IT Systems Manager - Manufacturing Sector

An international manufacturing business with sites across the world is seeking an IT Manager who can balance technical credibility with strategic delivery. This is a role with immediate substance and significant growth potential - international ERP systems integration projects are on the horizon, and the scope for role expansion is genuine.

If you have an infrastructure engineering background and want to move into ERP, project leadership, and business-facing IT management while staying busy with meaningful work from day one, this is it.

What You'll Be Doing

Managing Third-Party Relationships

You'll be the primary liaison with the IT Managed Service Provider and Business Central implementation partner. This isn't about doing the infrastructure work yourself - it's about managing those who do, challenging recommendations, ensuring service delivery, and translating between technical and business stakeholders.

ERP & Business Central Leadership

Business Central (Dynamics) is the core system. You'll manage the relationship with the BC partner, drive optimization, support users, and lead future integration projects. Full Business Central training will be provided - we need someone who understands ERP concepts and can learn the platform, not necessarily a BC expert on day one.

Project Leadership

International systems integration projects are coming. You'll be leading these - scoping, planning, coordinating between sites, managing vendors, and delivering to timeline and budget. This is career-defining work for someone ready to step up.

Day-to-Day IT Management

Service delivery oversight, user support coordination, security and compliance awareness (working with the MSP on implementation), license management, vendor relationships, and acting as the safe pair of hands the business relies on.

Partnership with Finance Director

You'll work closely with the FD on technology decisions, budgets, investment cases, and ensuring IT serves business objectives rather than existing in isolation.

What You'll Bring

Infrastructure Foundation

You've come from an engineering or technical IT background. You understand networking, servers (physical and virtual), communications infrastructure - not because you'll be configuring switches, but because this knowledge means you can manage the MSP effectively, spot issues, and hold intelligent technical conversations.

ERP Experience

You've worked with ERP systems - Business Central/Dynamics is ideal but any ERP exposure works (SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, Sage). You understand how these systems underpin business operations and you're ready to go deeper.

Stakeholder Management

You can translate technical detail for non-technical audiences, manage expectations, build relationships with internal teams and external vendors, and operate as a business partner rather than just "IT support".

Project Capability

You've led projects - not necessarily massive transformation programmes, but you know how to scope work, manage timelines, coordinate multiple parties, and deliver to specification.

Readiness to Grow

This role will expand. The international projects are real. The Business Central work is substantial. You need to be someone who sees opportunity rather than risk in that expansion.

What Makes This Role Different

Immediate Impact - You're not waiting 12 months to do meaningful work. From week one you're managing critical relationships and systems.

International Scope - This isn't a single-site operation. You'll be working across global locations on systems integration projects that genuinely matter.

Career Trajectory - The role expansion isn't theoretical. The projects are budgeted. The Business Central training is committed. This is a platform for someone who wants to move from technical IT into strategic IT leadership.

Business Partnership - You'll work directly with the Finance Director and senior leadership. This isn't IT in the basement - it's IT at the table.

Technical Respect - Your infrastructure background matters. The business values technical credibility and you won't be expected to abandon that knowledge - you'll leverage it differently., For someone technical who wants to move into business-facing IT management, this role delivers immediately. For someone with ERP interest who wants to lead international projects, the pathway is clear. For someone who wants ownership without being thrown in unsupported, the structure exists.

This will keep even the most experienced IT Manager busy while offering genuine expansion for someone earlier in their career. The projects are real, the training is committed, and the business backing is there.

Do you have experience in Sage?, You've spent 5-10 years in IT roles with hands-on infrastructure exposure. You understand the technical landscape but you're ready to operate more strategically. You've had some ERP interaction - maybe supporting users, maybe involved in implementations, maybe managing system administration - and you want to make this your focus area.

You're comfortable managing third parties and holding them accountable. You can lead projects without needing your hand held. You communicate well with non-technical stakeholders. You see Business Central training and international systems integration work as genuine opportunity, not a step down.

Manufacturing or production environment experience is helpful but not essential. What matters is that you understand how IT serves business operations and you're ready to make that connection explicit.