• 07/07/26
• North West, Liverpool
• £140k - 160k per year
• Permanent
• Senior IT Appointments
• Full time

Director of Operational Technology

Critical National Infrastructure | UK-based

A major UK infrastructure operator is entering a defining phase of transformation — significant capital investment, ambitious growth plans, and technology positioned as central to how it operates, scales and competes.

I'm working with them to find a Director of Operational Technology to lead this agenda. This is not a steady-state role. It's a build, transform and modernise mandate across a complex, multi-site, safety-critical environment.

Reporting directly to the CTIO, you'll define and deliver the strategy underpinning safe, resilient and scalable operations — tackling legacy complexity, rising cyber risk, and the need for greater standardisation across the group.

Over the first 18–24 months you'll be accountable for:

• Establishing a group-wide OT strategy, architecture and standards baseline across multiple sites
• Driving IT/OT convergence for greater operational visibility, efficiency and control
• Leading a step-change in OT cyber resilience, aligned to frameworks such as IEC 62443
• Modernising a diverse, legacy OT estate and reducing operational/safety risk
• Building and scaling a high-performing OT function supporting 24/7 operations
• Influencing multi-year investment decisions and a prioritised transformation roadmap

What we're looking for:

• Experience leading OT (or OT/IT) in a multi-site, safety-critical environment — infrastructure, energy, utilities, manufacturing, transport or similar
• A track record driving OT transformation, including estate modernisation and IT/OT convergence
• Proven experience improving OT cyber posture in regulated or high-risk environments
• Strong grounding in OT architectures, industrial networks and infrastructure platforms
• Credibility operating at Executive level, influencing investment and strategic direction
• Comfort stepping into ambiguity and legacy complexity, bringing structure, pace and direction

A highly competitive executive package is on offer.