Operations Manager - Residential and Cleaning Services Job Edinburgh area,City of Edinburgh Scotland UK,Management

Location: City of Edinburgh

Grade and Salary range: Grade 8, £47,389 – £58,225

FTE and working pattern: Full Time (1

FTE), Open ended (flexible working on request).

Annual Leave: 33 days, plus 9 buildings closed days (and Christmas Eve when it falls on a weekday). Use our total rewards calculator.

About our School/Directorate and Team:

The Residential and Cleaning Service is part of Hospitality Services and has responsibility for all aspects of the cleaning the University accommodation, internal public areas and spaces across the Edinburgh campus. Operating year-round, the team supports a diverse portfolio including over 2,000 bedrooms, more than 140 teaching spaces, corporate and academic offices, and a range of internal and external events, as well as third-party clients.

As a significant contributor to the University’s operations, Hospitality Services accounts for nearly 10% of the workforce, with Residential and Cleaning Services representing almost half of that community.

Purpose of Role:

This role provides operational leadership for a team of approximately 100 colleagues, ensuring the consistent delivery of high-quality cleaning and residential services across academic, research, and residential spaces.

The role is responsible for ensuring services are delivered safely, effectively, and consistently across academic, research, residential and public environments through strong operational management, effective supervisory structures and clear service standards. The postholder will lead and support supervisors and frontline teams to maintain high levels of operational performance, customer service, compliance and continuous improvement across a complex 7-day operational environment.

Working closely with Accommodation Managers and wider Estates & Facilities colleagues, the role contributes to the planning and delivery of operational priorities, service developments and refurbishment activity, ensuring services remain responsive to the evolving needs of the University community. The role also works collaboratively with the Scottish Borders Campus Operations Manager to support consistency of approach, operational alignment and service standards across campuses.

Summary

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Key Duties:

Leadership & People Management Responsibilities

Provide clear leadership, direction, and oversight to supervisors and frontline teams.

Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, professionalism and continuous improvement across operational teams.

Ensure clear expectations are established for operational performance, customer service and conduct.

Manage employee relations matters including performance management, absence management, conduct and wellbeing matters in line with University policies and procedures.

Drive a high-performance culture through effective people management, development, and engagement.

Maintain oversight of operational standards through regular engagement with service areas and supervisors.

Develop strong relationships with stakeholders, adapting services to meet evolving needs.

Work with, operationally oversee, and manage the various key third party supplier and contract agreements – to include but not limited to, deep cleans, mattress replacement, white good repairs, cleaning chemicals, machinery and associated goods.

Act as the primary liaison between contractors, project teams, and Estates colleagues for refurbishment, remedial, and planned works.

Decision Making

Make operational decisions relating to service delivery, staffing, resource allocation and operational priorities within agreed policies and budgets.

Delegate and review workload and objectives, balancing competing demands across stakeholders and operational teams.

Assess operational risks and implement appropriate actions to minimise disruption and maintain service continuity.

Provide technical advice and support to others to enable development of strategy, direction and vision.

Follow Procurement guidelines negotiate with suppliers regrading prices and deliveries to increase financial efficiency.

Escalate significant operational, compliance or resource concerns where appropriate.

Advise on future resource requirements, including equipment, infrastructure, and space.

Planni…