This occupation is found in small, medium, large, and multinational organisations in private, public and third sectors across all areas of the economy.
Operations managers undertake leadership and management duties with teams and senior managers where there is a requirement to ensure that teams carry out their role to meet organisational goals. They are a key component of all types of business model where there is an operational area or department with a workforce to lead, manage and support.
The broad purpose of the occupation is a leadership role, with operational and project responsibilities. An operations manager will have responsibility for managing individuals or a team. They provide direction, instructions, and guidance to ensure the achievement of set goals. They are vital for the smooth functioning of all departments in any organisation and are often responsible for ensuring their function is correctly administered and maintained in line with legislation and the organisation’s policies and procedures. Operations managers will provide clear, and inclusive leadership and direction relating to their area of responsibility within an organisation. Typically, this involves setting, managing, and monitoring achievement of core objectives that are aligned to the overall strategic objectives of their organisation. In a smaller organisation they are also likely to contribute to the execution and achievement of the strategic objectives.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with their colleagues from other internal departments such as operational functions, human resources, finance, legal, IT, sales and marketing, and project groups. Operations managers also interact with external stakeholders such as customers, clients, or suppliers. They may work in varied environments including in an office, onsite, or remotely and demonstrate a high level of flexibility and adaptability to meet the needs of the organisation.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for leading and managing their operational function which includes accountability for developing team members, managing projects, planning, and reviewing workloads and resources, delivering operational plans, resolving problems, and building relationships internally and externally.
An operations manager may work as part of a network or in a team setting. They work within agreed budgets and available resources and report to senior leaders. They will be responsible for decision-making, and will guide or influence the decisions of others, including business continuity principles, collecting, and interpreting data to find trends, analysing resources, and identifying ways to improve efficiencies.
Operations managers will understand how their role supports the wider organisation structure. They will apply codes of practice, legislation, and regulations in respect of their organisation’s areas of operation. This will apply not only to legal and ethical responsibilities, but will also include equity, diversity and inclusion, health and safety, and the sustainability impacts of the organisation.
