Commercial Manager (Ref: 23708)

Job summary

This position is based Nationally

Job description

Job Title Commercial Manager
Job Grade SEO
Job Location National
Contract Type Permanent
Business Area Ministry of Justice Commercial
Working pattern Full-time
Number of Posts 15

Commercial

The Ministry of Justice has one of the largest and most complex spending profiles in central government. Each year we spend more than £5 billion with our suppliers and it’s our job to help coordinate the sourcing of what we need. We support the management of our contracts across the department, its agencies and non departmental public bodies.

Commercial is responsible for coordinating procurement and contract management across the MoJ, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies. Commercial is organised into category teams, each with an interesting portfolio of contracts and diverse customers and suppliers to manage. We also have systems, programme management office, supplier relationship and risk management teams who work across all areas.

Role Summary

In this role you will contribute to delivering commercial excellence for the department, providing a customer-focused service, understanding the business need and stakeholder drivers, with the aim of becoming a trusted commercial advisor. You will also develop relationships with the department’s key and strategic suppliers, driving ‘value for money’ and risk management excellence across the category. You will lead and own elements of the overall commercial lifecycle, including strategy and policy development, understanding needs and sourcing options, contract and supplier management and the procurement process itself.

You will work both independently and part of a larger team by drawing on your commercial experience to drive performance and manage setbacks. You will be able to prioritise and manage your own workload to deliver to deadlines, mitigate and escalate any emerging risks and to respond swiftly to changing operational demands.

This role is designed to be flexible and may support a broad range of commercial activity across the organisation. The postholder will contribute to contract management, procurement and wider commercial delivery in line with business priorities.
This role requires flexibility, and you may work across different pieces of work over time to meet changing business needs and priorities.

Why Join Us?
• Be part of a team that helps deliver important services for the justice system
• Work on interesting projects and help make a difference
• Get support and training to develop your skills

Key Responsibilities

These roles are varied, and individual remit is subject to both size of category, and/or all levels of complexity, value and risk. Typically, key responsibilities for a commercial professional in this role may include (but are not limited to):

Strategic delivery and management within a category:
• Understanding the department’s commercial strategy and feeding into the planning process based on commercial approaches that deliver requirements in line with business needs, category strategies and market trends
• Feeding into the development of category strategies and delivery of sourcing requirement within commercial, as part of the team supporting business as usual and project activities
• Understanding demand by forecasting and planning requirements with internal stakeholders and suppliers
• Developing and maintaining category plans for key spend areas

Understanding relevant sourcing options and analysis, delivering positive outcomes through the procurement process:
• Leading on end-to-end strategic sourcing activities for the department and serving as a subject matter expert
• Working with key stakeholders to develop a clear and agreed view of business requirements, and supporting business units in articulating their commercial requirements
• Advising and providing professional guidance throughout the sourcing process, considering and evaluating a range of sourcing models
• Leading development of commercial input into business cases, demonstrating a project's benefits, ‘value for money’ and risk
• Influencing and shaping future procurement policy and standards across the department
• Identifying opportunities to develop collaborative partnerships with suppliers
• Providing a procurement service to the department which delivers demonstrable ‘value for money’ and compliant goods and services contracts as part of a team of procurement professionals on larger procurement activities, including driving productivity opportunities with existing supply base to deliver further savings
• Negotiating with third parties where necessary, using knowledge and experience relating to commercial negotiation techniques
• Understanding and being accountable for sourcing compliance and frameworks

Ensuring effective Commercial Contract and Supplier Management within the category:
• Evaluating the performance of suppliers against the specification and reporting regularly
• Actively contributing to the management of the supply chain portfolio, including the development and implementation of supply chain and supplier relationship strategies
• Acting as commercial lead, managing one or more complex contracts, ensuring effective stakeholder management, governance, performance management frameworks, escalation, risk management, issues resolution, financial management, change control and compliance
• Developing and maintaining positive commercial relationships with the supply chain to maintain and enhance performance, improve service delivery and create additional value
• On an ongoing basis, tracking operation demand and patterns, introducing demand management mechanisms where applicable
• Analysing and assessing supplier risk, understanding impact on contingency and business continuity, driving ‘value for money’ whilst protecting the department’s risk position
• Tracking and owning risks relating to specific contracts, taking steps to mitigate commercial risks

