Commercial Lead - Enterprise Resource Planning Platform and System Integration Services

Job summary

The Department for Work and Pensions is an amazing place to work. We work on some of the most important and exciting policies in government. We are proud of our work and want to offer applicants the opportunity to get involved in our ambitious agenda to improve outcomes for millions of citizens in the UK; throughout their lives, in the workplace, and in retirement.

DWP is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. Consequently, DWP impacts everyone in the UK, delivering services to help jobseekers find work, assist with a disability or provide support for retirement.

If you like to be challenged, you’ll feel at home with us in DWP Commercial Directorate as we’re one of the largest Government Commercial functions, with stretching challenges and a real opportunity to make a difference to the lives of our customers.

Within DWP, the Commercial Directorate (CD) is an award-winning commercial function, with a unified team culture focused on commercial excellence and continuous improvement. CD shapes how services are delivered across hundreds of third-party contractual arrangements, with some of the largest industry suppliers.

The Synergy Programme is the largest of five departmental clusters, comprising the Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Home Office. The Department of Work and Pensions hosts the Synergy Programme. Your work will impact the procurement arrangements for the next 15 years, impacting over 50% of all Civil Servants – that’s 230,000 people across the four departments and arm’s length bodies.

Success of the Programme is crucial as Civil Servants rely on shared services to provide business critical tools in human resources, finance, payroll, and procurement. It affects everything we do, from joining a department as a new starter, the way we claim for expenses, how we buy goods and services such as our laptops and canteen provisions, to the way we receive our pensions when we retire.

If you’re someone who can use your experience to streamline procurement to drive out error, waste, and duplication we want to hear from you. But most importantly, we’re looking for applications from people who can demonstrate passion for our core ambition - delivering a once in a generation, transformed service that Civil Servants will use as a result of the Synergy Programme.

Job description

Commercial Lead – Enterprise Resource Planning Platform and System Integration Services

This role sits within the commercial team supporting the ERP Platform and System Integration Services Agreement, as well as commercial activities relating to the exit and transition from the existing supplier. You will report directly to the Grade 6 Commercial Lead responsible for these areas.

While the role does not include formal line management, it requires someone with a strong sense of ownership, a proactive mindset and the confidence to lead commercial work independently. You will be expected to take the initiative, drive commercial outcomes and act as a key commercial point of contact across a complex and fast-moving Programme landscape. This is a technical and dynamic category, requiring the role holder to understand change impacts, operational requirements and the constraints of complex technology programmes.

The successful candidate will work closely with a diverse range of senior stakeholders across government and delivery partners. You will be expected to influence, challenge and collaborate effectively across this network, ensuring commercial decisions are aligned with technical feasibility, programme objectives and long-term operational needs.

Locations
The successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. When selecting your location listed in this job advert please be aware that this will be your contractual base location with a requirement to spend a minimum of 60% of your working time in this organisational workplace.

Your time spent on official duties at workplace locations other than your contractual office such as supplier, customer or partner locations required to perform your role is included in the 60% attendance.

This requirement will however take into consideration any reasonable adjustments agreed upon appointment for people with a disability, flexibilities agreed for those with specific caring responsibilities, or other similar temporary flexibilities.

Person specification

The successful candidate will:

