Games Workshop seeks IT leader to summon the legions in epic saga battling the forces of ERP

Games Workshop is on the hunt for a head of IT to guide the organization through its technological saga for the next two years. The UK-based tabletop games retailer and manufacturer of the globally popular Warhammer figures said that under the fixed-term contract, the heroic individual would take overall responsibility for its global IT and customer technology capability, and report to the Chief Operating Officer. “The role has a broad remit spanning our core technology estate, information security, major systems change and the technology behind our customer-facing digital platforms, including warhammer.com,” the job ad said, although sadly it closed for applications over the weekend. “We need someone who can understand what Games Workshop needs now, anticipate what we will need in the future, and make good decisions about how technology supports the long-term success of the business,” it said. Candidates might want to be aware that, if they are lucky enough to be offered the job and they accept the mission, the battle will not be an easy one. The head of IT will take responsibility for core IT environment and information security, advising senior management on technology, security, risk and investment. They will also support the teams to keep “significant technology programs moving, openly tackling the challenges that come with major change, and ensure that we continue to make rapid progress.” The Nottingham-based retailer and manufacturer is in the midst of ERP and supply chain management systems overhauls that were first mobilized years ago and have been beset with delays and over-runs. Back in January 2021, The Register reported that Games Workshop delayed its Microsoft Dynamics-based ERP rollout and appointed a new integrator, having already hoped to go live in 2020. By September that year, it said project issues were impacting the development of new features in online shopping. In January 2022, it added another £500k to the project budget with no end in sight. A year later, it said the business faced ongoing challenges to integrate new IT systems when it was still heavily reliant on working with its legacy tech systems. “Finishing these projects and upgrading our systems continue to be a key area of focus. We are making some progress but it's costing us more time and money – we will remain cost conscious," it told investors. Around four years later, challenges remain ongoing, according to the latest annual report, published in July, for the year ending in May 2026. It said the group’s main financial system is still being supported by a number of legacy ERP applications for which “we have identified control deficiencies in our previous audits.” These still exist, according to a review of IT systems. The report added that the responsibility for delivering IT had moved to its operational manufacturing and supply chain director, under the COO from June, a decision which “helped bring all of the internal departments together.” “Our Systems Improvement Plan (SIP) is on track with very clear milestones for us all to support and deliver,” it added. Games Workshop is famous for the phenomenon of Warhammer 40,000 — also known as WH40K or 40K — thought to be the most popular miniature wargame in the world. Battles are set in the distant future, leaving the technology department to hope the end of its long-running ERP saga comes before that date. ®