Technical Delivery Manager - Database

Role overview:

We are seeking a Technical Delivery Manager - Database to own the delivery, service quality and day-to-day running of Planet's database estate across Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle and MySQL, spanning on-premise, Azure and AWS platforms within a large PCI DSS scope. This is a hands-on delivery and service management role rather than a line-management one: the database engineering capacity sits with our managed service partner, and your job is to make that engine deliver. You will be the single point of accountability for database work landing safely and on time - owning the change and maintenance calendar, driving the partner's DBA pods through the ticket and escalation queues, chairing the technical calls where competing priorities get resolved, and being the person the business comes to when a database problem needs an owner. Alongside the run, you will drive a live cost-optimisation agenda and carry the database evidence for PCI DSS and internal audit. The role reports to the Senior Director - DWP & Infrastructure Services.

What you will do:

• Database service delivery - Own end-to-end delivery of database work across the estate: changes, migrations, patching, upgrades and maintenance, each properly scoped, scheduled, communicated and completed without surprises to the business.

• Demand & ticket ownership - Act as day-to-day owner of the database ticket queue: triage incoming demand, set priority, chase progress, unblock the engineers doing the work, and keep requesters informed on where their request stands.

• Change & maintenance planning - Run the database change and maintenance calendar, taking work through CAB and the standard-change process, and coordinating downtime windows with application owners and affected user communities well in advance.

• Incident & escalation ownership - Serve as escalation point for database incidents and problems; drive them to resolution across teams and vendors, establish genuine root cause, and turn the outcome into a permanent fix or a standard.

• Managed service partner governance - Direct and hold to account the partner's DBA pods on Planet's behalf, working daily with their project managers, architects and DBAs to set priorities, agree approach and keep delivery moving; govern service quality against contracted SLAs, challenge rejected or stalled tickets, and manage scope boundaries.

• Cost optimisation & rationalisation - Own a standing cost-reduction agenda for the estate: disk and storage right-sizing, decommissioning unused databases, and powering off redundant servers; quantify the saving, assess the risk, and sequence the change so it actually lands.

• Reliability, HA & DR - Assure backup, recovery, high availability and disaster recovery arrangements across the estate are tested, evidenced, and genuinely meet agreed RTO and RPO commitments.

• Security & compliance - Own the database contribution to PCI DSS compliance and internal audit (encryption, access control, auditing, segregation of duties); govern patching and vulnerability remediation, and keep runbooks, SOPs and DR playbooks accurate and audit-ready.

• Technical ownership & stakeholders - Provide credible hands-on technical judgement on database design, performance and capacity; drive standardisation and automation of repeatable tasks; report into weekly and monthly governance forums, and partner with application, infrastructure, security and change teams so database considerations are built into projects early.

Who you are:

• Proven experience in a technical delivery, service delivery or database management role, accountable for database outcomes delivered largely through third-party or offshore teams.
• Strong hands-on background as a DBA or database engineer, with current working knowledge of Microsoft SQL Server and exposure to Oracle and MySQL across on-premise and cloud platforms.
• Demonstrable track record managing a managed service provider or outsourced tower - holding a vendor to SLAs, challenging performance, and driving delivery without direct line authority.
• Solid grounding in ITIL-aligned service management: incident, problem and change management, CAB, and structured maintenance and release scheduling.
• Experience owning backup, recovery, HA and DR arrangements and evidencing them against RTO and RPO commitments.
• Practical experience of infrastructure cost optimisation - storage right-sizing, decommissioning and consumption reduction - with the ability to quantify and defend the saving.
• Working knowledge of database security and regulatory compliance, ideally PCI DSS (or comparable such as SOC 2 / ISO 27001), and comfort producing evidence for formal audit.
• Excellent stakeholder management and written communication, with the confidence to chair technical calls, resolve competing priorities and keep senior stakeholders clearly informed.
• Highly organised and self-directed, able to hold many concurrent workstreams and keep every one of them moving.
• Payments / financial services background and familiarity with PCI DSS audit cycles (desirable).
• Experience of a large-scale migration or transformation programme, or of transitioning services between managed service providers (desirable).
• Exposure to PostgreSQL, NoSQL and modern data platforms (Cosmos DB, DynamoDB, MongoDB), and familiarity with Jira, Confluence and enterprise ITSM tooling (desirable).
• Relevant certifications such as Microsoft Azure Database Administrator, AWS Database Specialty, Oracle OCP, ITIL or PRINCE2, or a degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience (desirable).

Why Planet:

Planet is an equal opportunity employer where diversity is valued, and all employment is decided based on qualifications, merit, and business need.

Come and grow your career in the most exciting, fast paced technology market, with a business that delivers feel-good connected commerce.

We would love to hear from you – Apply now.