Interim ITSM leader and service delivery manager
When your ITSM function head leaves, goes on long-term absence or a restructure leaves a gap, I step into that leadership role on an interim basis. I take ownership of the ITSM function from day one, keep service stable and report to the board in business terms while you find the right permanent leader.
Request a consultation call
The first call is a conversation, with no obligation and no hard sell.
When you need interim or fractional ITSM leadership
Experienced ITSM leadership from day one, interim or fractional, no ramp-up.
Interim cover makes sense when service delivery can't be left to drift, but hiring a permanent replacement is months away. It's often quicker to bring in an interim than to fill a vacancy at this level. The usual triggers are:
A sudden leadership gap.
A resignation, restructure or long-term absence has left IT service management without a leader, and your delivery managers without someone to report to.
A transformation that needs outside leadership.
A maturity uplift or service transformation programme needs someone objective to lead it, without internal history or politics.
Business as usual still has to run.
Day-to-day service delivery must stay stable while strategy and structure are being reset.
The board needs confidence.
Senior stakeholders want credible, consistent reporting on how IT services are performing.
Senior leadership, part-time.
You need senior ITSM leadership, but not enough work to justify a full-time hire.
What I take on from day one
As your interim ITSM leader, I own the function rather than advising from the side.
- 01Full ownership of ITSM. Strategy, operations and people, from the first week.
- 02Board and senior leadership reporting. Service performance explained in business language, not a wall of ticket statistics.
- 03Team leadership. Leading and performance-managing your delivery managers, service manager roles, team leads and analysts through the transition.
- 04Process governance. Incident, problem, change and request management, run to a consistent framework aligned to ITIL best practice.
- 05Supplier and budget oversight. Managing service providers, including any managed services, and spend within the ITSM remit, keeping service levels and customer satisfaction on track.
- 06A roadmap for your permanent leader. A maturity roadmap and clean handover, so whoever comes next starts with a plan rather than a blank page.
Roles I can cover
Every organisation uses its own job title for similar work. I've led IT service delivery under several of them, and I can step into roles such as:
- Interim service delivery manager, senior delivery manager or delivery lead
- Interim head of service delivery or head of IT service management
- Interim IT manager, IT operations manager or IT support manager
- Fractional Head of IT Service Management, where you need senior ITSM leadership for part of the week rather than full time
My background includes senior roles as Head of Modern Workplace and IT End User Services Manager, over more than 15 years in IT service delivery and ITSM leadership. Credentials: ITIL 4, ISO/IEC 27001, BCS and ILM.
Interim or fractional: which do you need?
Interim suits a full-time gap. As an interim service delivery manager I cover the role for a set period, usually while you recruit, and hand over when your permanent service delivery manager starts.
Fractional suits organisations that need senior service management leadership but not five days a week. You get an experienced leader for a set number of days, over a longer period, without the cost of a full-time hire.
If you're not sure which fits, we can talk it through on the first call. Some engagements start as interim cover and move to a fractional arrangement once things are stable. I'd rather flex the arrangement to what the business needs than shoehorn myself into a role.
How The Marathon Way works in a leadership seat
Every engagement follows The Marathon Way, my five-phase approach. It's the same disciplined approach I use on a service desk rescue or a supplier transition, adapted for a leadership seat:
1. Assess
What does now look like, and why is that the case? I spend time getting under the hood of the function's processes, people, toolsets and culture to understand exactly what's happening and identify the root cause. I analyse the available data, observe current working practices and question the team to build the full picture.
2. Shape
Using what I find in Assess, paired with my experience, I set direction with a roadmap for the function, agreed with the board or the senior stakeholders I report into.
3. Deliver
I lead the function day to day and put that roadmap into action, whether that's optimising toolsets, refining process or reshaping the team, as the situation demands.
4. Embed
Positive change can only happen when people are bought in. That means bringing them along on the journey, so they understand what their contribution means. Training sessions, leader coaching and documentation are all key parts of embedding new behaviour and expectations.
5. Refine
I first help establish stability, then make sure the function keeps moving along the progression path. Dashboards, reporting packs and KPIs give ongoing visibility of performance, so areas that need improvement are identified quickly and any changes are driven by real data.
What you're left with
The point of an interim ITSM leader is to leave a function in better shape when the permanent leader arrives than when I found it. By the end of an engagement you'll have:
- Stable service delivery through the transition
- Delivery managers and team leads who've been coached, not just managed
- Clear governance across incident, problem, change management and request
- Reporting the board trusts
- A maturity roadmap and a documented handover for your new head of service delivery
- Business and customer confidence that the function is set up to provide what's needed
What people say about working with me
Greg's drive to achieve is exemplary; delivery executed with an absolute focus on efficiency and customer service. He is quick to support peers and provides intelligent challenge. Inspiring the teams he leads, setting clear standards and facing into performance issues he was very much respected by his direct reports. I found Greg to be an authentic, uncompromising and engaging leader.
Greg fundamentally transformed the IT Service Desk, moving it to a high performance, customer focused operation. His passion and experience in running service desks, along with his leadership skills, really make him a great part of the IT Function.
Interim service delivery manager FAQs
Is an interim ITSM leader the same as an interim service delivery manager?
Often, yes. Job titles vary from one organisation to the next. The person who owns IT service delivery might be called a service delivery manager, a head of service delivery or an ITSM lead. I've covered the role under several of those titles, and whichever one you use, the job is to own service levels, lead the team and report on performance.
What does a service delivery manager do?
A service delivery manager makes sure IT services are delivered to the standard the organisation has agreed. That means owning service levels, leading the teams that deliver them, managing suppliers and reporting on performance. In larger IT functions, a senior service delivery manager also leads other delivery managers. As an interim, I do all of that for a fixed period.
Is a service delivery manager more senior than a project manager?
They're different jobs rather than a straight ranking. A project manager delivers a change with a start and an end. A service delivery manager owns a live service on an ongoing basis. In most organisations, a head of service delivery sits above both, with delivery managers reporting in.
How quickly can you start?
Usually within two weeks of agreeing the engagement, which is much faster than recruiting a permanent service delivery manager.
How long do interim engagements last?
Typically 3 to 12 months, and they can be extended. The length depends on how long your recruitment takes and how much needs fixing along the way.
Can you also fix the service desk while covering the role?
Yes, if that's where the problems are. If the service desk itself is the main issue, have a look at IT service desk and operational team rescue as well.
Need someone to lead IT service delivery now?
Tell me about the gap in your organisation and what's at stake, and I'll tell you honestly whether I can help and how quickly I could start.
Discuss interim ITSM cover