• Act as a trusted commercial advisor to the Synergy Programme and future Synergy Shared Services Hub, providing expert guidance on the Enterprise Resource Planning Platform and System Integration Services Agreement.
• Partner closely with the Operational Contract Management team to deliver a commercially effective and value-driven transformation. Aligning commercial and operational strategies to maximise programme success.
• Support the Grade 6 in leading complex commercial change activities under the Model Services Contract with ERP and SI suppliers.
• Take ownership of high-impact commercial negotiations that shape future service performance and value.
• Design, develop and deliver commercial training to strengthen understanding of contractual procedures across the Programme.
• Own and maintain the commercial pipeline for all current and future activities under the ERP/SI Agreement. Providing visibility, control and forward-planning for strategic commercial delivery.
• Work collaboratively with Synergy workstreams to lead and manage end-to-end procurement activities as required. Driving sourcing strategies that are compliant, competitive and aligned to programme needs.
• Identify, assess and mitigate commercial and legal risks across procurements and contracts.
• Ensure all commercial policies, governance processes and functional standards are followed whilst promoting best practice, consistency and high-quality delivery across the commercial lifecycle.
• Build strong relationships across government, particularly within the Cabinet Office shared services strategy and clustering model.
• Support the G6 lead by aligning cross-cluster activity and sharing best practice and lessons learned from Synergy activities.
• Act as a role model for the Government Commercial Organisation, championing the expected behaviours and ways of working.
• Ensure supplier cost-saving targets are achieved and lead initiatives that increase efficiency while maintaining performance and managing risk.
• Provide commercial insight, challenge and support to stakeholders across the Programme and wider organisation.
• Deliver accurate, transparent and robust commercial analysis with clear recommendations to senior decision-makers. Ensuring decisions are grounded in whole-life value, risk understanding and strategic alignment.
• Play a key role in embedding a culture of continuous improvement across the Category and wider Commercial Directorate.

Membership of a professional body such as the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply CIPS Level 4 or equivalent or willingness to work towards.

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Uses strong analytical judgment to shape commercial strategy, solve complex issues, and convert detailed information into clear insights that drive high-quality decisions and long-term value.
• Ability to deliver commercial strategies based on market analysis, deep understanding of business needs; ability to identify commercial trade-offs, understanding of suppliers strengths/ weakness and cost drivers.
• Proven ability to deliver positive commercial outcomes in complex programmes with competing priorities. Shows resilience, resolves challenges collaboratively, and keeps teams focused to maintain progress even in difficult circumstances.
• Quickly builds trust/credibility with stakeholders. Works collaboratively with diverse teams, builds consensus, supports collective decisions. Skilled in securing buy-in to strategies, fostering strong relationships with suppliers/delivery partners.
• Has proven experience managing high-value, strategically important contracts in complex environments. Builds strong supplier relationships while maintaining firm commercial challenge to drive effective outcomes.

Benefits

As a valued employee of the Government Commercial Organisation (GCO), you will have access to all the benefits the centre has to offer; including flexible working, generous benefits, Career Coaches, Mentors, L&D, a Commercial College, active talent management and, most importantly, access to commercial projects that will far exceed the scale and complexity on offer elsewhere in the UK.

For existing Civil Servants: For full details of the impact on any move across the civil service on your existing terms and conditions, please read the candidate pack. Please note that any move across the Civil Service may have implications on your ability to continue to claim childcare vouchers.

Kindly refer to the following link for the GCF Rewards and benefits page.

https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/gcf-benefits/

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

Your application will be reviewed by a panel and should you be successful at sift we will invite you to attend a Virtual commercial Assessment and Development Centre (VADC). The panel will review results of the VADC and determine which candidates will go through to a subsequent final panel interview. Please note: Only candidates that achieve an A grade at ADC will be invited to interview for this role.

Please be advised that the Virtual ADC is taking place on Wednesday 6th May 2026 and will require a full day's attendance.

If you are invited to attend a virtual ADC, but for any reason are unable to meet the date outlined then please get in touch with the team on commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible. The ADC is booked and paid for in advance by departments, therefore it is only in certain circumstances we are able to accommodate alternative dates.

For full details of our process, and a likely timeline, please read the attached candidate pack.

Throughout our selection process, we will make decisions about your capability to do the job, based on evidence you provide against the Technical Skills (essential criteria) and your Job History (CV) that you will be asked to provide during the application process. Further help and advice on our application and selection process can be found at this web address https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/gcf-how-to-apply/

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.

Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/artificial-intelligence-and-re…
IMPORTANT: If you do not receive an acknowledgement of your application within 2 working days please contact: commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Marina Dura
• Email : commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, you should direct this to the Head of Commercial Resourcing Hub at the following email commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk quoting the vacancy reference number (if applicable) and the details of your complaint. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission via the following web page: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitm…

Attachments

454448 - Commercial Lead - Enterprise Resource Planning Platform and System Integration Services - DWP.docx Opens in new window (pdf, 1429kB)Guaranteed Interview Schemes Opens in new window (pdf, 70kB)