[Hiring] Manager - Incident & Problem @Mashreq

Role Description

To manage the end-to-end lifecycle of assigned problems, from identification and prioritization through root cause analysis, known-error documentation, permanent resolution, and closure. The role coordinates technical and business stakeholders, challenges RCA quality, tracks corrective and preventive actions to agreed timelines, and verifies that implemented solutions reduce recurrence and service risk. It also maintains accurate, audit-ready Problem Management records and provides clear insight on trends, risks, and improvement opportunities to the Head of Problem Management.

Key Result Areas

• Identify and log problems arising from recurring, high-impact, or trend-based incidents within assigned technology domains.
• Own assigned problem records from initiation to closure, ensuring accurate categorization, prioritization, evidence, status, and stakeholder updates.
• Plan and facilitate RCA sessions with relevant technical, operations, business, and vendor teams.
• Review and challenge RCA submissions to ensure the root cause is evidence-based and distinct from symptoms or contributing factors.
• Define, assign, and track corrective and preventive actions, escalating overdue items, dependencies, and execution risks.
• Maintain known errors, workarounds, and KEDB articles so that operational teams can restore service faster and prevent repeat incidents.
• Coordinate permanent fixes through Change and Release Management and verify post-implementation effectiveness.
• Perform proactive trend analysis to identify emerging risks, weak controls, and candidates for Service Improvement Plans.
• Prepare accurate reports on problem ageing, RCA compliance, action closure, recurrence, and realized service improvements.
• Maintain complete, traceable, and audit-ready records in accordance with Problem Management standards and controls.

Operating Environment, Framework and Boundaries, Working Relationships

• Operates within a high-availability, regulated banking technology environment where service stability, control discipline, and audit readiness are critical.
• Manages an assigned portfolio of problem records under the direction, standards, and priorities set by the Head of Problem Management.
• Works across application, infrastructure, operations, cybersecurity, business, and third-party service domains as required by each investigation.
• Uses approved ITSM workflows, RCA methods, governance forums, dashboards, and documentation standards.
• Works closely with Incident Management to identify problem candidates and obtain complete incident history, impact, and recovery information.
• Coordinates with technical support teams and vendors to collect evidence, identify causes, define actions, and confirm delivery dates.
• Partners with Change and Release Management to schedule permanent fixes and validate implementation outcomes.
• Engages Operations and Business stakeholders to understand operational impact, validate workarounds, and confirm whether recurrence has been reduced.
• Supports Risk, Compliance, and Audit requests by providing complete records and evidence for assigned problems.
• Escalates unresolved ownership, material risks, repeated SLA breaches, and cross-domain blockers to the Head of Problem Management.
• Analyses recurring and high-impact incidents using timelines, monitoring data, logs, changes, dependencies, and stakeholder input.
• Separates symptoms, triggers, contributing factors, and underlying causes to produce clear and defensible RCA conclusions.
• Selects and facilitates appropriate analysis techniques such as 5 Whys, fault-tree analysis, chronology review, and cause-and-effect analysis.
• Challenges unsupported conclusions and requests for further evidence or specialist input where the cause remains uncertain.
• Assesses workaround and solution options against service risk, customer impact, feasibility, control requirements, and recurrence prevention.
• Resolves ownership ambiguity through structured facilitation and escalates unresolved accountability or delivery blockers.
• Uses trend, KEDB, and action-closure data to identify proactive problems and recommend Service Improvement Plan items.
• Verifies whether completed actions achieved the intended outcome and reopens or escalates problems where recurrence continues.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• ITIL Foundation certification is required; advanced ITIL or recognised RCA certification is preferred.
• Practical experience managing problem records, facilitating RCA, tracking corrective actions, and maintaining known errors within an ITSM environment.
• Working knowledge of ITSM practices, including Incident, Change, Release, Knowledge, Service Level, and Continual Improvement Management.
• Strong analytical capability and proficiency in RCA methods, incident-trend analysis, and evidence-based decision-making.
• Experience using ITSM platforms, dashboards, and reporting tools to manage workflow, ageing, SLA, recurrence, and action status.
• Ability to understand application, infrastructure, integration, database, network, and third-party service dependencies at a level sufficient to coordinate investigations.
• Strong facilitation, stakeholder management, negotiation, and written communication skills.
• High attention to detail in documentation, evidence management, governance, and audit readiness.
• Experience in banking, financial services, or another regulated, high-availability environment is preferred.
• Ability to manage multiple investigations and competing deadlines without direct supervisory responsibility.

Decision Making Authority & Responsibility

• Accepts assigned problem records for investigation and recommends priority based on impact, recurrence, and risk.
• Returns incomplete or unsupported RCA submissions for correction and requests additional evidence from accountable teams.
• Schedules and facilitates RCA reviews, action follow-ups, and problem-closure reviews within the agreed governance cadence.
• Recommends corrective and preventive actions, KEDB publication, Service Improvement Plan initiation, and problem closure.
• Updates problem status, target dates, risk, and escalation information in the approved ITSM tool.
• Escalates overdue actions, unresolved ownership, material control gaps, and accepted risks to the Head of Problem Management.
• Does not approve policy exceptions, accept material risk, commit unapproved budget, or change organisation-wide Problem Management standards.
• Is accountable for the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, and audit readiness of assigned problem records and reporting.