Category Lead

**Details**:
**Reference number**:

- 305320**Salary**:

- £65,500 - £73,000- GCO Pension, GCO Terms. Up to 15% performance-related-pay available on accreditation.**Job grade**:

- Grade 7- Commercial Lead**Contract type**:

- Permanent**Business area**:

- GCF - Department for International Trade - Department for Business and Trade**Type of role**:

- Commercial**Working pattern**:

- Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time, Compressed Hours**Number of jobs available**:

- 1Contents

Location

About the job

**Benefits**:
Things you need to know

Location
- Cardiff, LondonAbout the job

**Job summary**:
Building a strong Commercial Function in Government, and with it the right commercial capability, is at the heart of a far-reaching programme of Civil Service reform.

We are building a cadre of commercial talent in all Government departments; people who can manage our commercial portfolios, who can lead our most complex and novel programmes and projects, people who have the gravitas and depth of experience to work alongside our policy and operational leaders to develop innovative commercial arrangements, whether through joint ventures, outsourcing or best-in-class contracts.

We have already made significant progress through the establishment of the Government Commercial Organisation (GCO), our single employer of senior commercial talent across government. This role will sit within the GCO, but based in our Department for Business and Trade commercial team delivering departmental objectives.

**Job description**:
We are recruiting 1 Category Lead role for our **Corporate Services, Marketing and Events Category.**

The primary responsibility for this role is a proactive commercial lead that can martial many senior (SCS) stakeholders with confidence. In addition to the traditional roles within category management, contract management (set out below in key responsibilities) and executing the procurement of goods and services for the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) that deliver value for money, are compliant with procurement law, and which demonstrate best commercial and procurement practice, the individual should demonstrate pragmatic commercial approach to achieve best value in the context of the current evolving UK economic position. This requires someone who is diligent, and detail orientated as direct routes to market may require negotiation (suppliers are being opportunistic): they need to understand our buyer leverage and which x-HMG / senior levers to pull. Experience of consultancy category desirable (understanding different consultancies pricing structures, drivers, strengths, weaknesses, tactics) but we can lean heavily on CCS and Cabinet Office for this so not essential.

Influencing business strategy to deliver the best commercial outcomes is an important part of this role which requires proactive engagement and influencing to assist the DBT business unit in achieving its objectives. Challenging key stakeholder direction and decisions where appropriate is a key attribute of this role but always, crucially, by working collaboratively. Pre-market engagement will be a further vital element, ensuring that suppliers and supply markets are utilised and prepared to deliver maximum value for money.

Leveraging their procurement and contract management expertise the post holder, in addition to being flexible in approach and willing to quickly re-deploy within the Commercial Function dependent upon business requirements/needs will be expected to develop an understanding of, and provide leadership across, the Corporate Services, Marketing and Events categories of spend.

The post holder is responsible for owning category data, setting category strategies, and leading on all aspects of commercial activity relating to the categories.

The post holder is responsible for contract management of several strategically important contracts on behalf of the department. Liaising with senior stakeholders across the business, the post holder will ensure the contracts remain aligned to business demand and that timely, accurate and relevant insights and MI are produced. This includes ensuring robust supplier management, standards setting, payments management, negotiation and issue management. For contracts owned by the business then the post holder is responsible for supporting professional contract management in the business.

The post holder shall be expected to identify areas where economies, efficiency, or effectiveness of spend in the category may be improved. Driven by this insight they will be responsible for designing and leading strategic sourcing work to procure the required services.

**Experience of Corporate Services, Marketing and Events Category Management is desirable**; however previous category experience in this specific category is not essential. What is essential is previous commercial experience which has helped deliver great customer outcomes and great value solutions.**

**Person