Summary
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
Timeline
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ALTHAF HUSSAIN

IT Senior Service Delivery Manager
Bangalore

Summary

Dynamic Senior IT Service Delivery Leader with over 25 years of global experience in optimizing end-to-end IT operations, application support, and major incident management across diverse sectors, including Banking, Capital Markets, FinTech, Retail, Oil & Gas, Healthcare, and Industrial. Proven track record in managing mission-critical platforms such as Finacle Core Banking and Oracle ERP in both hybrid cloud and on-premises environments, consistently achieving over 99.9% SLA adherence through ITIL-aligned practices. Expertise in root cause analysis, change management, and automation implementation has driven significant improvements in operational efficiency and incident reduction. Recognized for building high-performing teams and leading digital transformation initiatives that modernize legacy operations while enhancing service resilience through proactive monitoring strategies.

Work History

IT Senior Manager Service Systems & Operations

TESCO
12.2020 - Current
  • Senior IT leader responsible for end-to-end service delivery and operations of mission-critical enterprise systems (Oracle ERP, EPM, and Findur), driving operational excellence, ITSM maturity, major incident response, and service reliability across global teams. Partnered with business and technology stakeholders to align IT strategy with organizational goals, deliver a superior customer experience, and ensure compliance with SOX and IT policy frameworks.
  • Directed 24/7 operations for business-critical applications supporting finance, trading, and enterprise resource planning, ensuring system availability, performance, and business continuity.
  • Defined and executed strategic roadmaps for service operations, integrating ITIL best practices, automation (RPA/ITPA), and continuous improvement methodologies to enhance efficiency and reduce costs.
  • Managed the major incident lifecycle (P1/P2), led root cause analysis (RCA), and implemented corrective and preventive actions to minimize downtime and mitigate risk.
  • Oversaw ITSM process governance (Incident, Problem, Change, Knowledge), ensuring SLA/KPI compliance, and ITIL v4-aligned operational maturity.
  • Collaborated with internal business units, technology teams, and third-party vendors to ensure transparent communication, service alignment, and operational excellence.
  • Championed SOX compliance, policy adherence, and regulatory governance across all IT operational functions.
  • Built, mentored, and led geographically distributed support teams, fostering a high-performance, customer-focused culture.
  • Achievements:
  • Reduced Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR) by 30% through proactive monitoring, automation, and streamlined incident response frameworks.
  • Achieved 99.95%+ application availability across Oracle ERP, EPM, and Findur platforms by enforcing preventive maintenance and resilient architecture strategies.
  • Exceeded SLA targets consistently over a 24-month period, improving service quality scores, and user satisfaction by over 25%.

IT Application Support / Major Incident Manager

Accenture India
07.2017 - 12.2020
  • Delivered end-to-end application managed services for mission-critical trading platforms across global sites (UK/US), ensuring 24/7 service continuity, and SLA compliance.
  • Managed major, critical incidents for high-availability business applications, leading cross-functional resolution efforts, and ensuring minimal business disruption.
  • Led a globally distributed team within a Follow-the-Sun model, optimizing resource utilization, team productivity, and seamless handovers across time zones.
  • Oversaw the complete application support lifecycle—requirements gathering, solution design, budgeting, risk mitigation, quality control, stakeholder reporting, and service delivery governance.
  • Defined, implemented, and matured ITIL-aligned incident, change, and problem management frameworks, driving operational excellence, and compliance.
  • Spearheaded the setup and operation of the.
  • Operational Command Center (OCC), standardizing SOPs, enhancing proactive monitoring through automation, and facilitating client (internal/external) visits.
  • Built strong relationships with strategic vendors, ensuring efficient escalation management, performance tracking, and contract alignment with SLAs and KPIs.
  • Achievements:
  • Reduced Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR) by 35% through enhanced incident response frameworks, and streamlined escalation pathways.
  • Improved proactive incident detection by 40% by implementing automation scripts within the OCC, enhancing monitoring efficiency and application stability.
  • Awarded the 'Accenture Outstanding Recovery Leads Award' for leadership during major incident recovery, achieving service restoration ahead of SLA timelines.
  • Received the Accenture FY19 Q1 Outperform Award (OPA) for surpassing performance benchmarks across service delivery and operational KPIs.
  • Earned client recognition from Shell for establishing robust, repeatable incident management processes that exceeded industry standards.
  • Developed and delivered targeted training programs on client-specific ITSM processes, boosting team compliance, process maturity, and support consistency.

