Head of operations jobs · permanent, interim and fractional

Head of operations jobs: what the seat is, and what our board lists

A head of operations owns how the business runs from week to week: the processes and systems, the operations team, suppliers and service levels, and the operating budget. In a scale-up it can be the first senior operations hire, reporting to a founder. In a larger company it sits under an operations director or COO and runs one function, region or site.

The title is used unevenly. Some employers give it to the top operations role; others use it for the level between operations manager and director. The Institute of Directors’ operations director profile, overseeing all operational aspects of company strategy and reporting operations information to the board, describes the level above. For the full definition of the seat, see what does a head of operations do.

What the board below lists

The board shows the roles on our board for this seat, senior operations roles including COO and operations director, permanent roles first where the posting says full-time. Each card says how the employer advertised the role: permanent, interim or fractional. If the seat has nothing current, the board says so and shows the nearest roles, labelled as what they are. Operations manager roles are not listed here. We recruit permanent, interim, fractional and part-time operations leaders.

Head of operations vacancies reading the title

Head of operations vacancies are advertised under several titles: head of operations, head of ops, operations lead, and in some companies director of operations for the same work. Search the short and long forms. Then read three things in the advert: who the seat reports to, what budget and headcount it owns, and whether it covers one site or function or the whole operation.

Some scale-ups hire a head of operations as the first senior operations person, with a broad brief: processes, tools, suppliers and the support team. Larger companies use the title for one function or region beneath an operations director. The Health and Safety Executive’s Leading health and safety at work applies to directors, officers and their equivalents; in many operations seats the safety agenda sits with you whatever the title.

The interview tests what you have run (the team, the budget, the service levels), what you changed and the numbers that moved, and how you work with the founder or the chief executive.

How to get a head of operations job the route through operations management

No single qualification is required; the record matters most. The usual route runs through operations manager roles. Skills England’s operations manager standard describes that level: leading teams, managing projects, planning workloads and resources, and delivering operational plans in line with the organisation’s strategy.

The Chartered Management Institute’s Level 5 Management and Leadership qualifications are designed for managers at operations, division, departmental or specialist level who report to a senior manager or business owner. Its qualification ladder runs on to senior, director and CEO level, and Chartered Manager status, backed by a Royal Charter, recognises experienced managers.

Show a process you rebuilt, a supplier or system change you led, and a cost or service number you moved. Interim and fractional roles are a route in as well. See how to become a fractional executive.

If you take an interim or fractional role through your own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply; a medium or large client decides the status, based on how the engagement runs in practice.