Welcome to the Team! Meet Tony Sherwin, Our New Head of Technical Services

Here at Retail Assist, we’re lucky to work with incredible people, who are experts in their field. This week, we caught up with Tony Sherwin, our new Head of Technical Services, to talk about his new role, his background and what he loves about working with the Retail Assist team.

Hi, Tony! Tell us a bit about your background.

I’ve worked in IT for 23 years now and have also worked between the UK, Germany and Italy throughout this time. Prior to becoming a senior leader, I specialised in IT infrastructure, networking and security, so I’ve worked in a range of sectors and built up an array of experience on how different organisations function.

More recently, I have focused on digital transformation and worked on multimillion-pound portfolios and specifically led the technology teams, which required working with a bi-modal strategy for some of our clients due to the complexity.

What does your role entail? What does your average day look like?

I have a varied role and one that is always busy, making it extremely interesting and varied.

The Operations Support and Technical Services department is very busy! My day starts off reviewing what’s happened through the night and coordinating tasks associated with this. I have briefing calls with all 3^rd line support team members to set the priorities for the day, as well as ensuring someone is managing business as usual (BAU) calls. The report arrives from my managers on a Monday, which I then review to keep track of each function’s daily workload and the corresponding teams within the department.

I also review technical solutions before they are implemented, ensuring the technology and architecture is appropriate for how it is intended to be used. I ensure a percentage of time each month is devoted to strategising the technology landscape in order to give appropriate recommendations to Retail Assist and our clients. I regularly monitor the ticket queues for the department and export the data to look at ways of improving the service we offer to our clients by understanding what their biggest issues are. Checking in with managers and staff throughout the week is vital to ensure they have the support they need to carry out their role: ensuring our own systems and our clients’ systems are functioning and are healthy is key to what we do, and a lot of effort goes in to making this happen. Along with this, I regularly review current IT security threats and ensure that, where appropriate, these are mitigated against with appropriate controls in place for both Retail Assist and our clients.

What do you enjoy most about working at Retail Assist?

It feels like a family! Everyone has their responsibilities but it’s the way that everyone goes about their role that makes Retail Assist special.

What’s your favourite thing about your job?

I enjoy how busy and diverse my role is. I like to be kept busy and this role certainly keeps me occupied. There is a lot going on and it means I get to talk to a lot of different people, both within Retail Assist and outside of Retail Assist, too. It’s important to stay at the forefront of technology and understand what trends are staying and need to be considered for the future; making it all come together excites and challenges me, which I absolutely love.

Fancy joining our award-winning team? Take a look at our careers page here.