Tower Lead (Support & Operations)

Job Summary

The Cloud Operations Manager is responsible for end-to-end delivery, governance, and continuous improvement of Cloud IaaS, PaaS and SaaS services including Server, Storage, Backup, Networking, Identity, Monitoring, BCP/DR and reporting. The role ensures service excellence, CSAT, service availability, reliability, security, cost optimization, automation, and stakeholder management aligned to contractual and business outcomes. This role acts as a bridge between technical engineering teams and business stakeholders, ensuring that cloud services scale effectively while meeting contractual Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and KPIs.

Key Responsibilities

• Public Cloud: Azure/AWS/GCP/OCI cloud IaaS, PaaS SaaS service operations.
• Compute & OS: Windows/Linux servers, Marketplace/Custom image build, OS hardening, Clusters & HA/DR, Patching, and lifecycle management.
• PaaS Services: App service, Functions, Logic App, APIM, AKS/EKS, Serverless, containers, etc. monitoring and management.

• Storage & Backup: Cloud Native storage operations for Blob/S3/Disks/EBS/ Azure files, EFS, S3 glacier/etc., backup/restore governance, replication, retention, and DR readiness.
• Networking: Cloud Native services (Virtual Network/ LB/ ELB/ Gateway/ Routing/ etc.) configuration & management, including coordination with other teams for connectivity of applications/services.
• Monitoring & Tooling: Cloud native monitoring, Alert hygiene & optimization, Availability, and Capacity/performance monitoring.
• ITSM & Governance: ITIL processes, CMDB/asset accuracy, Tagging compliance, Change governance, Audit/compliance support and Documentation (Runbook/SOPs).
• Vendors/OEMs: SOW adherence, Vendor coordination, service reviews, escalation management, and delivery assurance.
• Cost Optimization: Propose and drive Cost optimization initiatives to reduce cloud consumption cost for the customer. Track and report initiatives proposed and value delivered. Capture the initiatives in the Value portal.

Skill Requirements

• Ensures smooth and stable operations across cloud infrastructure tracks and SLA/KPI compliance.
• Drive ITIL processes (Incident, Problem, Change, Request, and Major Incident) with strong controls.
• Lead Major Incident Management, assisting with RCA, and preventive / corrective action closure.
• Ensures platform stability, availability, performance, and operational readiness (health checks, runbooks)
• Govern patching, vulnerability remediation, and configuration standardization across cloud infrastructure components.
• Maintain CMDB/asset accuracy, tagging compliance and ensure audit-ready evidence and documentation.
• Manage vendors/OEMs and track delivery performance through reviews and KPIs.

Governance & Stakeholder Management

• Acts with accountability of Cloud infrastructure services for client and internal leadership.
• Lead weekly/monthly service reviews, governance forums, and QBRs with clear minutes and action tracking.
• Publish data-driven reporting (SLA/KPI, Availability, MTTR, Incident trends, capacity/utilization, Patching/vulnerability compliance)
• Proactively manage risks, dependencies, escalations, and cross-tower coordination
• Drive capacity planning, demand forecasting, and cloud infrastructure roadmap inputs aligned to business growth and constraints.

Client & Account Management

• Build trusted advisor relationship with client stakeholders and align expectations to delivered outcomes.
• Translate business requirements into measurable cloud infrastructure service commitments and operational guardrails.
• Drive continual service improvement (CSI) and value-add initiatives (Cost optimization, automation, monitoring improvements, resiliency).
• Support account growth through service excellence, innovation proposals, and operational inputs for new scope transitions.
• Participate in audits, compliance reviews, and contract adherence activities; ensure timely submission of reports & closure of observations.

People Management & Capability Building

• Own resource planning, shift/roster coverage, onboarding, and role clarity across cloud teams
• Drive skill assessments, cross-skilling, certification plans, and succession planning for critical roles.
• Lead performance management, coaching/mentoring/feedback, and engagement actions to improve retention and productivity.

Establish engineering discipline: documentation standards, peer reviews, problem-solving culture, and operational excellence

Other Requirements

Automation, Transformation & Innovation

• Good understanding of AI/Gen AI concepts and identify and execute automation opportunities across cloud operations (PowerShell, Ansible, scripting, orchestration, Infrastructure-as-Code).
• Drive shift-left, self-service, and standard runbooks to reduce repeat incidents and improve MTTR.
• Improve monitoring and self-healing through alert tuning, event correlation, and proactive remediation.
• Track and report automation benefits (effort saved, defect reduction, faster provisioning, improved compliance).

Cost Optimization & Efficiency

• Drive cost optimization through Reservation & Savings Plan, license optimization/AHB, and Orphan resource clean-ups.
• Govern demand management and right-sizing (compute/storage/backup) while protecting performance and resiliency.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, and procurement planning with accurate utilization and lifecycle inputs.
• Improve resource productivity through standardization, automation, and elimination of non-value-add activities.

Compliance, Security & Risk Management

• Ensure alignment with InfoSec and compliance requirements (access controls, hardening baselines, logging, and evidence management).
• Govern patching and vulnerability remediation programs, coordinate with Security for risk acceptance and closure tracking.
• Support security incidents and drive containment, eradication, and lessons learned for Cloud services.
• Ensure DR/BCP readiness (backup success, restore testing, replication health, DR drills) and closure of gaps.
• Proactively manage operational risks through controls, audits, and preventive actions.

Required Experience & Skills

• 12+ Years of IT Industry or Relevant Experience including 4+ years of experience in managing Cloud Operations & Delivery with strong people and service delivery leadership, and 4+ years of hands-on experience on cloud.
• Strong functional knowledge across Cloud IaaS, PaaS, SaaS services including compute, storage, backup, monitoring, identity and networking (hands-on experience).
• Strong understanding of Security, and compliance in cloud environments.
• Proven experience with ITIL/ITSM processes, governance, and major incident/problem management.
• Experience in capacity planning, lifecycle management (EOL/EOS), DR/BCP readiness, and monitoring/observability practices.
• Client-facing leadership experience with effective communication, stakeholder management, and negotiation skills.
• Vendor/OEM management experience including KPI tracking and contract / SOW adherence.
• Certifications preferred: ITIL, Azure/AWS/GCP Cloud (Administrator/ Solution Architect), Project Management (PMP/Prince2), and OS certifications (e.g., Microsoft / RHEL).

Success Measures

• SLA/SLO adherence, service resilience, and improved availability of cloud resources & services.
• Reduction in repeat incidents through effective problem management and preventive actions.
• Improved MTTR and major incident governance effectiveness (RCA quality and action closure).
• Patch and vulnerability compliance, audit outcomes, and security baseline adherence.
• Automation outcomes: reduced manual effort, faster provisioning, improved monitoring signal-to-noise.
• Cost efficiency through Reservations, right-sizing, capacity optimization, orphan resource cleanup, and Auto scaling.
• Team capability maturity, certification progress, and retention/engagement improvement.