Global IT Team Lead Compute & Cloud Platforms CTBC

Continental is a leading tire manufacturer and industry specialist that develops and produces sustainable, safe and convenient solutions for automotive manufacturers as well as industrial and end customers worldwide. Founded in 1871, the company generated sales of €39.7 billion in 2024 and currently employs around 95,000 people in 54 countries and markets. 

ContiTech is one of the world’s leading industry specialists. The Continental group sector offers its customers connected, environment-friendly, safe and convenient industry and service solutions using a range of materials for off-highway applications, on rails and roads, in the air, under and above the ground, in industrial environments, for the food sector and the furniture industry. With about 39,000 employees in more than 40 countries and sales of some 6.4 billion euros (2024), the global industrial partner is active with core branches in Asia, Europe and North and South America.

The Global Team Lead Compute & Cloud Platforms is responsible for ensuring stable, secure, and cost‑efficient operations of all compute, storage, virtualization/container and cloud services while leading a global team and external providers. The role drives the transformation from on‑premise environments toward a modern, scalable, and financially optimized hybrid‑ and cloud‑focused infrastructure. A key objective is to provide structured guidance, clear governance, and proactive consulting to plants, competence centers, and business stakeholders. Ultimately, the position ensures that the organization gains flexibility, resilience, and transparency across all compute and cloud platforms during an ambitious modernization journey.

•    Lead and develop a global team of 10 internal highly qualified IT experts spread over multiple continents, cultures and timezones globally 

•    Oversee the end to end operation and lifecycle management of platforms including: Windows Server, Linux Server, Oracle & SQL Databases, Storage Platforms, Backup & Recovery, AWS & Azure Cloud, Kubernetes Containers, Citrix, Virtualization Layer, on-prem Data Center

•    Ensure and steer stable and secure day to day operations in cooperation with managed service responsible for L2 and partially L3 operations.

•    Drive incident, problem, and change management processes according to defined SLAs and compliance requirements.

•    Define and execute the strategic roadmap for compute, storage, and cloud platforms with a focus on cloud-first, automation, and modernization.

•    Lead a major transformation and optimization program targeting: Increased cost efficiency, higher flexibility and scalability and progressive cloud adoption while maintaining on premise stability during transition

•    Drive consolidation, standardization, and harmonization of platforms across regions.

•    Identify and implement opportunities for automation, orchestration, and service integration.

•    Serve as a primary advisor to plants, competence centers, and business units regarding infrastructure and cloud solutions.

•    Establish clear processes, standards, and governance to ensure high service quality and transparency

•    Ensure all platforms follow corporate security standards, patches, disaster recovery readiness, continuity strategies and compliance requirements, 

•    Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement within the team by being a role model

•    Ensure effective workload distribution, prioritization, and operational discipline across all team members and partners.

•    Provide regular financial forecast and budget and execute cost control strategies

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or Related equivalent work experience.

• Excellent english skills applied in business context, German is a plus

• Certification is a plus: VMware Certified Professional (VCP) , Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE),  Azure/AWS Solutions Architect Expert, or equivalent experience

• 8+ years of professional experience in IT infrastructure, compute platforms, or cloud ITIL-based operations.

• Experience working in complex IT environment with manufacturing plants, working closely with IT customers and managing service providers

• Experience with leading a distributed team of highly qualified IT egineers/consultants from different locations and cultures

• In‑depth knowledge of Windows Server, Linux Server, virtualization technologies (VMware/Hyper‑V), databases (Oracle & SQL), storage systems, backup & recovery solutions, and Citrix environments.

• Strong hands‑on understanding of AWS and Azure cloud platforms, hybrid infrastructure architectures, cloud governance, and cost‑management models.

• Proven experience managing virtual machine environments and datacenter operations, ideally within a European or multi‑regional setup.

• Practical knowledge of container platforms (e.g., Kubernetes) and modern automation/orchestration tools.

• Experience ensuring compliance, security standards, and risk management in critical IT environments

• Several years of experience leading and developing technical teams in a global or distributed environment.

• Demonstrated success in driving large‑scale infrastructure transformations (e.g., on‑prem to cloud migration, virtualization modernization, platform consolidation).

• Experience implementing cost‑efficiency measures, operational optimization, and standardization programs.

• Ability to define and execute strategic roadmaps for infrastructure and cloud services.

• The 13-th salary – Paid once a year, in December;
• Meal tickets - With a value of 40 Ron;
• Hybrid schedule – Work-life balance is important, so we offer a flexible schedule. Please agree on this with your superior;
• Private Health Insurance – Health is the most important, so we offer you a medical subscription through Signal Iduna;
• Referral bonuses - We encourage colleagues to refer new candidates to us and, at the same time, to get the chance to receive a bonus;
• Bookster – Feed your body and your mind. You can borrow books and you’ll receive them at the office;
• Sports benefits- It’s important to stay active, so we offer you the 7Card;
• Discounts at our partners – We collaborate with different vendors, and we receive discounts for various products/ services like rubbers, restaurants, kindergartens, etc;
• System for Rewarding Improvement Ideas – We have an internal improvement program (Continental Idea Management) that gives you the opportunity to come up with ideas and to be honored with an attractive bonus (this is established by the CIM team according to your improvement idea);
• Happy days – If you or your child is getting married, or you become a parent, you receive some extra free days;
• Life events celebration - If your family is growing, we praise your newborn with a bonus;
• Unfortunate events - In case of unhappy events in your life, we support you by offering you free days and financial support (handled on a case by-case basis);
• Extra vacation days – You begin with 22 vacation days/year, and starting with the 3rd year with us, we offer you 1 more day of vacation and, afterward from 2 to 2 years you’ll get one more extra day (the maximum you can achieve is 29);
• Professional development - Many opportunities to develop yourself within the company;
• Diversity and multicultural mindset - We encourage you to join us no matter who, where, or what you are. We have colleagues from different nations and a variety of languages are spoken in our company.

Ready to drive with Continental? Take the first step and fill in the online application.