About the job

Summary

Building a strong Commercial Function in Government, and with it the right commercial capability, is at the heart of a far-reaching programme of Civil Service reform.

We are building a cadre of commercial talent in all Government departments; people who can manage our commercial portfolios, who can lead our most complex and novel programmes and projects, people who have the gravitas and depth of experience to work alongside our policy and operational leaders to develop innovative commercial arrangements, whether through joint ventures, outsourcing or best-in-class contracts.

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 FCDO commercial team delivering departmental objectives.

Job description

The purpose of the role is to provide commercial leadership and expert guidance in the management and delivery of FCDO’s Programme spend with Multilaterals and Grants.

Leading a small team of subject matter experts, of which you will be one, this will involve working alongside Heads of Category and Business Partners to ensure the optimum commercial approaches when programme teams propose using Multilateral agencies and grant funding.

Primarily focused on the define stage of business cases and in an advisory role this will also ensure building the commercial understanding of the use of Multilaterals and grants to the wider PDCT and programme teams.

The Multilateral and Grant Lead will report directly to the Head of the Commercial Management Office (CMO) and will play a critical role in ensuring our commercial model delivers excellent value, efficiency and development impact for FCDO, the UK Taxpayer and our Beneficiaries. The role-holder will be responsible for supporting Head of CMO in ensuring a first-class service to our stakeholders and the whole of Programme Delivery Commercial team (PDCT). The role requires significant engagement with key stakeholders from across FCDO.

Responsibilities

• Design and delivery of Commercial specialist guidance and support for core multilaterals and grants;


• Developing, maintaining and leveraging effective relationships with key internal and external stakeholders;


• Lead, motivate, manage and develop the Multilateral and Grant team, providing clear direction and building the capability of individuals and the wider PDCT to deliver commercial impact;


• Feed into the overall PDCT Work planning process, taking into account FCDO priorities and your team's available resource;


• Identify strategic multilateral (including IFIs) and grant organisations through segmentation in order to prioritise portfolio of support and create proportionate commercial strategies for segmented partners;


• Undertake central assurance assessments as required and support any business cases that include Multilateral or Grant agreements;


• Maintain regular and strategic engagement with stakeholders responsible for policy and delivery of non-procurement agreements, updating the Programme Delivery Leadership Team as necessary;


• Ability to prioritise workload across a small team focusing on interventions that provide the greatest commercial impact for FCDO;


• Support the development of others in the team and across PDCT by sharing technical knowledge, mentoring & coaching. Including the development of a suite of tools, guidance documents and training to the wider team in suitable formats;


• Support People, wellbeing and building capability as a priority, supporting the development of an open and inclusive culture for the FCDO commercial function, role-modelling collaborative and inclusive behaviours;


• Strengthen commercial capability through the recruitment and effective induction of capable and committed professional commercial staff;


• Help to make PDCT a better place to work, participating positively in ‘people’ initiatives and demonstrating leadership behaviours.

Technical skills

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

• Manages Complexity - Proven experience managing complex commercial processes to a consistently high standard that involves multiple stakeholders and solutions;
• Decisive - The ability to collect and analyse information from a variety of sources, draw out key messages in order to solve problems and make effective decisions and recommendations;
• Commercial Focus - Demonstrable evidence of experience of either Multilateral or Grant commercial experience;
• Resilient - The ability to work at pace and manage multiple simultaneous complex projects requiring frequent communication, prioritisation and time management;
• Builds Relationships - The ability to improve commercial relationships with a wide range of senior stakeholders;
• Coaching Manager - Proven experience leading teams with evidence of a continual focus on professional development within the team.

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.