Department: Information Technology – GRC & Special Projects
Reporting Line: IT Executive – Governance, Risk, Compliance and Special Projects
Employment Type: Full time/Permanent
Location: Office-Edenvale

Role Purpose

The Cloud Services Manager is responsible for the oversight, governance, operational management, and service assurance of the organisation’s cloud environments, including Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365, and AWS across multiple tenants and business divisions.

The role is accountable for managing a service provider responsible for day-to-day cloud operations, ensuring services are delivered securely, reliably, cost-effectively, and in accordance with organisational standards, contractual obligations, and governance requirements.

The position combines cloud governance, vendor management, operational oversight, service delivery management, security and compliance coordination, financial oversight, and stakeholder engagement. The role also ensures effective licence management, optimisation of cloud consumption, and alignment of cloud services to business and operational objectives.

Key Responsibilities

1. Cloud Service Governance & Operational Oversight

• Oversee the operational performance of Azure, Microsoft 365, and AWS environments.
• Ensure cloud platforms meet agreed service availability, resilience, performance, and support expectations.
• Manage operational governance processes including incident, problem, change, and capacity management.
• Act as the senior escalation point for critical cloud-related operational issues and service disruptions.
• Ensure cloud environments remain stable, secure, scalable, and aligned to enterprise standards.
• Review and approve operational procedures, standards, and technical controls implemented by the service provider.

2. Managed Service Provider (MSP) Management

• Manage the external cloud managed service provider responsible for Azure, Microsoft 365, and AWS support and operations.
• Ensure delivery against contractual obligations, SLAs, KPIs, and operational commitments.
• Conduct regular operational, service review, and governance meetings with the provider.
• Monitor provider performance, issue resolution effectiveness, reporting quality, and customer service delivery.
• Escalate unresolved operational or contractual issues where necessary.
• Ensure appropriate resource capacity, technical capability, and support coverage is maintained by the provider.
• Validate that changes implemented by the provider comply with governance and security requirements.

3. Microsoft Azure Oversight

• Oversee Azure infrastructure, networking, storage, identity, backup, disaster recovery, and platform services.
• Ensure Azure landing zone, governance, security, and RBAC standards are maintained.
• Monitor Azure cost management, optimisation, and resource utilisation across divisions.
• Ensure appropriate monitoring, alerting, and operational visibility are maintained.
• Oversee Azure security posture management and remediation activities.

4. Microsoft 365 Oversight

• Oversee administration and governance of Microsoft 365 services including:
• Exchange Online
• SharePoint Online
• OneDrive
• Microsoft Teams
• Intune
• Entra ID (Azure AD)
• Power Platform
• Ensure tenant governance, lifecycle management, and configuration standards are maintained.
• Oversee implementation of identity and access management controls including MFA, Conditional Access, RBAC, and privileged access management.
• Ensure service health monitoring and operational reporting is maintained across all Microsoft 365 tenants.

5. AWS Governance & Oversight

• Oversee AWS operational management across business divisions.
• Ensure AWS environments adhere to approved security, architecture, and governance standards.
• Monitor AWS cost optimisation, usage trends, and operational risks.
• Ensure appropriate backup, disaster recovery, monitoring, and access management controls are implemented.

6. Licence & Financial Management

• Manage software licensing across Microsoft 365, Azure and Dynamics 365.
• Ensure licence allocations are optimised and aligned to business requirements.
• Review and approve licence consumption reporting and optimisation recommendations.
• Monitor cloud operational expenditure and consumption trends across divisions.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning for cloud services.
• Identify opportunities for cost optimisation and efficiency improvements.

7. Security, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure cloud platforms comply with organisational security policies, standards, and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee implementation of least privilege access principles and segregation of duties.
• Coordinate cloud-related audit activities and remediation initiatives.
• Ensure security monitoring, vulnerability remediation, and compliance reporting are performed effectively.
• Work with Information Security and Risk teams to address identified cloud risks and vulnerabilities.
• Ensure cloud security posture aligns with Microsoft and AWS best practices.

8. Reporting & Service Visibility

• Produce and present regular operational and governance reports to IT leadership and business stakeholders.
• Report on:
• Service availability and performance
• Incidents and problem trends
• Security and compliance posture
• Cloud costs and optimisation
• Licence utilisation
• SLA and KPI performance
• Risks and remediation activities
• Ensure reporting is accurate, timely, and suitable for executive and audit review.

9. Stakeholder & Business Engagement

• Engage with multiple business divisions to understand operational requirements and service expectations.
• Act as the primary relationship manager for cloud operational services.
• Ensure cloud services support business objectives and operational priorities.
• Coordinate service improvement initiatives across divisions and service providers.

10. Documentation, Standards & Continuous Improvement

• Maintain cloud governance documentation, standards, operational procedures, and service documentation.
• Ensure operational runbooks and support processes are maintained by the service provider.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives relating to cloud operations, governance, automation, and optimisation.
• Promote operational maturity and standardisation across cloud platforms.

Required Skills & Competencies

• Strong understanding of Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365, and AWS environments.
• Strong vendor and managed service provider management experience.
• Experience managing multi-tenant cloud environments.
• Strong understanding of cloud governance, security, identity management, and compliance.
• Experience with cloud licensing models and optimisation.
• Strong financial and cost management capability for cloud platforms.
• Knowledge of IT service management processes (Incident, Change, Problem, SLA management).
• Strong stakeholder engagement and communication skills.
• Strong analytical, reporting, and problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to operate effectively across technical and business teams.

Qualifications & Experience

• Relevant IT Degree or Diploma.
• Minimum 5–8 years’ experience in enterprise cloud operations or cloud infrastructure roles.
• Minimum 3 years’ experience managing cloud service providers or operational support teams.
• Proven experience supporting enterprise Azure, Microsoft 365, and AWS environments.
• Experience managing cloud licensing and cost optimisation initiatives.
• Experience working in a governance-driven enterprise environment is advantageous.

Preferred Certifications

• Microsoft Azure certifications:
• AZ-104 – Azure Administrator Associate
• Microsoft 365 certifications:
• Associate certification or higher
• ITIL Foundation or higher
• Security certifications advantageous (SC-300, SC-200, or equivalent)