Manager - Application Support

About Us (Ensono)

Ensono is an expert technology adviser and managed service provider. As a relentless ally, we accelerate clients’ digital transformation to achieve business outcomes that stand to last. Our dedicated team helps organizations optimize today’s systems across any hybrid environment with services such as consulting, mainframe and application modernization, public cloud migration and cloud-native development. With certified experts in AWS, Azure and Google Cloud and recognized as Microsoft Datacenter Transformation Partner of the Year, Ensono has over 3500+ associates globally and is headquartered in greater Chicago.

We care about your success, offering comprehensive strategic and managed services for mission-critical applications. Our Advisory and Consulting services can help upfront with an application strategy or find the right places for your applications – whether it’s public, multi or hybrid cloud, or mainframe. And because we span across all mission-critical platforms, we can meet you wherever you are in your digital transformation journey, with 24/7 support when you need it. We are your relentless ally, flexing with you when challenges emerge so you don’t feel stuck in place. With cross-platform certifications and decades of experience, our technology experts have become an extension of your team so you’re continuously innovating – doing more with less while remaining secure. And that’s just the beginning.

At Ensono, our Purpose is to be a relentless ally, disrupting the status quo and unleashing our clients to Do Great Things !  We enable our clients to achieve key business outcomes that reshape how our world runs. As an expert technology adviser and managed service provider with cross-platform certifications, Ensono empowers our clients to keep up with continuous change and embrace innovation.

We can  Do Great Things because we have great Associates. The Ensono Core Values unify our diverse talents and are woven into how we do business. These five traits are the key to achieving our purpose.

Role Summary

The Application Management Support (AMS) Manager is responsible for ensuring the reliability, stability, and performance of enterprise applications through effective ITIL‑based service management and modern SRE (Site Reliability Engineering) practices. This role leads the application support function by managing incidents, problems, changes, and service requests while also driving automation, observability, and continuous improvement. The AMS Manager collaborates closely with cross‑functional teams, including Development, Infrastructure, and SRE, to enhance application performance, reduce operational toil, and improve service availability. By leveraging ITIL frameworks for governance and SRE principles for engineering excellence, the AMS Manager ensures predictable service delivery, proactive issue resolution, and high levels of user satisfaction.

Key Responsibilities  

Team Management:

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of application support specialists.
• Assign tasks and responsibilities, ensuring efficient workload distribution.
• Conduct regular performance evaluations and provide feedback to team members.
• Encourage adoption of modern operational practices, including  SRE-aligned approaches such as automation, proactive monitoring, and continuous improvement.

Support Operations:

• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the application support team.
• Ensure timely and effective resolution of incidents and service requests.
• Develop and implement support processes and best practices to improve service delivery.
• Apply foundational SRE concepts such as reducing manual effort (toil) and improving service reliability through better monitoring and operational discipline.
• Ensure adherence to ITIL practices to maintain consistent and structured service operations .

Incident and Problem Management:

• Monitor and manage the incident lifecycle, ensuring adherence to SLAs.
• Analyze incident trends and identify root causes of recurring issues.
• Collaborate with development and infrastructure teams to implement permanent solutions.
• Conduct structured Root Cause Analysis and ensure follow‑through on preventive and corrective actions.
• Utilize basic SRE metrics (like error patterns or service health indicators) where relevant to improve reliability.

Stakeholder Collaboration:

• Work closely with business units to understand their application needs and priorities.
• Liaise with vendors and third‑party service providers to ensure optimal application performance.
• Communicate effectively with stakeholders regarding application issues and updates.
• Collaborate with engineering, DevOps, or SRE teams during releases, upgrades, and planned enhancements to ensure smooth and reliable deployments.

Continuous Improvement:

• Identify opportunities for process improvements and automation within the support function.
• Lead initiatives to enhance application performance, reliability, and user experience.
• Stay updated on industry trends and emerging technologies to drive innovation.
• Apply relevant SRE concepts — such as proactive monitoring, stability improvements, and automation — to strengthen overall service quality .

Reporting and Documentation:

• Generate and present regular reports on support activities, performance metrics, and improvement initiatives.
• Ensure the maintenance of comprehensive support documentation and knowledge base articles.
• Track operational performance, including SLAs and relevant reliability indicators, to support continuous service improvements.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• A Master’s degree or relevant certifications (ITIL, Cloud, SRE Foundation) is a plus.

Experience:

• 10+ years of overall experience in IT, with strong exposure to application support, IT operations, or production systems.
• Proven experience in an Application Support, Application Management, or IT service management role.
• Minimum 3–4 years of experience leading and managing a technical/application support team, including performance management and team development.
• 5+ years of hands-on experience in application support or a related domain, with strong troubleshooting and analytical skills.
• Experience working with ITIL processes such as Incident, Problem, Change, and Service Request Management.
• Understanding or practical exposure to SRE concepts like proactive monitoring, automation, reducing operational toil, and improving reliability.
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams (Development, Infrastructure, DevOps/SRE, vendors) to ensure application stability and performance.
• Exposure to environments require high availability, performance tuning, and continuous operational improvement.

Skills:

• Strong leadership and team management skills, with the ability to guide and develop high-performing support teams.
• Excellent problem‑solving, analytical, and decision-making abilities.
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills for managing stakeholders, users, and cross‑functional teams.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, handle pressure, and operate effectively in business‑critical situations.
• Strong customer‑centric mindset and commitment to service excellence.
• Understanding of modern operational practices, including basic SRE concepts such as proactive monitoring and automation (advantageous).

Technical Skills:

• In-depth knowledge of enterprise software applications, application architectures, and IT infrastructure components.
• Strong understanding of ITIL processes and best practices across Incident, Problem, Change, and Service Request Management.
• Experience with application monitoring tools, log analysis, and performance management platforms.
• Proficiency in using support tools and ticketing systems (e.g., ServiceNow, Jira, Remedy).
• Ability to collaborate with development, infrastructure, and DevOps/SRE teams to improve application reliability and stability.
• Prior experience as an Application Support Manager or in a similar leadership role.
• Familiarity with automation opportunities within support operations is a plus.

Working Conditions:

• May require on-call support or work outside regular business hours for high‑priority incidents, releases, or maintenance activities.
• Ability to work in a dynamic, fast‑paced, and high‑availability environment.
• Hybrid working model, depending on organizational requirements.

We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to caste, colour, creed, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, HIV status, or any other status protected by law. Candidates with disabilities who require accommodations during the recruitment process are encouraged to contact our Talent Acquisition team to place a request.