Head of Contract Management – FIND2313

CPS Chief Finance Officer Directorate is delighted to advertise the role of Head of Contract Management.

The Commercial team sits within the Chief Finance Officer Directorate within the CPS; leading end-to-end commercial lifecycle activities, the team is structured into Category, Contract Management team, Strategic Sourcing, Supplier Transition and Policy and Governance teams. We are recruiting to both fill several new posts created by our growth agenda and to replace posts which are vacant due to our highly successful talent and succession planning programme.

CPS Commercial work is varied, diverse and delivers real and immediate impact to our services which directly supports the work of our CPS employees. The Commercial team are embedded in major transformation programmes that provide exciting opportunities to deliver complex commercial outcomes.

It is a great time to join the CPS Commercial Function. These roles provide you with the opportunity to be at the heart of our transformation and make a real contribution to our future Commercial strategy.  We are seeking people with a proactive mindset to help us build on our continuing journey to improve our commercial function’s offering, supporting the vital work the CPS does both now and in the future.

Please note, this post can be based in any England or Wales office location, however location preference cannot be guaranteed and is subject to office capacity and approval. There is expectation for the post holder to travel to other CPS offices depending on business need.

Information Sessions

We will also be holding meet and engagement session on the following date, these sessions give candidates the chance to ask the resourcing team queries on the selection process/ role advertised: 

Thursday 3rd August 2023 – 3pm – 4pm: https://meetandengage.com/alk8593nk

The sessions will be live webchats where you can ask us any queries you may have about your application, the process or the roles.

For further information on how to apply, as well as the essential experience and essential technical skills, please see the Candidate Pack at the bottom of this page.

Full job description available upon request. 

The Head of Contract Management will be a member of the commercial leadership team, leading on commercial response, contracts, commercial excellence, and end to end process of contract management. We are seeking individuals who will bring their experience of developing and delivering contract management strategies, being an expert commercial advisor to stakeholders, who can advocate the benefits of contract management. 

As Head of Contract Management, you will be expected to communicate and influence to deliver strategy development and implementation within your remit, supporting the transformation that the commercial team is undertaking. 

As a member of the Commercial Leadership Team, the postholder has responsibility for the establishment and management of Contract Management through the management of a team of

Lead the contract management team to develop and implement contract management policies and procedures, provide support and expertise to customers, securing added value and deliver effective contract management.

Contribute to the development and delivery of commercial strategy and business planning, working with senior leadership colleagues to identify ways to improve systems and structures to deliver with more streamlined resources.

Implement and maintain processes to ensure contract procurements are conducted according to procurement regulations and policy procedures, delivering value for money, quality control and robust commercial outcomes. 

Lead key contract negotiations with suppliers, ensuring that the department secures value for money and manages risk appropriately, including variations to framework/non-framework terms and conditions and contract change control.

Establish and maintain relationships with the key internal and external stakeholders across government departments and the strategic supplier community, sharing best practice and maintaining a focus on service continuity and delivery. Working collaboratively to develop contract management strategies and sharing knowledge to improve commercial efficiency.

Work collaboratively with key customers to develop contract management and supplier relationship strategies including performance management, strategic supplier relationship management and supply chain resilience.

Maintain and manage commercial data ensuring systems, platforms and tools are effectively used. Maintain and contribute to risk and issue logs in respect of the categories, resolving areas of concern. Ensure these are always conducted in line with regulations.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership
• Making Effective Decisions
• Changing and Improving
• Managing a Quality Service

We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• MCIPS, WCC Advanced Practitioner; or relevant commercial experience.

Join the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and have a future that matters: Find Your Purpose

The CPS is a flexible and inclusive employer. We want to make sure that your role works for you so we offer a range of support and benefits including flexible working and training and qualifications specific to your role.

• We want to ensure our commercial team can thrive at work and home and offer a range of support to achieve a balance. This includes flexible working hours, flexibility to support caring responsibilities and a family friendly approach to work. What this looks like will depend on what works best for you and your role. This is intended to support staff, meet business needs and ensure regular face-to-face contact with team members, in line with the CPS’ Hybrid Working policy.
• At the CPS we recognise that our people are key to everything we do and we want to make sure you are able to get the most from your role. We focus this on personal development including professional qualifications through apprenticeship schemes, dedicated training & professional development specific to your role. All CPS colleagues also get £350 each year to spend on their personal development – that could be a course or books and materials to help you learn new skills or further develop existing ones.
• We’re serious about wellbeing – investing in our internal culture has significant benefits for our people, but it also has a wider impact – helping us to build stronger relationships with our communities and partners and deliver a quality public service Our package of wellbeing support includes trained mental health first aiders, a free wellbeing app, and an employee assistance programme providing 24 hour professional advice and information.
• We also offer a range of benefits including civil service pension (with an average employer contribution of 27%) scheme, childcare vouchers, access to employee savings including high street retailer offers and discounts, 25 days leave, rising to 30 days after 5 years’ service and maternity and shared parental leave of up to 26 weeks full
• We are proud to be one of the UK’s most inclusive employers – we’ve been recognised by the social mobility employer index, as a disability confident leader and as one of the top 10 most family friendly workplaces in the country. We’ve increased our workforce diversity – making us one of the most diverse organisations across the Civil Service.

Our Commercial professionals will receive and additional payable allowance if following qualifications are held:

1. Certificate of Competence in Purchasing and Supply (or its’ accepted equivalent) – £1,500 pa or
2. Member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (or accepted equivalent qualification) – £2,500 pa

The CPS has also designed a range of Management Development Programme to support all Aspiring, New and Experienced Managers in developing the skills, behaviour and knowledge to build their confidence and capability. We strongly recommend that all new managers undertake the Manager Induction.

Job contact :

• Name : Sammi Dong
• Email : sammi.dong@cps.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : strategic.resourcing@cps.gov.uk