Service Transition Lead

Fixed term (24 months) Manchester Salary: £54,300 £ 60,700 Hybrid (minimum 2 days per week in the office)

If you enjoy bringing order to complexity and making things work seamlessly behind the scenes, this could be a great fit. As a Service Transition Lead, you'll play a key role in ensuring new IT services don't just go live—but land well. You'll be at the centre of change, helping shape how services transition into real-world use across AQA.

You’ll make sure new and changing services are introduced in a way that is controlled, secure and fully supportable. Working closely with projects and programmes, you’ll ensure everything is in place before go‑live—from support models and documentation through to stakeholder readiness.

This is an opportunity to join a growing function vice Transition is now embedded into the wider project delivery framework, meaning every project flows through it. With major programmes on the horizon—including digital transformation, AI‑driven initiatives and the move toward digital exams—you'll be part of shaping how these services land and operate successfully for colleagues and learners alike.

• Leading service transition across projects, ensuring services are ready, supportable and aligned at go‑live
• Working with project teams to define and secure service acceptance criteria, including running readiness checkpoints
• Connecting teams across Enterprise Technology to ensure support teams and stakeholders are prepared for live service

You’ll suit this role if you’re confident working across teams, comfortable challenging where needed and focused on outcomes.

• Experience in service transition, service management or IT project delivery, or a similar governance role
• Understanding of ITIL principles (certification helpful but not essential)
• Ability to influence and guide stakeholders, including handling challenging conversations
• Experience working across multiple teams or suppliers in an IT environment
• Strong communication, with a calm and pragmatic approach

This is a role where your work has real impact—making sure critical systems are ready and reliable from day one.

• Opportunity to build expertise in service transition and IT service management
• A 35‑hour working week with flexible, hybrid working
• Exposure to high‑profile, business‑critical programmes.
• 25 days' annual leave (rising to 30), plus Christmas closure days
• Excellent pension (up to 11.5% employer contribution)

At AQA, we are committed to fostering a workplace that celebrates diversity and promotes equity and inclusion. We believe that a diverse team brings richer perspectives and drives better outcomes. Our ED&I strategy ensures that everyone—regardless of religion, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, age, disability, sexual orientation, or background—is valued, respected, and empowered to thrive. We actively promote inclusive language, avoid stereotypes, and strive for representation across all dimensions of diversity.

We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and lived experiences.