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Principal Procurement & Supplier Officer

Employer
DEFRA
Location
Worcester, with options for flexible working
Salary
£47,549 - £54,728
Closing date
14 Jun 2021

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Specialist Area
Procurement
Job Level
Executive / Officer
Sector
Public Sector
Contract Type
Permanent
Hours
Full Time, Part Time / Job share
CIPS Membership
CIPS member, Non CIPS member

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) plays a vital role at the heart of UK life. The wide-ranging work we do includes safeguarding the natural environment, supporting the UK’s world-leading food and farming industries, sustaining a thriving rural economy and leading the engineering of the nation’s defences against natural threats and hazards. Join Defra and you will be part of a department that is responsible for the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe.

The Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) will sit within Defra. As a newly established body that will be focussed on environmental protection and improving the natural environment, this organisation will play a vital role in the UK’s future approach to key issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss – and it is here that you could find the most fascinating challenge. Helping us establish the organisation and build a clear commercial and procurement approach, you will:

  • Work in partnership with the Head of Business Management and Strategy to develop and implement a commercial and procurement strategy that will allow the OEP to achieve the best value for money. You will also define the associated policies and supporting procedures.
  • Align your strategy, policies and procedures to the scheme of delegation, which will include the procurement of goods and services, plus the management of any associated contracts.
  • Support the interim development of the organisation by working with Defra Commercial to secure contracts that are essential to the establishment of the OEP. Covering areas such as IT, you will then oversee the novation of these contracts once the OEP has been legally established, and you will share practical contract management guidance with each team.
  • Define the OEP’s commercial approach, using your expert understanding of the supply market, government commercial frameworks, category and business context to ensure a sustainable approach is being developed, and to manage risks.  
  • Share knowledge of the end-to-end procurement lifecycle with colleagues across the organisation. You will also ensure current legislation and policy is being adhered to, and you will take responsibility for anything in which the annual values are significant.

Join us in our formative stages, and you will have the scope to champion exceptional procurement practices within this vital organisation. To make the most of this opportunity, you will therefore have significant public sector procurement and supplier management experience, and you will ideally be a Member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (MCIPS) or an equivalent body. Highly organised with exceptional negotiation skills and the ability to managing competing priorities, you will be capable of analysing and interpreting financial, monitoring and other performance data. As you will be encouraged to identify opportunities for partnerships and joint procurements in order achieve savings across the OEP and the wider department, you will have well-developed verbal and written communication skills, and you will be keen to network and share knowledge. With a focus on increasing commercial awareness within the organisation, you will be comfortable providing authoritative procurement advice and training to colleagues at all levels.

We aim to support the professional and personal wellbeing of everyone in Defra. Our benefits include generous annual leave, a contributory pension, staff bonuses and recognition, salary sacrifice benefit options, and an employee discount scheme. We also offer flexible working and a variety of learning and development opportunities.

Apply before 11:55 pm on Monday 14th June 2021

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