IT Change and Release Manager

From this autumn, Barnett Waddingham will become Howden, bringing our people together as one and creating a more connected approach to retirement, benefits and risk. As you explore opportunities with us, you will see more of Howden s name and expertise, reflecting broader capability for our clients and offering our people greater opportunities to grow, connect and develop.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Change and Release Manager to join our IT team on a hybrid basis. This role can be based at either of our Amersham, Cheltenham, Birmingham, Liverpool or Leeds offices.

Interviews will be held w/c 3rd August and 24th August.

The Change and Release Manager is responsible for ensuring that technology changes and releases are planned, assessed, authorised, coordinated, implemented, and reviewed in a controlled and effective manner. The role works closely with technical teams, service owners, business stakeholders, suppliers, and governance forums to minimise risk whilst enabling the successful delivery of change.

Responsibilities

• Own and continuously improve the Change and Release Management processes, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives, governance requirements, and industry best practice.
• Govern the end-to-end lifecycle of technology changes and releases, including assessment, planning, approval, deployment, validation, and closure.
• Chair and facilitate Change Advisory Board (CAB) meetings, ensuring risks, impacts, dependencies, and scheduling conflicts are appropriately reviewed and managed.
• Maintain the Forward Schedule of Change and Release Schedule, coordinating activities across internal teams, suppliers, and business stakeholders to ensure successful delivery outcomes.
• Ensure changes and releases are appropriately documented, tested, approved, communicated, and supported by implementation, rollback, and release readiness plans.
• Facilitate Post Implementation Reviews (PIRs), monitor compliance with Change and Release Management standards, and drive continuous improvement through reporting, analysis, and lessons learned.
• Collaborate with Technology, Security, Service Delivery, and business teams to improve service stability, delivery effectiveness, and compliance with audit and regulatory requirements. We would love to hear from you if you have

• Experience in Change Management, Release Management, or IT Service Management within a technology-focused environment.
• Experience working with a broad range of stakeholders, suppliers, and technical teams.
• Strong understanding of change governance, risk management, and service delivery principles.
• ITIL Foundation certification (or equivalent) is desirable.
• Relevant experience may be considered in place of formal qualifications.
• Where not already held, the successful candidate will be expected to achieve ITIL Foundation certification within 12 months of appointment.
• Good understanding of modern cloud hosting, deployment, and release technologies, including CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code, and cloud-based platforms.
• Ability to engage effectively with technical teams to assess deployment approaches, release risks, dependencies, rollback strategies, and operational readiness.

• Competitive discretionary annual bonus
• Generous pension scheme
• Core benefits for you including private medical cover, life assurance, group income protection, and up to 30 days holiday per year with holiday trading
• A comprehensive range of voluntary benefits to suit you (and your family) including an electric car leasing scheme, tech scheme, cycle to work scheme, dental cover, healthcare cash plan, health assessments, critical illness cover, Sports Allowance we pay up to 50% of your gym/sports membership (up to £50 pm), travel insurance, paid volunteering, and a broad range of retailer discounts