Job level: Head of Function, Grade 7
Directorate: Business Services
Contract: Permanent
Reports to: Chief Financial Officer
Function: Digital, Data, and Technology
Location: Hybrid, working two days per week on site at Regents Park
Responsibility for resources
Direct line reports: Up to 5
Financial resources: £1.7m annual budget
Responsibility for other resources: Oversight of critical IT infrastructure
Our vision and mission
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is an international conservation charity, driven by science, working to restore wildlife in the UK and around the world. Our vision is a world where wildlife thrives and every role, every person in every corner of ZSL has one thing in common – we are all conservationists, and passionate about restoring wildlife.
Purpose of the role
Providing leadership in digital infrastructure, data governance, and analytics, the role will guide and empower ZSL on its digital, data and technology journey. The post holder will focus on building the organisation’s confidence and capability in using and adopting tools and insights to drive impact. By delivering user-focused technologies, improving operational efficiency, and strengthening our conservation storytelling, this role will evolve and future-proof ZSL’s digital ecosystem while supporting our mission to protect and restore nature in the UK and around the world.
Key responsibilities
Digital leadership and transformation
- Define and deliver a transformative digital, data, and technology vision aligned with ZSL’s strategic goals, embedding innovation to drive measurable impact on conservation outcomes and supporter engagement.
- Provide strategic oversight of IT operations, ensuring services align with organisational objectives, enable innovation, and support long-term growth.
- Lead ZSL’s digital transformation journey, championing system integration and adoption of digital solutions to foster a culture of digital literacy across the organisation.
- Design and implement change management strategies, readiness assessments, and adoption plans to ensure smooth delivery of digital initiatives and high-quality user experience.
- Engage and influence senior stakeholders across the organisation to secure buy-in and alignment on digital priorities.
Systems and infrastructure
- Identify, develop, and implement accessible, user-focused technologies and environmentally sustainable solutions that enhance organisational efficiency, impact, and engagement.
- Ensure IT infrastructure is robust, scalable, and reliable to meet future organisational needs while adhering to sustainability commitments.
- Increase organisational resilience by proactively managing risks associated with digital projects, including cyber security threats, data breaches, and system downtime.
- Develop, maintain and connect databases, platforms and tools to enable effective and improved ways of working across ZSL systems.
Data, Analytics and Cyber Security
- Establish and maintain strong data governance frameworks that ensure data integrity, compliance, and security, positioning data as a strategic organisational asset.
- Drive integration across key datasets and applications holding conservation, science, and supporter content using analytics tools such as PowerBI and middleware.
- Lead insights-driven decision-making by leveraging analytics to optimise user experience, operational efficiency, and storytelling impact for all stakeholders.
- Oversee cyber security strategy, including policy, risk management, incident response, and reporting to the executive team, ensuring organisational resilience.
People Leadership
- Lead, develop, and inspire high-performing digital and system users and IT teams, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous learning.
- Build capability across the organisation to enhance digital literacy and adoption of new technologies.
Values and behaviours for people management
- Collaborative: creates an engaging environment where people feel comfortable asking for help or support.
- Impactful: delivers results on time and to the agreed standards.
- Innovative: is forward thinking and able to see the broader picture when planning and organising work.
- Inspiring: has self-awareness and seeks feedback to better understand own style, approach and impact on team/staff motivation.