Building and maintaining key relationships across the department and with important external stakeholders:
• Developing effective working relationships with supplier organisations to establish appropriate governance and relationship arrangements, ensuring the effective management of clarifications and change requests
• Provision of commercial advice to stakeholders on all aspects of commercial
• Engaging, where required, with the relevant senior business lead, ensuring that business requirements are supported by category strategies

Enabling and developing the department:
• Championing procurement best practice and working collaboratively with others to create a proactive and intelligent function
• Contributing to the maintenance and updating of systems throughout the procurement lifecycle
• Managing catalogues and commercial content, and maybe responsible for owning key aspects of this
• Working with key stakeholders to promote the use of catalogues
• Playing a role in building capability of new starters and those on development programmes

In addition:
• Mentoring and providing guidance to junior members of the team
• Working within a secure environment on sensitive projects as required
• Some of the roles may involve line management

As part of your own personal career development in the Commercial team, there could be opportunities to move roles at the same grade. In some circumstances, we may need to move you on to business-critical priorities at the same grade to meet business need.

Essential Criteria

Commercial Focus: Has good experience within a procurement, commercial or buying role. Has a good understanding of the principles of end-to-end commercial lifecycle management, and sourcing and procurement methodologies. Evidence of leading and securing ‘value for money’ in a commercial environment. Has strong commercial knowledge, understands commercial law and can use key commercial tools appropriately

Risk and Assurance Management: Demonstrates the ability to manage cyber, personnel and physical risks within an area of responsibility

Commercial Ethics: Demonstrates the ability to apply standards to eliminate corruption, fraud and unethical behaviour in supply chains, taking appropriate actions in the event of any alleged breach of standards

Team Focus: Demonstrates the ability to work as part of a team to support their performance, manage setbacks and resolve issues internally

Build Relationships: Demonstrates the ability to communicate with stakeholders at all levels using different communication styles to articulate the benefits that have been achieved and to establish governance and relationship arrangements

Desirable Criteria

• Working knowledge of systems, e.g. Oracle and/or Jaggaer (Bravo)
• Awareness and understanding of public sector commercial principles and legislation
• Awareness of public sector commercial legislation
• Candidates must have one of the following or a willingness to work towards gaining the appropriate qualification in commercial management profession - CIPS, World CC or similar

Application Stage

An initial sift will be performed against the following elements and will be assessed against the Civil Service success profiles framework:

Experience
• CV
• 2 Experience questions (500 words each)

• Describe a procurement, contract management and/or a wider activity you personally led or influenced. What commercial risks did you manage, how did you achieve value for money, and what evidence demonstrates the outcome?
• Detail a time you delivered a positive, commercial or an activity/project outcome in a complex or fast-paced environment. Explain how you managed stakeholders, balanced competing priorities, and what was achieved as a result.

Behaviour
• Making Effective Decisions - Describe a time you have made or recommended a significant commercial/project decision where multiple senior stakeholders held differing views. Describe how you assessed the available information and evidence, and how you considered risks and opportunities to reach your decision, as well as the outcome and impact of your actions.

If shortlisted, you will be invited to an interview and will be assessed on the selected success profile elements at the interview stage.

Interview stage

There is one interview stage for this vacancy which will be held remotely and as part of the interview process you will be required to provide evidence on the following, and will be assessed against the Civil Service success profiles framework:

Experience
1 question on your experience which will be around the job description/essential criteria

Behaviours

• Making Effective Decisions
• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Communicating and Influencing

Strengths maybe assessed at the interview, and these are not shared in advance.

To learn more about the Civil Service success profiles framework and how they are assessed please click here.

Commercial Roles

New entrants are expected to join on the pay minimum. Higher starting salary and / or Recruitment & Retention Allowance may be available for successful candidates with exceptional skills and experience.

We will consider applications from non-qualified candidates, who are willing to develop and work towards a recognised qualification in order to meet the full requirements of the role.

The specialist allowance may apply to fully qualified applicants with a commercial professional qualification, for example CIPS, World CC, etc.

Further details can be provided during the recruitment process

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Behaviours

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

• Making Effective Decisions
• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Communicating and Influencing

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £42,914, Ministry of Justice contributes £12,432 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

• Access to learning and development
• A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options to enhance your work life balance
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• Annual Leave
• Public Holidays
• Season Ticket Advance

For more information about the recruitment process, benefits and allowances and answers to general queries, please click the below link which will direct you to our Candidate Information Page.

Link: https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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 Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.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.

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.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 : SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk
• Telephone : 0345 241 5359

Recruitment team

• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitm…

https://jobs.justice.gov.uk/careers/JobDetail/23708?entityId=23708