23708 - Commercial Manager

Ministry of Justice UK•National City, CA

14d•£42,914 - £53,081•Hybrid

About The Position

The Ministry of Justice is recruiting Commercial Managers to contribute to commercial excellence across the department. Commercial coordinates procurement and contract management for the MoJ, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies, managing a complex spending profile and a diverse portfolio of contracts, customers and suppliers. The role provides a customer-focused commercial service, develops understanding of business needs and stakeholder priorities, and works to become a trusted commercial adviser. It develops relationships with key and strategic suppliers, promotes value for money and risk management, and leads elements of the commercial lifecycle, including strategy and policy development, sourcing, procurement, and contract and supplier management. The postholder works independently and as part of a team, prioritising their workload, delivering to deadlines, managing setbacks, mitigating and escalating emerging risks, and responding to changing operational demands. The role is flexible and may cover a broad range of commercial activity, with assignments changing to meet business priorities. Depending on the remit, work may include complex contracts, sensitive projects in a secure environment, mentoring junior colleagues and, in some posts, line management. The position is in the Ministry of Justice Commercial business area, is nationally based, permanent and full-time. Successful candidates will normally be appointed to the nearest viable office to their home postcode and are expected to spend at least 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local capacity; hybrid arrangements may be agreed where business needs allow. The role can only be worked in the UK. Standard full-time hours are 37 per week. The national salary range is £42,914–£46,182, with a London range of £49,325–£53,081, dependent on base location. New entrants are normally paid at the minimum; a higher starting salary or recruitment and retention allowance may be available in exceptional cases, and a specialist allowance may apply to fully qualified applicants. Candidates should have good experience in procurement, commercial or buying work and understand end-to-end commercial lifecycle management and sourcing and procurement methodologies. They should demonstrate value-for-money outcomes, commercial knowledge including commercial law, risk management, ethical supply-chain practice, teamwork and effective stakeholder relationships. CIPS, World CC or a similar commercial qualification is desirable, though non-qualified applicants willing to work toward an appropriate qualification will be considered.

Requirements

Good experience in a procurement, commercial or buying role.
Good understanding of end-to-end commercial lifecycle management principles and sourcing and procurement methodologies.
Evidence of leading and securing value for money in a commercial environment.
Strong commercial knowledge, including understanding of commercial law and appropriate use of key commercial tools.
Ability to manage cyber, personnel and physical risks within an area of responsibility.
Ability to apply standards to eliminate corruption, fraud and unethical behaviour in supply chains, and take appropriate action over alleged breaches.
Ability to work as part of a team, support team performance, manage setbacks and resolve issues internally.
Ability to communicate with stakeholders at all levels using different communication styles, articulate achieved benefits, and establish governance and relationship arrangements.

Nice To Haves

Working knowledge of systems such as Oracle and/or Jaggaer (Bravo).
Awareness and understanding of public-sector commercial principles and legislation.
CIPS, World CC or a similar commercial management qualification, or willingness to work towards an appropriate qualification.

Responsibilities

Understand the department’s commercial strategy and contribute to planning in line with business needs, category strategies and market trends.
Contribute to category strategies and deliver sourcing requirements across business-as-usual and project activities.
Forecast and plan demand and requirements with internal stakeholders and suppliers.
Develop and maintain category plans for key spend areas.
Lead end-to-end strategic sourcing activities and act as a subject matter expert.
Work with stakeholders to clarify business requirements and support business units in articulating commercial requirements.
Advise and provide professional guidance throughout sourcing, evaluating sourcing models.
Lead commercial input to business cases, demonstrating benefits, value for money and risk.
Influence and shape procurement policy and standards across the department.
Identify opportunities for collaborative supplier partnerships.
Provide compliant procurement services and pursue productivity and savings opportunities with suppliers.
Negotiate with third parties when required.
Maintain accountability for sourcing compliance and frameworks.
Evaluate supplier performance against specifications and report regularly.
Contribute to management of the supply-chain portfolio and develop and implement supply-chain and supplier-relationship strategies.
Act as commercial lead for one or more complex contracts, overseeing stakeholder management, governance, performance, escalation, risk, issue resolution, financial management, change control and compliance.
Develop positive commercial relationships with suppliers to improve performance and service delivery and create value.
Track operational demand and patterns and introduce demand-management mechanisms where appropriate.
Assess supplier risk and its impact on contingency and business continuity, protecting the department’s risk position while driving value for money.
Own and track contract risks and take steps to mitigate commercial risks.
Build effective supplier relationships and governance arrangements, and manage clarifications and change requests.
Provide commercial advice to stakeholders and engage relevant senior business leads to ensure requirements are supported by category strategies.
Champion procurement best practice and collaborate to develop a proactive, intelligent commercial function.
Contribute to maintaining and updating systems throughout the procurement lifecycle.
Manage catalogues and commercial content, including ownership of key aspects where assigned, and promote catalogue use with stakeholders.
Help build capability among new starters and colleagues on development programmes.
Mentor and guide junior team members.
Work in a secure environment on sensitive projects as required; some roles may include line management.

Benefits

25 days’ annual leave on appointment, increasing to 30 days after five years’ service.
Option for qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days of annual leave each year.
Paid public holidays and one privilege day.
Choice of Civil Service pension schemes.
Extensive training and development opportunities.
Opportunity to join employee-run networks providing advice, support and representation for minority groups.
Family-friendly policies, including opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
Access to flexible benefits, including voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts.
Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.