Critical Incident / Business Recovery Manager

IBM
07.2016 - 05.2017
  • Led end-to-end resolution of high-impact IT incidents across applications, Telco, Network, and Facilities infrastructure, ensuring minimal disruption to critical healthcare operations.
  • Directed the Incident Management Team to execute swift recovery strategies, drive root cause analysis, and restore services within SLA-defined timeframes.
  • Championed adherence to ITIL v3/v4 best practices.
  • Embedding consistent incident lifecycle governance, from detection to post-mortem analysis.
  • Coordinated across cross-functional support teams, third-party vendors, and client leadership to manage escalations and deliver real-time service restoration.
  • Developed and enforced standardized incident documentation, RCA templates, and escalation matrices to enhance visibility, knowledge sharing, and audit readiness.
  • Achievements:
  • Successfully managed over 50+ major incidents, reducing mean time to resolution (MTTR) by 35%, and consistently meeting or exceeding 99.9% service availability targets
  • .
  • Played a pivotal role in restoring mission-critical systems during multiple P1 incidents, directly supporting the delivery of uninterrupted healthcare services across regions.
  • Developed and implemented an improved critical incident communication model.
  • Reducing stakeholder escalations by 40% and improving response transparency.
  • Received the prestigious IBM ACE Desktop Award from senior leadership for exemplary performance in incident command and operational recovery.
  • Led post-incident reviews and initiated service improvement plans, eliminating the recurrence of high-priority incidents by addressing systemic issues and process gaps.
  • Enabled rapid restoration of business continuity for a multi-billion-dollar healthcare client, directly supporting clinical systems, patient portals, and infrastructure services.
  • Ensured 24/7 operational readiness through proactive recovery action planning, scenario-based testing, and alignment with disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity (BCP) standards.
  • Strengthened IBM's reputation and client trust by demonstrating accountability, leadership, and technical resilience in managing complex, high-pressure incidents.

Application Support/Critical Incident Manager

Broadridge Financial Solutions
07.2012 - 07.2016
  • Led global application support operations for the GLOSS (Global Back Office Settlement System), delivering 24/7 support to clients across APAC, Europe, and the U.S.
  • Directed end-to-end management of critical (P1/P2) incidents, ensuring rapid triage, escalation, and recovery, aligned with ITIL standards.
  • Governed service delivery KPIs, incident SLAs, root cause analysis (RCA), and service restoration activities for high-impact outages.
  • Defined and implemented SOPs for incident, problem, change, and disaster recovery processes, ensuring operational consistency and compliance.
  • Managed stakeholder communication and real-time coordination (Bridge Management) during service disruptions, ensuring executive visibility and client confidence.
  • Achievements:
  • Improved application uptime by 10% through proactive issue detection, trend analysis, and permanent remediation in collaboration with product and engineering teams.
  • Reduced incident recurrence by 25% by implementing a structured Critical Incident Management (CIM) framework, supported by a custom-built CIM Event Tracker tool.
  • Led recovery for multiple global outages, restoring business-critical services within SLA targets and minimizing impact on Tier-1 financial clients.
  • Designed and executed disaster recovery protocols, including contingency planning and DR drills, ensuring full compliance with business continuity requirements.
  • Developed and enforced standardized reporting, including executive dashboards and incident review packs, enhancing transparency and decision-making.
  • Received the 'Broadridge Employee Recognition Award' for exceptional service continuity and client engagement during major incident recovery.
  • Honored with the 'Team Inspiration Award' for innovating and operationalizing the CIM Event Tracker, significantly improving the effectiveness of incident governance.

Regional Application Support Manager

BNP Paribas Bank
08.2011 - 11.2011
  • Lead regional application support, ensuring high availability and rapid incident resolution for critical banking systems.
  • Led regional application support across the Middle East & South Africa, ensuring high availability and rapid incident resolution for critical banking systems.
  • Managed application support resources to provide efficient and effective support services.
  • Ensured critical banking systems remained highly available, minimizing disruptions to banking operations.
  • Implemented a new knowledge management system that reduced incident resolution times by 12%.

Management Consultant (Kingston)

Barclays Capital
04.2011 - 08.2011
  • Designed and implemented a front-office application support model to improve incident response and operational stability.
  • Collaborated with stakeholders to understand application support needs and develop effective solutions.
  • Contributed to the development of strategies for improving application support processes and procedures.
  • Improved first-call resolution rate by 18% through enhanced training and knowledge sharing.

Application Support Manager–Back Office

NASDAQ Dubai
08.2005 - 11.2010
  • Led 24/7 application support for mission-critical back-office, trading, and front-office systems, ensuring 99.99% uptime and full SLA compliance in a highly regulated financial environment.
  • Directed incident, problem, and change management for real-time trading systems; performed RCA, and implemented corrective actions to reduce recurrence.
  • Executed business continuity and disaster recovery (DR) planning, testing recovery procedures quarterly to ensure resilience across all critical systems.
  • Spearheaded the transition of application support operations to a hybrid on-site/offshore model, ensuring seamless handover, SOP development, and uninterrupted service delivery.
  • Collaborated with global vendors (ATOS, EURONEXT, NASDAQ, OMX, TCS, SWIFT, CME, IBM) and key stakeholders (regulators, prime brokers) to deliver technology changes, regulatory compliance, and operational governance.
  • Managed IT operations resource planning, implemented a shift optimization model, reducing overhead while maintaining full coverage.
  • Championed the implementation of monitoring procedures, runbooks, and operational checklists, reducing human error, and improving response times.
  • Achievements:
  • Successfully launched DIFX on September 26, 2005, delivering all critical applications within the deadline, contributing to a landmark project in the UAE's capital market history.
  • Designed and enforced a new Change Management framework aligned with audit and compliance standards, reducing audit observations by 100%.
  • Authored and operationalized the IT Operations Monitoring Checklist, resulting in a 30% reduction in operational incidents due to better standardization and monitoring discipline.
  • Improved team productivity and service consistency through effective knowledge management and SOP implementation post-transition.
  • Delivered cost savings by eliminating underutilized IT services and optimizing license usage, leading to a 15% reduction in operational expenses.
  • Recognized with the 'Star of the Quarter Award' (June 2007) for outstanding service continuity and stability of critical applications.

