Operations Manager – Instrumentation & Controls
Glasgow
Salary - £55,000 - £75,000 plus benefits
Company
Ecosse Professional Services is partnering with a leading processing, energy and utilities Group to appoint an Operations Manager. This is a critical, newly created role sitting on the Senior Leadership Team alongside the Managing Director, Sales Director and Finance Director.
The Operations Manager will own the operational backbone of the Group – spanning instrumentation services, customer success, engineering, supply chain, warehouse, in‑house assembly and software delivery.
Job Overview
We are seeking an experienced operations leader, comfortable in a technical, field‑based services environment (instrumentation, controls, utilities, oil & gas, distilling or similar). You will bring structure, rigour and continuous improvement to operations while maintaining the entrepreneurial, customer‑focused culture that has driven growth to date.
You will manage multi‑site teams, drive KPI‑led performance, ensure safe, high‑quality service delivery, and optimise cost and margin across service and manufacturing activities.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Leadership
• Lead day‑to‑day operations across Instrumentation Services, Customer Success, Engineering & Software, Warehouse & In‑house Assembly, and Supply Chain.
• Develop and execute the Group’s operational strategy in collaboration with the SLT.
• Own and improve end‑to‑end workflows from order intake through delivery, calibration and customer handover.
• Champion full utilisation of the ERP system across all operational functions.
• Drive efficiency across all facilities to support customer projects and growth.
Service Delivery & Quality
• Ensure high on‑time delivery and first‑time‑right completion rates across field service and in‑house calibration.
• Monitor and improve utilisation, chargeable hours, repeat visit rates and van stock management.
• Oversee QHSE compliance and foster a culture of safety, quality and continuous improvement.
• Manage turnaround times from meter booking‑in through to shipment.
People & Team Management
• Lead and develop a multi‑disciplinary team of 25+ staff, including service engineers, supply chain coordinators, warehouse staff and software developers across several UK sites.
• Build capability, support succession planning and ensure clear accountability at all levels.
• Foster a high‑performance, engaged team culture in line with Group values.
Commercial & Financial Oversight
• Take ownership of operational cost management and margin delivery for service and manufacturing.
• Work with Finance to contribute to dashboards, reporting and margin analysis.
• Identify and implement efficiency improvements that reduce cost and improve customer outcomes.
• Provide operational insight to support commercial decision‑making by the Sales Director and MD.
Qualifications & Experience
• Proven track record as an Operations Manager/Director in technical services, instrumentation, controls, field engineering or a similar environment.
• Strong people leadership experience managing large, diverse, multi‑site operational teams.
• Experienced in KPI‑based performance management, operational reporting and ERP‑driven operations (Odoo or similar desirable).
• Excellent commercial acumen and understanding of service margin management.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple concurrent workstreams.
• Customer‑centric mindset with a drive to deliver excellent service outcomes.
• Familiarity with QHSE frameworks; experience with ISO 27001, data security, cloud‑based services, IoT, smart metering or data analytics environments is advantageous.
• Experience within a scaling SME or Group structure with multiple business units is desirable.