Delivery Manager

LOCATION

Apply is hybrid friendly with remote options available if needed. The preferred candidate should be based in (or within a location commutable to) the Greater London Area of the United Kingdom, working in hours that align to the UK timezone. The office is located in the Shoreditch area.

The Delivery Manager is a senior, operationally hands‑on role within Apply’s Managed Services practice. This is a client‑facing, team‑leading, delivery‑owning position responsible for continuously delivering value in a retainer‑based model, owning client relationships, leading delivery rhythm and ensuring quality and consistency across all sprints, releases and incidents.

• Act as the primary operational contact for assigned client accounts.
• Lead client‑facing ceremonies: sprint reviews, planning sessions, retrospectives and status calls.
• Produce and deliver monthly client service reports covering delivery progress, budgets, SLA performance and roadmap.
• Negotiate sprint priorities, scope changes and delivery trade‑offs directly with client stakeholders.
• Manage expectations proactively, ensuring alignment between what was sold, what is scoped and what is being delivered.
• Escalate to the Head of Managed Services when commercial decisions or executive engagement is required.

• Own the delivery plan for each account: sprint cadence, release schedule, capacity allocation and backlog health.
• Ensure squads deliver consistently and to agreed quality standards.
• Set delivery standards and methodology expectations; the Scrum Master executes internal ceremonies within those guardrails.
• Track and report on velocity, burn‑down and delivery health across accounts.
• Remove blockers and manage cross‑squad dependencies.

• Directly manage the Scrum Master who owns day‑to‑day internal ceremony facilitation.
• Review health signals and intervene when standards are at risk.
• Act as first point of escalation from the Scrum Master; escalated to the Head of Managed Services when required.

• Oversee release planning and governance executed by the Product Owner and Technical Lead.
• Ensure release content, timing and sign‑off processes are followed consistently.
• Accountable for client‑facing release communications: briefing, go‑live confirmation and post‑release reporting.

• Own the P1/P2 incident response process: triage, client communication and resolution.
• Serve as the first point of escalation for delivery issues and client concerns.
• Coordinate with the Technical Lead and Scrum Master during incidents.
• Conduct post‑incident reviews; ensure learnings are documented and actioned, including client RCA’s and internal training.
• Escalate unresolved delivery risks or people issues to the Head of Managed Services.

• Directly manage the Scrum Master: set expectations, coach and conduct performance conversations.
• Monitor squad capacity, workload balance and resource allocation across accounts.
• Support Product Owner development through guidance and feedback.
• Advocate for sustainable workloads; raise capacity risks before they affect delivery or retention.
• Foster a high‑performance, positive team culture.
• Coordinate cross‑squad dependencies and ensure consistent delivery standards.

• Lead new client onboarding into the Managed Services model: operating rhythm, tooling standards and reporting cadence from day one.
• Ensure continuity and clear expectations during transitions from project to retainer delivery.

• Own squad‑level P&L visibility: hours, utilisation, revenue recognition and margin.
• Track account budgets against monthly retainer; flag risks early to the Head of Managed Services.
• Drive change order processes when scope evolves.
• Identify and flag upsell or scope extension opportunities.
• Support the Head of Managed Services with data and context for forecasting, headcount planning and renewal conversations.

• 5+ years in delivery or client‑facing PM within a digital agency, consultancy or managed services environment.
• Demonstrable experience managing…