The Government Commercial Organisation is an employer which is truly committed to creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and are able to perform to their potential. We understand the importance of diversity and inclusion and strive for a workplace that reflects the communities which we serve. We especially welcome applications from underrepresented groups including Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates, candidates with a disability and candidates with gender-diverse identities. Appointments will be made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.
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
The Department for Business and Trade includes a Commercial team whose responsibilities are procurement and the sale / account management of sponsorship rights. This role is responsible for leading the latter with 2 other Deputy Directors leading on the procurement side. This role involves setting the sales strategy for events with stakeholders and then delivering on it, including engaging both previous and new sponsors to Government. These events include both those led by the Department for Business and Trade and also events led by other Government departments.
DBT’s Commercial Function has seen significant advancement since its inception 6 years ago, including winning Best Government Commercial Team award and achieving consistently high staff engagement scores. This role is key in ensuring the continued development of the function as it addresses future challenges.
Person specification
Commercial Team Leadership
1. Ensure all commercial sponsorship arrangements represent value for money and optimize the decision for taxpayers and departmental business owners. Be accountable for this to internal audit, internal governance bodies and the Accounting Officer.
2. Lead and manage a team of commercial sponsorship professionals and ensure their output contributes directly and aligns to the Department’s priorities and objectives, including the management of public money and delivery of value for money.
3. Continue to develop and change processes and systems to ensure excellence across the commercial sponsorship life-cycle, including pre-sponsorship market engagement, deal-making, and contract management.
4. Make sure that all members of the sponsorship team within Commercial are appropriately trained, qualified and experienced to make sound commercial judgements so that contracts are let and managed to deliver value for money.
5. Maintain and enhance the DBT Commercial team’s supportive and inclusive culture and ensure high staff engagement.
6. Own CRM system and data quality, ensuring that the CRM system and records are maintained in line with our obligations.
7. Act as deputy for the Commercial Director as required in GCO and DBT governance forums.
Wider Responsibilities
8. Sit on the Commercial Director’s leadership group and various cross-Government groups as the DBT commercial representative.
9. Support the DBT Chief Operating Officer, Commercial Director and Government’s Chief Commercial Officer on cross Government commercial initiatives.
10. Be amongst the most senior members of the Government Commercial Function and play a role in the broader commercial reform programme led by the Government Chief Commercial Officer.
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
11. Manages Complexity : Ability to communicate complex commercial and contractual concepts clearly and concisely.
12. Market Insigh t: Understands the marketplace and strategically influences the requirement, challenging wants over needs and seeking innovative solutions.
13. Builds Relationships : Proven ability to build effective senior stakeholder relationships across multiple functional areas.
14. Coaching Manager : The ability to support the development of others through sharing technical knowledge, coaching and mentoring.
15. Strategy and Policy Development : Demonstrate commercial expertise and business acumen resulting in appropriate and innovative strategies to deliver on required business outcomes, whilst achieving value for money.
Benefits
As a valued employee of the Government Commercial Organisation (GCO), you will have access to all the benefits the centre has to offer; including flexible working, generous benefits, Career Coaches, Mentors, L&D, a Commercial College, active talent management and, most importantly, access to commercial projects that will far exceed the scale and complexity on offer elsewhere in the UK.
For existing Civil Servants: For full details of the impact on any move across the civil service on your existing terms and conditions, please read the candidate pack. Please note that any move across the Civil Service may have implications on your ability to continue to claim childcare vouchers.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.
Please be advised that the Virtual ADC is taking place on 6th November and will require a full day's attendance. Please contact in advance if you are unable to attend this date.
Details of schemes available are attached in the advert.
For full details of our process, and a likely timeline, please read the explanation provided in the attached candidate pack.
Throughout our selection process, we will make decisions about your capability to do the job, based on evidence you provide against the essential criteria for the role which are detailed in the attached Candidate Pack.
Your application will be reviewed by a panel and should you be successful at sift we will invite you to attend a Virtual commercial Assessment and Development Centre (VADC). The panel will review results of the VADC and determine which candidates will go through to a subsequent final panel interview.
IMPORTANT: If you do not receive an acknowledgement of your application within 2 working days please contact:
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.
As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
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
16. The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
17. 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).
18. 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.
19. 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.