Lead Supplier Manager

Job summary

Would like to grow your career and have a challenging role where you deliver and inspire change on a large scale?

Do you have experience of working in a procurement and financial environment across a range of stakeholders and enjoy building relationships?

Do you have experience in gathering requirements for supplier engagements and an understanding of financial information and ensuring value?

The Department for Work and Pensions deliver services and products that impact some of the most vulnerable people in society. We’re looking for people who are as motivated by that unique purpose as we are.

As a Lead Supplier Manager at DWP Digital, you will be instrumental in building and managing effective supplier relationships and manage procurement and financial processes. You’ll work with senior stakeholders to ensure agreements deliver value for money and support vital public services. In this leadership position, you will guide supplier management strategy and set standards across your team, ensuring all contracts align with Departmental goals.

You’ll oversee financial reporting and supplier management for Digital Fraud and Error, supporting senior leaders with planning, budgeting, and governance activities, including winter planning and Spending Review cycles.

As the Lead Supplier Manager, you will head a newly established team of four, setting its direction and empowering members to shape and advance the team's progress. You will lead the team to deliver high-quality outcomes across a portfolio of digital contracts.

Job description

As a Digital Lead Supplier Manager, you will be responsible for implementing procurement and governance strategies for an area of DWP Digital.

You will guide a new team central to delivering Government priorities on Digital Fraud and Error. Your role involves working closely with key stakeholders, building strong relationships, and ensuring procurement activities offer best value for money. You will oversee supplier management, own the cost models, support the team with complex issues, and drive high standards in all work.

Clear planning and adherence to governance will be vital, making sure all commercial agreements are efficient and effective. You will play a key part in linking team actions to successful project delivery, ensuring all processes meet DWP and Government standards. This is a strategic role, offering the chance to shape outcomes and deliver real impact.

Your key responsibilities will be, but not limited to:

• Provide leadership and set clear direction for your supplier management team within the Digital organisation.
• Shape and deliver the supplier management strategy across Digital Fraud and Error, ensuring team activities match overall business aims.
• You will lead the for major/complex contracts (including those over £10m, ranging from and Bronze to Gold levels), from gathering requirements through the ITT process to contract placement.
• Take charge of key tools and systems used for managing suppliers and improve them as needed.
• Ensure social responsibility and environmental goals are part of every stage of buying and working with suppliers.
• Manage all financial aspects of supplier contracts, including budgets, forecasts, and changes, ensuring careful and responsible handling.
• Work on projects to improve how well contracts are delivered and make sure they stay within budget.
• Build strong relationships with suppliers and partners (Commercial, Finance, Policy/Strategy and delivery teams) to unblock issues quickly.
• Set and maintain internal governance processes and manage project risks and issues, ensuring timely visibility and resolution.
• Lead recruitment and workforce planning to make sure the team can meet its objectives.
• Act as a source of advice and guidance on supplier management for the wider Digital community.

Person specification

See selection process for further details.

If you would like to learn more about the role, please contact natalie.selby1@dwp.gov.uk.

Technical skills

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

• Commercial Management

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £57,946, Department for Work and Pensions contributes £16,786 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We also have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:

• Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
• Generous annual leave – at least 25 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro–rata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave.
• Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme.
• Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly).
• Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year’s continuous service.
• Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes.
• An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women’s Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.

Hybrid Working

This role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work.

If a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for the role and for you, you will normally be required to spend a minimum of 60% of your contracted working hours from your DWP office.

If you have a disability, caring responsibilities, or other circumstances that may affect your ability to meet the minimum office attendance requirement, please discuss this with us using the contact details in this advert.

Salary Information

New entrants to the Civil Service will join on band minimum.

Existing Civil Servants who secure a new role on lateral transfer should maintain their current salary.

Existing Civil Servants who gain promotion will move to the bottom of the grade pay scale or receive a 10% increase in salary, whichever is greater.

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.

Stage 1: Application

Your application will consist of four parts:

1. A Personal Details application form.

2. Employment history - this should contain your work experience and any skills, qualifications and accomplishments relevant to the jobs you have completed.

3. Personal statement - up to 750 words. This statement should be used to provide examples of how you meet the essential criteria below:

• Significant demonstrable experience in the development, implementation, and evaluation of robust supplier management strategies, project governance, and planning, leading to effective delivery and quantifiable improvements in supplier performance.
• Influential with extensive evidence in developing strong strategic relationships/networks within teams and across the wider organisation and the confidence and professional credibility to influence Director level colleagues.
• Extensive experience and proven track record in leading a team on procurement activities for major complex initiatives ensuring business needs are met and Digital sustainability requirements are incorporated.
• Proven ability and experience of delivering at pace, managing and prioritising tasks in a fast-paced agile working environment.

4. Technical statement (up to 250 words). The following statement is aligned to the required technical skill of Commercial Management. This statement should be used to provide example(s) of how you meet the criterion below:

• Commercially minded with demonstrable experience in planning, governance and financial performance management and compliance using digital tools, financial modelling, and scenario analysis for strategic decisions in complex environments.

Ensure that all examples provided in your statements are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. If you choose to use gen-AI to support your statements, you must follow the guidelines outlined in the Artificial intelligence and recruitment guide.

The sift panel will use the information in your employment history, personal statement, and technical statement to assess your experience, skills and knowledge.

An initial sift will be conducted using the technical statement. Candidates who pass the initial sift will be progressed to a full sift.

If you do progress to a full sift, you will be provided with one combined overall assessment score for both your employment history and Personal Statement.

For Hints and Tips on completing your application visit Applying for jobs at DWP Digital.

Applications will be sifted at regular intervals from the date the posts are advertised. Please apply as soon as you can, do not wait until the end of the campaign.

Important Information

• You will be asked to complete your employment history. Any information that you would customarily share on a CV should therefore be entered onto the application form.
• Personal details that could be used to identify you including your name, contact details and address must be removed for your application to be considered.
• If your employment history, personal statement or technical statement contain any personal details your application will be withdrawn.

Stage 2: Interview

If you’re successful at the sift stage, you’ll be invited to a video interview via Microsoft Teams. During the interview, you’ll be assessed against the experience criteria listed under both the essential and technical skill.

Interviews will take place from mid February 2026. Interview dates to be confirmed.

Other information:

If high application volumes are received, the benchmark for candidates to proceed to the next stage may be raised. In line with our commitment to the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS), we aim to advance all candidates applying under the DCS who meet the minimum standard. However, we may only progress those candidates who best meet the required standards.

All successful candidates and those placed on reserve will be posted in merit list order by location.

For these vacancies, we strongly recommend that applicants consult with an immigration specialist or qualified advisor to assess their eligibility for Visa Sponsorship before deciding to apply. Please note that while we consider sponsorship requests in accordance with current DWP guidance and Home Office policy, sponsorship cannot be guaranteed.

Reasonable Adjustment

At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.

We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: Contact Government Recruitment Service via DigitalRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the “Reasonable Adjustments” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

For further information on reasonable adjustments, terms and conditions and how we recruit visit the How we recruit page.

Find out more about Working for DWP

A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made.

Reserve list candidates will be posted in merit order by location.

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a 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.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 : Natalie Selby
• Email : natalie.selby1@dwp.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : DigitalRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles. If you wish to make a complaint, please find further details here: https://careers.dwp.gov.uk/how-we-recruit/.

Attachments

DWP Terms and Conditions January 2024 Opens in new window (docx, 17kB)Success-Profiles-Candidate-Overview Opens in new window (pdf, 635kB)