Deployment and Cutover Manager

Deployment & Cutover Manager up to 12 months - potential for extension Competitive Day Rate Location - Any HMRC Regional Centre Function Unity ProgrammeOrganisational Readiness Reports To Organisational Readiness DD Direct Reports May include deployment planners, analysts and support resources. Role purpose The Deployment & Cutover Manager will work with the programme's Technical Delivery Partner, programme teams and stakeholders to deliver a fully integrated deployment approach. This leadership role will ensure that all technical, data, business and operational activities required for go-live are planned, rehearsed, controlled and successfully executed. You will be joining the programme at an exciting time, enabling the programme to move from design and build into a successful deployment. Key accountabilities

• Work with Technical Delivery Partner to ensure the development and delivery of a governed deployment strategy and integrated technology and cutover plan.
• Work with the Technical Delivery Partner to design and deliver cutover plans informed by operational reality, where technical and delivery risks and trade-offs are visible and accepted
• Work with the business SMEs to define cutover approach for each of the business processes in scope defining the approach, timing and ramp up and ramp down for each of the individual processes
• Support the definition of interim ways of working during the cutover period which may include stop/start/continue activities and associated communication plans across the Shared Service function and departments
• Ensure all cutover and deployment activities are owned, timetabled and effectively co-ordinated for go-live.
• Establish cutover and deployment governance, reporting cadence, readiness checkpoints and escalation routes
• Ensure dependencies, risks, issues and actions are actively managed across all delivery partners and business areas.
• Lead deployment readiness assessment and prepare evidence-based go/no-go recommendations.
• Work with Readiness Leads to ensure business areas, shared services and support teams are prepared for live operation.
• Work with Service Readiness and Service Transition Leads to ensure hypercare mobilisation and transition into business-as-usual support.
• Provide clear leadership during high-pressure deployment, cutover and post-go-live periods. Person specification Knowledge
• Practitioner level understanding of deployment, cutover, service transition and operational readiness
• Working level knowledge of readiness principles, including process adoption, role mapping, data migration, security and controls, user training and local readiness sign-off.
• Working level understanding of HR, payroll, finance or procurement processes as a service. Skill
• Practitioner level programme and delivery management skills able to convert deployment and cutover strategy into executable operational activity.
• Expert level stakeholder engagement and management skills to build organisational confidence for cutover and go-live.
• Practitioner level risk, issue and dependency management tools and techniques leading to successful cutover and go-live.
• Working level reporting, assurance and governance techniques.
• Expert communication skills, able to communicate in an open and transparent way about trade-offs and risk acceptance with teams and stakeholders Essential Criteria
• Practitioner level experience of working with Technical Delivery Partners/System Integrators to deliver a successful deployment and cutover of a large-scale enterprise platform e.g. SAP, Oracle
• Practitioner level experience of co-ordinating and delivering go-live readiness, cutover preparation, hypercare and transition to live service.
• Practitioner level experience of programme delivery disciplines, including planning, dependency management, risk and issue management, evidenced-based go o-go decisions.
• Practitioner level experience of managing complex stakeholder environments. Desirable Criteria PRINCE2 Practitioner/Agile Project Management Practitioner/APM Registered Project Professional/Project Leadership