Senior Commercial Manager - Buildings and Estates

Job summary

The NCA Commercial Function offers a unique opportunity to
contribute directly to protecting the public from serious and
organised crime. Working at the heart of the Agency, the Commercial
team partners with all operational and corporate areas to deliver
high‑quality commercial support across policy, planning, strategy
development, sourcing, and contract management.

These fascinating and challenging positions roles sit at the centre of
the NCA’s commercial multi-year transformation programme, giving
you the opportunity to influence how the Agency procures vital goods
and services that underpin its mission. The experience and exposure
you gain within these roles is unmatched across the civil service.
Please note that the role may require occasional travel to other NCA
sites and partner premises.

This Commercial role is specific to Buildings & Estates.

Job description

As Senior Commercial Manager you will be responsible for providing
strategic commercial expertise across the full procurement and
contract management lifecycle. This role leads the development of
robust commercial strategies, ensures compliance with government
procurement regulations, and drives value for money through
effective market engagement, sourcing, negotiation, and supplier
management.

You will oversee complex and high‑value procurements, guide and
support commercial colleagues, and work collaboratively with senior
stakeholders to shape commercial decisions that enable
organisational objectives. The role requires strong commercial
judgment, leadership, and the ability to balance competing priorities
in a fast‑paced environment.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and early involvement in customer requirements to shape delivery outcomes.
• Manage your category pipeline and live contracts via Atamis and all procurement activity to support the delivery of the category pipeline within your team
• Manage the lifecycle of large, complex contracts across all relevant categories, and the commercial management of key suppliers.
• Lead on the implementation of an integrated and new commercial culture within business areas, building trust and confidence, ensuring that the team meets current and future business needs, working in partnership with key stakeholders.
• Build relationships with and influence senior stakeholders to embed commercial acumen and deliver target outcomes. Advise, consult, and lead in the delivery of commercial solutions which realise measurable and obvious business value.
• Define, manage and monitor benefits realization including savings initiatives, innovation opportunities and encouraging supportive supplier behaviours.
• Provide consistent and clear commercial advice and guidance to internal and external stakeholders and be a key point of contact to the wider agency.
  Provide expert advice on commercial risk management and deliver mitigation plans/strategies to manage identified risks at a corporate level.
• Lead your team to effectively carry out commercial assurance of requirements, taking stakeholders through all required governance, including compliance with the Cabinet Office Spend Controls and NCA Commercial Assurance Board.
• Mentor and coach team members on policies, procedures, practices and techniques equipping them with the knowledge and skills required to deliver their work and develop their careers successfully.
• Build a Commercial network of shared expertise, engaging and collaborating with other government departments and statutory bodies, to achieve continuous improvements and collaborative commercial outcomes.

Person specification

You will have experience of successfully managing complex building contracts, have significant procurement experience and managed teams. You will have the ability to explain complex issues to non-specialists, ensuring buy-in to your plans.

You will be flexible, will the mindset and skillset to work in any of our Commercial teams at this grade.

You will need to be able to demonstrate the below in the role:

Business Acumen

• Analyses risks and understands margins of error in developing recommendations.

• Identifies and resolves problems when the data is not sufficient.

• Understands trade-offs that need to be made in their area of work.

• Articulates commercial motivations and expected behaviours of stakeholders, suppliers and networks.

• Leads on securing value for money through achieving a good return on investment on commercial projects.

• Involves the right stakeholders and partners in making recommendations or decisions early on and continues to engage them.

• Applies commercial principles within the boundaries of contract law.

• Resolves legal issues in collaboration with experts.

• Uses analysis to make effective decisions and can articulate key risks.

• Presents conclusions when given evidence and is able to evaluate the relative strengths to confidently make good decisions.

Leadership

• Demonstrates resilience in resolving issues internally and in helping the team to deal with setbacks

• Implements change at a local level, working with affected parties to identify and overcome challenges

• Manages stakeholders and communicates with impact

• Influences internal decisions and leads discussions with suppliers, engaging well on technical issues and terms and conditions

• Is trusted for commercial advice and is able to put technical considerations in plain language for stakeholders

• Adapts quickly to different environments, and uses different communications styles depending upon the needs of the particular audience

• Builds confidence in teams, encouraging them to develop and improve

• Understands, at local level, the team’s strengths, skill gaps and individual career aspirations and actively seeks to build capability

• Promotes knowledge and resource sharing within their team

• Works with stakeholders and communicates standards to eliminate corruption, fraud and unethical behaviour in supply chains, taking appropriate actions in the event of any alleged breach of standards

Desirable Criteria

Desirable criteria are only used for assessment in the event of a tie break.

CIPS/ MCIPS or relevant Commercial qualification and experience including the management / procurement of JCT contracts

Or a chartered Quantity Surveyor or Contract administrator with significant procurement experience

Behaviours

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

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
• Managing a Quality Service

Technical skills

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

• Evidence of influencing key stakeholders towards commercial solutions
• Evidence of leading and securing value for money

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £67,609, National Crime Agency contributes £19,586 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.

If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).

Other benefits include:

• Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements)
• Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
• Learning and Development opportunities
• Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
• Housing schemes - Key Worker status
• Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway , Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
• Staff support groups/networks
• Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC)

Further information is available on the NCA Website.

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, Experience and Technical skills.

Your application will be assessed against the following:

Technical - this will be assessed by 250 word examples on:

• Evidence of influencing key stakeholders towards commercial solutions

• Evidence of leading and securing value for money

Experience - This will be assessed:

CV

Please include your full career history, training, qualifications, key responsibilities, and achievements. Explain any employment gaps in the last two years. Ensure all accreditation dates are accurate.

Details of what is expected within you CV are as follows: Your CV should demonstrate experience of management of complex/high value contracts and procurements.

A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.

Longlist

In the event of a high number of applications, we may operate a longlist. Applicants will need to meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria.

- Evidence of influencing key stakeholders towards commercial solutions .

Candidates who do not meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria will not progress to having their other criteria assessed. Applications must meet the minimum criteria to be progressed to the assessment stage.

You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.

We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.

Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.

For guidance on the application process, visit:
NCA Applying and Onboarding

Assessment 1

The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.

Additional assessment methods used alongside Interview

As part of the assessment process In-Tray exercise will be required to assess the criteria outlined below:

The In-Tray exercise will be a technical task that will assess your evidence of influencing key stakeholders towards commercial solutions.

Success Profiles at Assessment

Behaviours

• Communicating and Influencing

• Making Effective Decisions

• Managing a Quality Service

Technical

• Evidence of influencing key stakeholders towards commercial solutions

• Evidence of leading and securing value for money

Assessment Outcome

Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal.
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months.
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.

In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order:

1. Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
2. If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised)
3. If still tied, application sift scores will be used

Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.

You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.

Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records.

We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.

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

Security

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.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 : The Recruitment Team
• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
• Telephone : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Further information

If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference).
If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission.