Job Title: Senior Operations Manager – Centre Operations

Salary: £45,100 - £60,400 per annum

Location: Triangle Building, Cambridge, United Kingdom 

Contract: 12 month fixed-term contract

Hours: Full time 35 hours per week

Are you an experienced operational leader who thrives in complex, fast-changing environments?

Cambridge University Press & Assessment, a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation and a proud part of the University of Cambridge, is looking for an experienced Senior Operations Manager to join our Centre Operations team on a 12-month fixed-term contract.

This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in the evolution of Centre Operations as we continue our journey towards becoming a strategic operational function that delivers an excellent centre experience, drives continuous improvement, supports product change, and develops the capabilities needed for the future of IELTS operations.

Working at the heart of our global IELTS operation, you will provide leadership across a diverse range of operational activities while supporting delivery of key strategic initiatives, including operational readiness for system and product changes, process improvement programmes, and the transformation of Centre Operations into a more integrated, data-driven function.
 
About the role  

As Senior Operations Manager, you will lead operational delivery while supporting the implementation of strategic priorities across Centre Operations. You will work closely with operational teams, project teams, stakeholders, our IELTS partners and senior leaders to ensure operational excellence is maintained while significant change is successfully implemented.

You will help shape how Centre Operations supports centres and test takers globally by improving processes, strengthening standards and compliance, enhancing operational readiness, and building organisational capability.

The role requires a leader who can balance day-to-day operational management with strategic thinking, ensuring that operational performance, customer experience and transformation objectives are delivered together.

Key responsibilities include:

• Lead Centre Operations activities and delivery.
• Support delivery of strategic priorities and change programmes.
• Drive process improvement and operational efficiency.
• Identify opportunities for automation and standardisation.
• Support operational readiness for new products and systems.
• Oversee operational planning, performance and risk management.
• Use data and insight to drive better decision-making.
• Maintain high standards of quality, compliance and governance.
• Build strong relationships across Operations and IELTS.
• Support the successful adoption of business change.
• Strengthen capability, knowledge sharing and best practice.
• Lead, coach and develop team members.

This position has been classified as a hybrid role, requiring the successful candidate to spend approximately 40-60% of their time collaborating face-to-face at their designated office location.

About you

You are an experienced operational leader with a proven ability to manage complex operational environments while successfully delivering business change.

You combine strong operational management skills with strategic thinking and are able to translate organisational objectives into practical actions and measurable outcomes. You are comfortable working across multiple priorities, influencing stakeholders, and leading through ambiguity.

You will be able to evidence: 

• Experience leading an operational team, function or service within a complex organisation, with responsibility for planning, performance and delivery.
• Experience delivering operational improvements, process changes or service enhancements that achieved measurable outcomes
• Experience building effective relationships and influencing stakeholders across teams, functions or external organisations
• Experience using operational data, insight or performance measures to inform decisions and improve outcomes
• Experience identifying operational issues, assessing options and implementing effective solutions
• Experience leading, developing and supporting teams, including through periods of change
• Experience working collaboratively across multiple stakeholders to achieve shared objectives
• Evidence of delivering operational objectives, projects or improvements within agreed timescales and priorities

To make your application even stronger, you may also be able to evidence the following desirable experience: 

• Experience working within education, assessment or another regulated operational environment.
• Experience supporting or leading significant business, operational or organisational change initiatives.
• Experience delivering automation, standardisation or process optimisation initiatives.
• Experience working with international stakeholders, partners or suppliers.
• Experience of assessment delivery, testing operations or knowledge of IELTS-related activities.
• Experience translating strategic objectives into operational plans, activities and deliverables.

This role offers a unique opportunity to make a significant impact during a critical period for Centre Operations. You will help shape how we serve centres and test takers globally while contributing to major operational and transformational initiatives that will influence the future of IELTS delivery.

Working alongside a highly experienced and collaborative team, you will have the opportunity to lead meaningful change, broaden your leadership experience and contribute directly to our strategic ambitions.

We are a Disability Confident (DC) employer that is committed to equality and inclusion ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to all. The DC scheme's Offer of an Interview commitment applies to applicants who opt in, and disclose a disability or a long-term health condition, and best meet the minimum criteria for the role. In instances where interviewing all qualifying candidates is not practicable, we prioritise those who best meet the minimum criteria, as we would for applicants who do not have a disability or long-term health condition.

Rewards and benefits 

We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including: 
 

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays 
• Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance  
• Discretionary annual bonus  
• Group personal pension scheme 
• Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary  
• Green travel schemes  

Ready to pursue your potential? Apply now. 

We aim to support candidates by making our interview process clear and transparent. The closing date for all applications will be 18^th August 2026. We will review applications on an ongoing basis, and shortlisted candidates can expect interviews to take place w/c 24^th August 2026.  

If you are shortlisted and progressed through the stages, you can expect: 

• Face to Face interviews
• A role related task

If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process due to a disability or a long-term health condition, there will be an opportunity for you to inform us via the online application form. We will do our best to accommodate your needs. 

Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.

We are committed to an equitable recruitment process. As such, applications must be submitted via our official online application procedure. Please refrain from sending your CV directly to our recruiters. If you experience technical difficulties or require additional support with submitting your online application, contact the Recruiter. 

Why join us 

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You will belong to a collaborative team that is exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it is safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background. 

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.