Associate Commercial Lead

Associate Commercial Lead
Location: Central London or Cheltenham
Salary: London £50,938 - £54,805, Cheltenham £49,157 - £53,190 
Flexible working opportunities are available including flexi-time, part-time, full-time, job share and compressed hours. Minimum 3 days per week in the office, with flexibility to work from home 1-2 days per week. Requirement to travel to other locations as required.

At MI5, we protect our national security from threats such as terrorism, espionage and cyber-crime. Working with our partners MI6 and GCHQ, we obtain, collate, analyse and assess secret intelligence to keep the UK safe. Our procurement function plays a key role in that mission – ensuring we have the goods and services we need to support our day-to-day operations.

As Associate Commercial Lead, you’ll deliver a highly professional, customer-focused service while overseeing a range of unique and important procurement projects. Working closely with the Commercial Lead, you’ll manage a portfolio of contract and framework agreements, completing projects on time and in line with specific customer requirements. You’ll be responsible for the entire project lifecycle, working with suppliers and customers across the Intelligence agencies while demonstrating your significant commercial acumen and positive approach to problem-solving.

With your previous experience in a number of commercial roles, you’ll have a sound knowledge of buying, purchasing, supply chains, invoicing and contract management. You’ll be familiar with category management approaches and look to deliver sustainable cost reductions through best practice procurement processes and methodologies. And of course, you’ll enjoy building great working relationships with customers, suppliers and partners at all levels.

Analytical and proactive, you’ll identify opportunities to improve our customer service, shape decision-making, and support new procurement activity. You’ll help develop collaboration across the agencies, embedding organisational change. And, you’ll task manage your own team to deliver a varied portfolio of agreements. As an experienced role model, you’ll energise those around you – coaching, mentoring and sharing your expertise to encourage your team’s confidence.

To join, you’ll already hold, or be willing to study towards, a professional commercial qualification such as CIPS (level 5), or a business equivalent. And, you’ll have experience in at least one of the following: contract management, sourcing, commercial policy and assurance, supply chain or low value procurement and invoicing. This will be supported by your experience managing workflows, nurturing customer relationships and overseeing staff development. You’ll be working for MI5, but you could be based at one of our MI6 or GCHQ locations - we can discuss this with you as part of the application process.

Ours is a welcoming, supportive workplace committed to helping you fulfil your potential. You’ll receive plenty of support, from dedicated training (including opportunities to gain professional qualifications) to access to a number of friendly, inclusive support networks. We’re also proud to have achieved ‘Leader’ status as a Disability Confident employer.

This is an exciting time to join a diverse and welcoming commercial function operating at the heart of national security.

At MI5 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds. Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website: www.MI5.gov.uk/careers/diversity

To find out more and apply, please visit our website.

To be eligible to apply, you must be a British Citizen. If you hold dual nationality, of which one component is British, you will nonetheless be considered. Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for seven out of the last ten years. This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. You can apply at the age of 17 years, if successful you will not be offered a start date prior to your 18th birthday. Full eligibility details can be found on our website: www.MI5.gov.uk/careers/applying-for-jobs