Service Desk Manager

Join Premier Foods — where people, brands and purpose come together.

We’re proud to be one of the UK’s largest listed food businesses, with over 4,000 colleagues across 13 sites shaping the future of some of Britain’s best‑loved brands, found in 94% of households nationwide, making us one of the UK’s top three ambient food suppliers. From much‑loved household names such as Mr Kipling, Bisto, Oxo, Batchelors and Sharwoods, to our recently welcomed brands Fuel10k and Merchant Gourmet, our portfolio is packed with iconic favourites — and continues to grow.

Role Purpose

As our IT Service Support Lead, you’ll play a pivotal, hands‑on role in delivering exceptional IT Service Desk and Service Management operations. You’ll own our ITSM tooling, drive service excellence, lead operational turnaround, and act as Major Incident Manager — ensuring swift service restoration, effective communication, and a brilliant colleague experience.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead day‑to‑day IT Service Desk operations, setting clear performance standards and driving significant improvements in service quality.
• Take ownership of the ITSM toolset (including Freshservice), ensuring it is fully optimised, well‑maintained and continuously improved.
• Act as Major Incident Manager for P1/P2 incidents, coordinating internal teams and third‑party suppliers to restore service quickly and effectively.
• Reduce ticket backlog, embed new ways of working and enhance responsiveness across the team.
• Drive self‑service and AI chatbot capability to automate and deflect high‑volume, low‑complexity requests.
• Own IT Asset Management and ensure cleanliness of the CMDB.
• Support Problem Management, Knowledge Management and service improvement activities.
• Provide leadership, coaching and rota management for the Service Centre team.
• Deputise for the IT Services Manager when required.

What we need from you

• Proven experience running or leading a service desk or similar operational environment
• 5+ years’ hands‑on IT support experience
• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Windows 11, O365, Citrix, and Active Directory
• Solid understanding of ITSM practices (Incident, Request, Problem Management)
• Process‑driven mindset with a passion for quality and improvement
• Supportive, motivating leadership style and willingness to be hands‑on
• ITIL4 Foundation / Specialist (desirable)
• Six Sigma Yellow/Green Belt (desirable)

What we offer you in return

• Competitive salary
• Up to 7.5% pension
• Holiday Purchase Scheme
• Sharesave Scheme
• Wide range of online and in-house training
• Access to an employee discount scheme, with access to hundreds of nationwide retailers

At Premier foods we believe in inclusion, authenticity and individuality. We aim to ensure all existing and future colleagues are given equitable opportunities and are respected, valued and encouraged to bring their true authentic selves to work no matter who they are, what they look like, who they love or what they believe in. Our culture is one where everyone is welcome. 

We're proud to be a Disability Smart employer and are committed to supporting disability inclusion throughout our recruitment process. If you experience any access issues or require reasonable adjustments at any stage, please let us know so we can ensure you have the support you need.