Release Officer - IT - Kuwait

Job no:* MRF11541
Location: Kuwait
Kuwait Head Office
IT
Alshaya IT is a diverse organisation supporting corporate, warehouse and
retail specific IT infrastructure and systems. We have software teams creating
and developing in-house applications and product teams optimising and
integrating major third party solutions. The rate of growth across divisions
and geographies means we are constantly evaluating how we provide robust,
scalable and business enabling infrastructure and systems in line with global
benchmark standards.
Role Profile: A Release Officer will work with different teams to
implement, enforce, and improve release processes for our development, test,
and production environments. This person works closely with management and
individual contributors to improve software engineering processes and
implement best practices associated with continuously building, deploying, and
updating software and environments.
Release Officer responsibilities also include building, managing, and
communicating a Release Schedule - a coordinated view of all releases. This
person works with Program Management to identify and manage dependencies
between releases and ensure that all releases are scheduled to avoid conflicts
and excessive demands on resources.
Job Responsibilites:
Release Planning (‎20%)
* Facilitates release planning meetings with key stakeholders to identify proper sequencing of release packages.
* Ensures that issues and risks are identified, understood, and dealt with in a manner that mitigates risk to scope and schedule
* Documents the release recommendation for each release and/or change to production. Includes release scope, schedule, deliverables, and roll back plan.
* Reviews release recommendation with key stakeholders.
* Documents and communicates all changes for a release in release notes which are published to both the internal team and the client.
* Attends change management such as CABs and deployment planning meetings to collect data and information pertaining to the release
Release Management (‎40%)*
* Pursues IT and Project compliance with release acceptance criteria.
* Provides outage information and fills out service level agreement blackout request.
* Coordinates and schedules key change to production activities. This includes the tracking of all elements with team leads as the project moves through testing regions into production. Accommodates a flexible schedule as most releases occur outside of regular business hours.
* Supports release execution by monitoring of each phase of the release. Validates the release as it progresses thru various release gates and test phases, alerts appropriate stakeholders of any errors or issues that need to be addressed.
* Provides release coordination and communication during and after deployment.
* Creates requests for change (RFC to production) and obtains appropriate approvals.
* Facilitates emergency releases from production incident identification to incident closure after release.
* Verifies capture of customer acceptance/signoff on deliverables.
Release Standards and Processes (‎25%)
* Identifies opportunities to make tactical improvements to the release management process.
* Maintains documentation of all processes.
* Collects feedback from the users of release management standards and identifies the need to modify or retire a standard based on the feedback.
* Integrates the release process with other IT processes including ITSM and Waterfall/Agile processes.
* Works closely with Change and Configuration Management team of the ITSM Unit to stay current on all change, configuration and internal controls standards and processes.
Test Environment Coordination (‎15%)
* Strictly manages timing and coordination of test runs with competing projects and client stakeholders sharing pre-production test environments.
* Manages overall non-production environment usage, configuration, and scheduling of the different test environments for each release.
Job Requirements:
* Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field
* ‎5-‎7 years of previous release and/or project management experience, (Solid understanding of project management principles preferred)
* ‎4-‎6 years of experience in information systems operations environment in systems analysis or development
* Experience in information systems, operations environment, systems analysis or development
* Experience in release management, change management, software development and documentations
* Formal training in project management practices, devops and agile methodologies
* Ability to coordinate cross-functional work teams toward task completion
* Written and verbal communication skills are a must
* General PC knowledge including Microsoft Office knowledge
* Knowledge of ITIL standards and best practices.
About Us:**
Alshaya Group is a dynamic family-owned enterprise which was first established
in Kuwait in ‎1890. With a consistent record of growth and innovation, Alshaya
Group is one of the world's leading brand franchise operators, offering
customers an unparalleled choice of well-loved international brands,
including: Starbucks, H&M, Mothercare, Debenhams, Cos, American Eagle
Outfitters, P.F. Chang's, The Cheesecake Factory, The Body Shop, M.A.C,
Victoria's Secret, Boots, Vavavoom, Pottery Barn and KidZania.

Alshaya Group's portfolio extends across MENA, Russia, Turkey, and Europe,
with thousands of stores, cafes, restaurants and leisure destinations, as well
as a growing online and digital business.

Operating in multiple sectors including Fashion, Food, Health & Beauty,
Pharmacy, Home Furnishings and Leisure & Entertainment, Alshaya Group
colleagues are united by a commitment to delivering great customer service and
brand experiences.

Fresh, modern, and relevant, Alshaya's constantly evolving retail portfolio
reflects the choices and lifestyle of its customers. From flagship stores and
restaurants in prestige malls, to local coffee shops, drive-thrus and online,
Alshaya Group brings customers the brands they love in the places they want to
be.
Advertised: ‎23 Nov ‎2022 Arab Standard Time
Application close: ‎22 Dec ‎2022 Arab Standard Time