Head of IT - Southampton

Principal IT are working with a well-known and industry leading MSP who provide IT services to businesses that are looking for an experienced head of IT to join their team. This is a hands-on leadership role, responsible for overseeing all aspects of infrastructure, cybersecurity, networking, and business systems, while managing a talented in-house IT team. You'll also play a key role in the organisation's roadmap to AI implementation, ensuring that IT strategy and operations are aligned with wider business objectives.

The Role

As Head of IT, you'll be responsible for the strategic direction, management, and delivery of IT services across the business.

You'll ensure the security, resilience, and efficiency of systems while developing the team and driving continuous improvement across technology functions.

Core Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Escalation

• Act as the highest technical escalation point for the service desk and field engineers
• Troubleshoot complex issues across networking, cloud, security, and endpoint systems
• Provide guidance on best practices, architecture decisions, and solution design
• Mentor engineers and support their technical development

Project Delivery & Technical Implementation

• Lead technical projects: migrations, deployments, upgrades, cloud transitions
• Scope and design solutions in collaboration with account managers
• Ensure projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to technical standards

Security & Compliance

• Oversee implementation of security tools (EDR, MFA, XDR, backup, etc.)
• Maintain compliance with frameworks (Cyber Essentials, ISO, NIST)
• Conduct risk assessments and recommend improvements

Client Engagement

• Act as a trusted technical advisor for key clients
• Attend technical review meetings and present environment health insights
• Translate technical concepts into business-focused recommendations

Process & Workflow Improvement

• Develop and refine SOPs, runbooks, and escalation workflows
• Improve documentation quality and ensure knowledge is shared
• Identify opportunities for automation and efficiency gains

We're looking for a proven IT leader ideally within the MSP space who can combine technical credibility with strong people management and strategic thinking.

Technical Skills

• Strong understanding of Microsoft 365, Azure AD/Entra, Intune, and Windows and network environments
• Networking fundamentals (VLANs, firewalls, routing, VPNs)
• Backup/BCDR technologies
• Endpoint security and XDR/EDR platforms
• Virtualization (Hyper-V, VMware)
• Scripting/automation (PowerShell preferred)

Leadership & Soft Skills

• Excellent communication and client-facing presence
• Ability to mentor and upskill junior engineers
• Strong problem-solving and analytical thinking
• Calm under pressure, especially during incidents
• Ability to balance technical depth with business context

Essential experience:

• Previous experience in a CTO, Head of IT, IT Manager, or Senior IT Leadership
• Strong background in infrastructure, networking, and cyber security (Fortinet).
• Experience in managing and leading system integrations or migrations.
• Knowledge of Cyber Essentials + 27001/9001 and wider security best practices.
• Strong stakeholder management and leadership skills, with the ability to operate effectively at all levels of the business.

If successful our client is offering a salary of up to £65,000, favourable holiday allowance, company bonus scheme, hybrid working & more.