Contents Location About the job Benefits Things you need to know Apply and further information Location The successful candidate will be based at one of the following locations, Blackpool Peel Park, Brunel Way, Blackpool FY4 5ES, Leeds Quarry House, West Yorkshire, LS2 7UA, Manchester, 2 St Peters Square, Manchester, M2 3AA. About the job Job summary The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) touches the lives of everyone in the UK in some shape or form, delivering services and support to help people find work, assist with a disability or provide support through their retirement. As a key part of DWP, the Commercial Directorate (CD) shapes how services are delivered across their 3rd party contractual arrangements. Making the Difference Automated Buying, Business Services and External Resourcing (ABBSER) Category is a newly formed commercial team managing a wide portfolio of complex cross functional contracts within the DWP Business Services sub-category. The team is central to supporting the operation of DWP, delivering and managing necessary contracts, including Travel, Fleet, Occupational Health, Employee Support, and key Research contracts. The team also play a crucial role in shaping CDs future strategy and transformation, managing the delivery of existing Dynamic Purchasing Service (DPS) routes to market and supporting the drive to significantly increase levels of automated and self-service commercial routes. The teams focus is to shape the future direction of commercial enablement, working with commercial teams and purchase to pay experts to maximise the use of dynamic markets, and supporting the facilitation of DWP wider business to self-fulfil lower risk commercial requirements. What you can expect If you like to be challenged, youll feel at home with us in CD as were one of the largest Government Commercial functions, with stretching challenges and opportunities created by using latest Digital innovations to build on our reputation for pushing the Governments agenda in making a difference to the lives of our customers. Job description Your role will be an Associate Commercial Practitioner (HEO) within the sub-category Business Services Team in the wider ABBSER Category. The roles overriding responsibility is to support commercial activities across the sub-category encompassing the full commercial lifecycle. This includes supporting our internal stakeholders to determine our commercial strategies for future delivery of their services, supporting procurement activities and undertaking contract management, supplier performance and relationship management. We are seeking aspiring commercial professionals who are capable and enthusiastic individuals with relevant transferable skills looking to build a career in a commercial environment. You will need to be driven, dynamic and a proactive individual with experience of building collaborative working relationships; be able to identify problems, build creative solutions, improve ways of working and work towards ensuring commercially sound outcomes. Successful candidates will support CD in playing a crucial role in driving and supporting DWPs efficiency agenda, helping better control costs through third party spend. Person specification Your role will be supporting the procurement and contract management of a portfolio of contracts throughout the commercial lifecycle. Full training will be provided on all aspects of commercial activity. The main responsibilities for this position include, but are not restricted to: Supporting procurement activity for specific Business Service initiatives across the full commercial lifecycle (sourcing, contract, performance and relationship management). Provide commercial advice to a wide range of stakeholders to support colleagues with market engagement, sourcing, tendering and a wide range of procurement activities. Stakeholder Management / Engagement / Communication. Working with stakeholders at all levels (internal and external) to support the development of the Business Services strategy for commercial category initiatives. Create positive supplier relationships, encouraging innovation, creation of value add solutions, and a strong customer service ethic. Support the production and review on governance documents and processes for DWP Internal Governance alongside support to Ministerial, Treasury and Cabinet Office gated submissions. Develop and maintain compliant input and records of commercial activity on Microsoft Lists pipelines and DWPs eProcurement solution (which utilises Jaggaer ) within the scope of your daily role. Support the contributions towards supplier cost savings targets, and initiatives that increase efficiency whilst maintaining performance and risk management. Supporting the development, review and execution of contracts including supporting negotiation where required. Support stakeholder engagement surrounding more complex contract issues and procurement documents. Play an active part in supporting Commercial Directorate values and culture. ESSENTIAL SKILLS The application process will involve uploading a CV and Personal Statement. To be successful, you must demonstrate your experience matching ALL of the Essential Skills listed below. Further information under Application process. Stakeholder Management, Engagement & Communication Provide evidence of previous experience of working collaboratively across a range of stakeholders where you have gained buy-in using appropriate communication & influencing skills. Business Acumen & Judgement Provide evidence of how you have applied your insight and knowledge by analysing key management information and performance data to help you make a better decision. Leadership Provide evidence of how you have previously taken ownership to drive an issue forward within your team, including giving direction and feedback to colleagues that has produced positive results; include how you demonstrated personal resilience in resolving issues working with others in the team to manage setbacks. Attention to Detail Provide evidence of how your focus and attention to detail has enabled you to resolve an issue or negotiate a better outcome for your organisation. Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Communicating and Influencing Delivering at Pace Benefits Alongside your salary of £37,497, Department for Work and Pensions contributes £10,862 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 23 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (prorata 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 years 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 Womens Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more. This job role is suitable for hybrid working, 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. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business needs, but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be considered. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience. As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and Personal Statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form. Please apply on the Civil Service Jobs website. Stage 1 Assessment - Sift At sift, we will assess your application by using your CV and Personal Statement only. To be successful, you must demonstrate your experience matching ALL the Essential Skills listed in the job advert above. Stage 2 Assessment - Interview If you are successful at the sift stage, you will be invited to a video interview using MS Teams, where we will assess your relevant experience against the essential skills mentioned above and we will assess the Behaviours listed below. Communicating and Influencing. Delivering at Pace. Indicative Timeline Please note that the following dates are only indicative at this stage and could be subject to change. If you are unable to meet these time frames, please let us know in your application. Sifting Panel: Week commencing 25th November 2024. Final Panel Interviews: Week commencing 16th December 2024. Places for Growth and Social Mobility As part of the Places for Growth Programme, we are committed to delivering a more geographically diverse Civil and Public Service that will better serve the public and ministers. As part of this initiative, we are continuously reviewing how we recruit into each location. Postings Successful candidates will be posted in merit order based on your location preferences and the geographical requirements of the business. Successful candidates will be posted to a specific role and will have the opportunity to express a preference as part of the selection process, although final decisions may come down to business need, and the skills and development needs of candidates. Standard promotion rules will apply, and successful candidates will be placed on the pay scale and terms and conditions of DWP. You will be asked for your preferences for up to three locations, these will tell us where you would prefer to work if you are successful. Please do not select a location unless you are prepared to accept a role in that location. Selection Selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit, on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles here. Successful candidates will be posted in merit order based on your location preferences, where appropriate, and the geographical requirements of the business. Dependent on your position on the merit list, if none of your location preferences remain at the point we make a job offer DWP may offer you a role at an alternative advertised location. If we are unable to offer you a role in any of your preferred locations, and you are unable to accept a role at an alternative advertised location, we will add you to the reserve list if one is being held. Further Information 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. Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing. Any move to DWP 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. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk 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 Che ck to Disclosure and Barring Service on yo ur 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.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band. 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 applicants 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. 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. 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 DWPRecruitment.grscabinetoffice.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 youre deaf, a Language Service Professional. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. 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 the Civil 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 : Indirect Wing Business Management Team Email : technology.bomdwp.gov.uk Recruitment team Email : dwprecruitment.grscabinetoffice.gov.uk Further information Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commissions Recruitment Principles. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact DWP by email: HR.BUSINESSASSURANCEDWP.GOV.UK. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission. Click here to visit the Civil Service Commission. Attachments Commercial Directorate Candidate Pack - Associate Commercial Practitioner Automated Buying, Business Services and External Res Opens in new window (pdf, 1111kB) Success-Profiles-Candidate-Overview-Accessble-Version Opens in new window (docx, 67kB) DWP Terms and Conditions January 2024 Opens in new window (docx, 17kB) Share this page Print Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn GMail