Team Leader – Software Support

ABN AMRO Bank
11.2000 - 08.2005
  • Led a high-performing software support team delivering 24/7 production support for 25+ mission-critical satellite banking applications across AS/400 and Windows platforms, ensuring continuous service availability and SLA compliance.
  • Managed incident, problem, and change management processes, driving rapid major incident resolution, root cause analysis, and preventive actions to reduce service disruptions.
  • Collaborated with top-tier vendors (EDS, Infosys, LOGIX, Indus Software) to optimize system integration, issue resolution, and performance tuning.
  • Directed disaster recovery planning, testing, and maintenance, including managing DR site backups, data synchronization, and failover readiness to ensure business continuity.
  • Spearheaded the regional rollout and stabilization of the Finacle CRM system, coordinating requirements gathering, testing, change control, technical support, and stakeholder communication.
  • Developed and standardized IT application support documentation, operational checklists, and runbooks to improve team efficiency and incident handling consistency.
  • Managed vendor performance and service quality, aligning IT support with business objectives and regulatory compliance requirements.
  • Achievements:
  • Reduced major incidents by 15% through enhanced proactive monitoring, escalation protocols, and improved alerting systems, increasing overall application uptime and stability.
  • Successfully led the Finacle CRM implementation across the Middle East region, delivering the project on time and within budget, earning the 'Best Support Consultant' award (January 2005) for outstanding technical and leadership contributions.
  • Improved incident recovery time by 20% by streamlining coordination between cross-functional teams and vendors, accelerating service restoration.
  • Strengthened disaster recovery capabilities through regular failover testing and real-time synchronization, ensuring zero data loss and rapid system recovery.
  • Enhanced operational efficiency by designing shift rosters and optimizing resource allocation, reducing operational costs without compromising 24x7 support coverage.
  • Established robust change management practices addressing audit findings and regulatory requirements, significantly reducing operational risks during application updates.

Executive Officer Systems

Sanmar Weighing Systems
06.1998 - 10.2000
  • Led software and control system support for industrial hardware, ensuring high availability and operational efficiency of critical weighing systems.
  • Delivered technical troubleshooting and process optimizations, reducing downtime by 15%.

System Analyst/Programmer

Olayan Descon Industrial Company
02.1994 - 05.1998
  • Developed and maintained multi-user HR, payroll, and inventory applications on Unix/Windows platforms. Improved business data management and operational workflows through effective system analysis and application support.

Programmer/Faculty Member

Arul Computer Centre
02.1993 - 01.1994
  • Conducted programming training and developed academic automation solutions to enhance administrative efficiency and learner outcomes.

Programmer

Professional Consultancy Services
04.1992 - 01.1993
  • Created custom business applications for SMEs using Clipper and FoxBASE, delivering process automation and end-user training to improve operational productivity.

Education

B.Sc. - Computer Science

University of Madras
03-1992

Skills

ITIL Framework (v3/v4) & ITSM (ServiceNow, Remedy, Jira, Zendesk)

Certification

ITIL V4 Foundation, ITIL V3 Foundation, ITIL Intermediate Service Operation (SO) & Service Offering and Agreements (SOA), Certified Scrum Master (CSM)

Timeline

IT Senior Manager Service Systems & Operations

TESCO
12.2020 - Current

IT Application Support / Major Incident Manager

Accenture India
07.2017 - 12.2020

Critical Incident / Business Recovery Manager

IBM
07.2016 - 05.2017

Application Support/Critical Incident Manager

Broadridge Financial Solutions
07.2012 - 07.2016

Regional Application Support Manager

BNP Paribas Bank
08.2011 - 11.2011

Management Consultant (Kingston)

Barclays Capital
04.2011 - 08.2011

Application Support Manager–Back Office

NASDAQ Dubai
08.2005 - 11.2010

Team Leader – Software Support

ABN AMRO Bank
11.2000 - 08.2005

Executive Officer Systems

Sanmar Weighing Systems
06.1998 - 10.2000

System Analyst/Programmer

Olayan Descon Industrial Company
02.1994 - 05.1998

Programmer/Faculty Member

Arul Computer Centre
02.1993 - 01.1994

Programmer

Professional Consultancy Services
04.1992 - 01.1993

B.Sc. - Computer Science

University of Madras

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ALTHAF HUSSAINIT Senior Service Delivery Manager