriate channels.
- Lead structured quarterly vendor performance reviews; maintain vendor scorecards and track remediation actions.
- Govern software license entitlements, subscription renewals, and total cost of ownership (TCO) for all applications within scope.
- Contribute to vendor selection processes and contract negotiations when new application capabilities or providers are being evaluated.
Continuous Improvement & Process Optimisation
Identify opportunities to improve the efficiency, reliability, and quality of the application portfolio and the team's operating model.
- Analyse incident trends, problem records, and operational feedback to identify systemic improvement opportunities.
- Develop and execute Service Improvement Plans (SIPs) with clearly defined owners, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
- Propose and implement automation opportunities that reduce manual effort and improve the reliability of application operations.
- Contribute to the DBS applications roadmap by surfacing operational insights, emerging risks, and capability improvement recommendations.
Team Development & Knowledge Management
Build individual and team capability to ensure the function grows at the same pace as the portfolio it manages.
- Mentor and coach junior colleagues; provide structured feedback on work quality, technical approach, and professional conduct.
- Contribute to knowledge sharing practices including documentation standards, lessons-learned reviews, and cross-training initiatives.
- Support onboarding of new team members within the Application Management function across assigned domains.
- Participate in performance and development conversations; take ownership of personal development plans and professional growth goals.
Architecture & Technical Standards Contribution
Support the technical integrity and long-term design quality of the enterprise application portfolio.
- Collaborate with Application Architects and Solution Designers to ensure that enhancements and changes align with enterprise architecture standards.
- Contribute application operational insight to architecture reviews, technology evaluations, and platform roadmap discussions.
- Maintain awareness of integration touchpoints, API dependencies, and middleware platforms linking enterprise applications.
- Flag technical debt, architecture risks, and design deviations identified through operational experience; escalate to appropriate governance bodies.
Reporting & Portfolio Insight
Produce accurate, timely, and decision-ready information for operational management and strategic governance.
- Prepare monthly Application Portfolio Health Reports covering availability, incident volumes, SLA performance, open change backlog, and outstanding risks.
- Maintain SLA dashboards and service performance metrics for DBS and business leadership consumption.
- Produce post-incident review reports for all P1/P2 critical incidents, including root cause, contributing factors, timeline, and remediation actions.
- Support the preparation of business cases, investment proposals, and technology briefings for senior leadership and governance forums.
Job Qualifications
Education Attainment
- Bachelor's or master's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related field.
Work Experience
- Senior Manager / Director:
- 10-15+ years in IT with progressive responsibility in application management or senior technology leadership.
- 5+ years in a leadership role with direct accountability for team performance, portfolio strategy, and executive stakeholder engagement.
- Demonstrated experience shaping enterprise application strategy, vendor governance, and multi-domain roadmap planning.
Licenses or Certification (if applicable)
- ITSM & Service Management:
- ITIL Foundation v4 (required at Analyst level and above).
- ITIL Practitioner or Managing Professional (preferred at Senior Analyst and above).
- ERP & Enterprise Platforms:
- SAP Certified Application Associate (Finance, SD, MM, HCM, or equivalent module).
- Oracle Cloud / Fusion Applications certification (Finance, SCM, HCM, or equivalent).
- Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Fundamentals or Functional Consultant.
- Workday Pro Certification (HCM, Financials, or equivalent).
- Project & Agile Delivery:
- PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) - preferred at Manager level and above.
