Area Manager

Who we are

VIVO provides facilities management and accommodation maintenance for the UK military and its partners. VIVO embodies both experience and innovation.

What we do

We put our Customers and Families First. They are the driving force behind everything we do. We drive forward improvements for them to ensure the service they receive, whether reactive repairs or a major project, is completed safely and on time. In order to achieve this, we have 4 core values: open, caring, agile and collaborative. These are at the heart of everything we do.

Location: Cambridgeshire, mobile role

Permanent, Full time

Salary: £50,000-£55,000

The Area Manager holds a central leadership position responsible for delivering safe, compliant, and high-quality maintenance and response services across a defined portfolio of Defence establishments. Acting as the operational lead for their area, the Area Manager ensures that all statutory, regulatory, and MoD-specific requirements are met, while driving performance, efficiency, and value for money. This role requires a strong technical background, exceptional stakeholder management skills, and the ability to lead multidisciplinary teams in a complex, high-risk environment.

A key part of the role involves the oversight of all maintenance and response activities, ensuring that works are delivered in accordance with JSP 375, statutory legislation, and VIVO’s Health, Safety and Environmental standards. The Area Manager ensures that supply chain partners deploy suitably qualified and experienced operatives, that safe systems of work are consistently applied, and that all tasks are properly recorded, tracked, and closed out within the CAFM system. They are responsible for reviewing RAMS, coordinating safe working processes, and, where required, acting as Method Statement Coordinator to ensure consistency and compliance across sites.

The Area Manager plays a critical role in maintaining site safety, ensuring that all activities align with the requirements for Working at Height, Confined Spaces, and other specialist disciplines. They may act as Asbestos or Legionella Responsible Person where needed, ensuring that relevant management plans are followed and that all operatives adhere to safe and compliant working practices. They also take responsibility for managing risk registers, identifying defects, and ensuring that issues involving equipment, systems, or infrastructure are promptly escalated and addressed.

Strong people leadership is essential, as the role includes coordinating day-to-day activities of site teams, supervising Skilled Persons, and ensuring that work is delivered to agreed service levels. The Area Manager supports the development of team capability through coaching, clear direction, and ongoing performance monitoring. They champion a proactive safety culture, fostering accountability and encouraging teams to deliver their best work while meeting operational and contractual objectives. Acting as a single point of contact for end users, they manage customer requests, resolve issues promptly, and provide technical and professional advice to ensure high levels of client satisfaction.

The role requires excellent relationship-building skills, with the ability to sustain strong, collaborative partnerships with the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), site personnel, and other stakeholders. The Area Manager must understand the operational priorities of the Head of Establishment (HoE) and support estate activities through informed decision-making, professional guidance, and a thorough understanding of military site operations. They also contribute to new work identification and support the development of formal Additional Works submissions.

Commercial awareness is a vital aspect of this role. The Area Manager must balance operational delivery with sound financial judgement, ensuring that services are provided efficiently, economically, and in line with contractual expectations. They work collaboratively to identify and mitigate contract risks, contribute to forward maintenance planning, and ensure that operations provide value for money while enabling a profitable business model for VIVO.

This position requires a technically competent leader with strong analytical and organisational skills, capable of planning resources effectively, monitoring progress against clear objectives, and using data and digital tools to support decision-making. The Area Manager must demonstrate a solid understanding of property maintenance, asset management, and construction processes, as well as the ability to enforce health and safety compliance across all sites.

What You'll Bring

Candidates should ideally hold an HNC or higher qualification in a Building or Mechanical discipline and bring practical experience in planned and reactive maintenance, as well as small-project delivery. They should be willing to take on additional responsibilities such as Working at Height or Confined Space Authorised Person duties, or roles including Legionella and Asbestos Responsible Person. Participation in an out-of-hours on-call rota is also required. Membership of a relevant professional body and asset management qualifications (such as those from the Institute of Asset Management) are desirable and would further strengthen a candidate’s suitability for the position.

The successful Area Manager will be a confident leader who leads by example, communicates effectively, makes sound decisions under pressure, and consistently demonstrates the company’s values. They will bring strong judgement, technical credibility, and a commitment to delivering high-quality, compliant services across a busy and fast-paced Defence environment.

What We Offer

• Company car/car allowance
• Bonus
• 25 days annual leave
• 6% employee matched pension contribution
• Life assurance 2x annual salary
• 1x professional subscription per year
• Private medical cover for self and partner

VIVO Defence Services

The role you have applied for is with VIVO Defence Services, a joint venture between Serco and EQUANS. By applying for this role, please be aware that information contained within your CV may be shared between VIVO Defence Services, Serco and EQUANS during the recruitment process.

At VIVO, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation that supports the needs of all. Therefore, we will make reasonable adjustments at interview through to employment for our candidates and strongly encourage applications from a diverse candidate pool.

We are open to discussions around flexibility and flexible working and operate a hybrid work structure in many of our business areas. We are proudly a Disability Confident Leader. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview.