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Job summary

As a Senior Commercial Officer, you will report to a Commercial Manager at Grade 7. You will support and lead the commercial delivery of medium- to high-value and medium- to high-risk projects, typically ranging from £100k to £5m. This will include procurements and contract and supplier management within a market-facing category team, covering the full commercial lifecycle.

Job description

The successful candidate will support the commercial delivery of procurement, contract management and supplier management activity across a market-facing category team. They will work with customers, suppliers and stakeholders to deliver value for money, manage commercial risk and support effective outcomes throughout the commercial lifecycle.

Procurement planning and delivery

• Prepare initial procurement strategies and contribute to business plans.
• Plan and manage market engagement activities.
• Prepare pre-tender and tender documentation in collaboration with customers.
• Run tender exercises in line with the Public Contracts Regulations and manage evaluation processes.
• Prepare recommendations on tender outcomes, including Contract Award Reports, for approval through Governance Boards.
• Prepare contract management documentation in collaboration with stakeholders.

Stakeholder and supplier relationships

• Build and maintain effective relationships with suppliers to support strong performance on cost, service and quality.
• Build and maintain effective relationships with internal customers and wider stakeholders.

Commercial advice, governance and risk

• Provide day-to-day advice and recommendations on commercial risks, issues and governance across the relevant category.
• Identify and manage risk, make use of commercial opportunities, and maximise value for money and savings.

Contract and grant delivery

• Support the delivery of contracts or grants, ensuring sustainable impacts and opportunities are identified and managed throughout the commercial lifecycle.

Line management

• Some roles will include line management responsibilities for Commercial Officers, including setting objectives, managing performance, and supporting learning and development.

Person specification

We are looking for candidates who are developing their commercial experience and can apply it confidently in a varied and complex environment. You should be able to challenge and influence customers and stakeholders, build strong working relationships, and develop innovative solutions to commercial challenges.

You will value delivering a high-quality professional service with clear, measurable outcomes. You will also enjoy contributing to a positive team culture and supporting colleagues to deliver expert outcomes that are valued by customers.

Essential experience and skills

• Leading or supporting the delivery of projects, including procurements and/or the management of contracts or suppliers to achieve successful outcomes.
• Building positive working relationships with colleagues, customers and suppliers, including influencing and challenging constructively to secure the best outcome.
• Understanding regulatory frameworks, ideally with some exposure to the Public Contracts Regulations, and working within agreed policies and processes.
• Delivering improved ways of working, business change or efficiencies.
• Proactively identifying risks and issues, and developing plans to manage or mitigate them.
• Attending, and potentially chairing, meetings to support decision-making, including setting agendas, leading items, and recording actions and decisions.
• Presenting conclusions and making evidence-based recommendations using analysed information, including financial information.

Development and qualifications

• Holding, or being prepared to work towards, a CIPS Level 6 qualification.

Behaviours

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

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

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Leadership

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £42,665, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £12,360 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).

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

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 and Experience.

Application Process

• As part of the application process, you will need to submit a CV, a 500-word personal statement, and a 250-word statement on the Leadership behaviour. Further details are provided on the application form.

• Your CV and personal statement will be scored together.

• In your personal statement, use up to 500 words to describe how your relevant experience meets the required essential criteria , and how you would apply this experience in the role if successful. You should also provide a separate 250-word statement outlining your experience against the Leadership behaviour.

• You must show that your experience meets the listed requirements.

Sift

Should a large number of applications be received, there will be an initial sift assessing the Personal Statement. Those who pass the initial sift will be progressed either to a full sift or straight to interview.

Sift and interview dates are to be confirmed.

Interview

If successful at the application stage, you will be invited to an interview where you will be assessed on the Behaviours listed and Experience.

Interviews to be held via MS Teams.

Location

We are recruiting for two positions, one in the north and one in the South. The available office locations are:

North Region: Warrington

South Region: Worthing or Reading

Please indicate your preferred locations when applying.

• As part of the pre-employment process for this post, successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. The agreed contractual workplace is then the substantive and permanent place of work for the successful candidate(s).
• Where the location is ‘National’ the successful appointee should discuss and agree an appropriate contractual location in line with both Defra’s location policy and site capacity, prior to proceeding with pre-employment processes.
• The agreed amount of time spent at a workplace for this post will reflect the requirement for Civil Servants to spend at least 60% of their working time in an organisation workplace with the option to work the remaining time flexibly from home. Working time spent at a workplace may include time spent at other organisational locations including field-based operational locations, together with supplier, customer or partner locations. This is a non-contractual agreement which is consistent with common Civil Service expectations.
• Travel costs to non-contractual workplaces will be subject to departmental travel and subsistence policies. Travel costs to contractual workplaces are the responsibility of the employee.
• The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time.
• Defra includes the core department, APHA, RPA, Cefas and VMD.

Reserve List

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Near Miss

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions within Defra Group which may be at a lower grade but have a potential skills match.

Merit Lists

Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be posted in merit order by location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.

Salary

New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. The internal roles rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to DEFRA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website.

Reasonable Adjustment

• If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
• If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact Government Recruitment Service via defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ 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.

Accessibility

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Visa Sponsorship Statement

Please take note that Defra does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship.

Criminal Record Check

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Internal Fraud Database Check

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

Feedback

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

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 : HR Resourcing Delivery
• Email : HRResourcingDelivery@defra.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : defrarecruitment.grs@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, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: defrarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: here

Attachments

Defra 2022 Core Candidate Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 1518kB)