Commercial Manager
| Job Type | Contract |
| Location | Corsham, Bristol or London/ Hybrid |
| Area | South West, UK |
| Sector | Procurement & Commercial |
| Salary | £600 Per Day |
| Start Date | October 13th, 2026 |
| Advertiser | Jack Latter |
| Job Ref | 7750-PSR1JP00106870 |
| IR35 | Inside |
| Security Clearance | SC |
- Description
- The Client:
A government client is looking for a Commercial Manager to join them on a 5 month contract. This position will be based in Corsham, Bristol or London/ Hybrid.
Job Summary:
The Commercial Manager is responsible for establishing, operating and continuously improving a commercial delivery vehicle that enables Defence organisations to access specialist suppliers through The Accelerator.
The role will lead the creation of one or more high-limit-of-liability commercial agreements with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) providing services primarily from the DDaT job family.
The role acts as the bridge between Defence Commercial Teams, The Accelerator and Accelerator customers.
The post holder will ensure commercial arrangements remain fit for purpose and enable customers to commission digital capability and services through the most appropriate model. This includes distinguishing between resources, activities, outputs, capability and outcomes, and designing adaptive arrangements that allow priorities and scope to evolve while retaining control of cost, risk, quality and value.
The role plays a significant part in managing supplier relationships, advising delivery teams on commissioning approaches, gaining assurance of work package quality and ensuring that the commercial vehicle delivers value for money, flexibility and measurable outcomes.
Success will be measured through:
- Establishment of effective, compliant and adaptable commercial arrangements.
- Reduced time from validated customer need to commercially authorised delivery.
- A growing proportion of work commissioned through clearly defined and measurable user, service or operational outcomes.
- Demonstrable value achieved relative to cost and available alternative routes.
- Customer ability to change priorities without disproportionate commercial delay or uncontrolled cost.
- Transparent operation of service-points, capacity-based or comparable flexible charging models without disguising day-rate procurement.
- Positive supplier and customer feedback supported by effective contract governance, performance management and continual improvement.
The role contributes directly to:
Faster Delivery
- Reducing the time required for Defence teams to access specialist digital capability.
Better Delivery
- Improving the quality of commissioned work through outcome-focused work packages.
Greater Value
- Ensuring Defence pays for outcomes and capability rather than simply bodies and effort.
Greater Delivery Capacity
- Providing access to specialist suppliers that can augment Defence teams at pace.
Essential Criteria
The successful candidate must demonstrate:
- Significant commercial, contract and supplier-management experience.
- Experience establishing and operating framework, call-off, managed-service or service-based contracts.
- Recent practical experience of identifying, selecting and using commercial frameworks and procurement routes available within Defence, including understanding their scope, call-off mechanisms, approval requirements, constraints and suitability for digital and professional-services requirements.
- Mandatory direct and hands-on experience of personally establishing, mobilising and running a comparable contract or commercial vehicle through its operational lifecycle.
- The experience must be sufficiently recent to demonstrate current knowledge of Defence commercial practice, frameworks, approvals and market conditions.
- Demonstrable experience of designing, commissioning or managing adaptive commercial arrangements for digital or professional services.
- Strong commercial understanding of the distinction between resources, activities, outputs, capability and outcomes, with experience working with customer and SMEs to translate problems into measurable outcome-focused work packages.
- Experience selecting and applying outcome-based, capacity-based, output-based or resource-based models according to the nature and maturity of the requirement.
- Experience enabling priorities and scope to evolve through incremental commitment, review points, break points or comparable mechanisms while maintaining control of cost, risk, quality and value.
- Experience of service-points, capacity-based, managed-service or comparable flexible charging models, including controls that prevent them becoming disguised day-rate procurement.
- Understanding that service points are commercial units for accessing capability and must not be confused with story points, velocity or evidence of value.
- Experience working with technology or digital delivery organisations.
- Strong stakeholder-management skills and the ability to influence senior stakeholders.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Proactive, with the ability to operate independently with limited direction and manage competing priorities.
- Experience producing decision-focused commercial management information and governance reporting.
Specific Accountabilities
The post holder shall:
Commercial Establishment
- Lead commercial engagement required to establish contract vehicles.
- Coordinate stakeholders involved in approval and launch activities.
- Support evaluation and supplier onboarding activities.
Commercial Governance
- Monitor supplier performance.
- Maintain governance artefacts.
- Escalate issues and risks.
- Support contract review activities.
Outcome-Based Commissioning
- Help customers distinguish between resources, activities, outputs, capability and outcomes, and define measurable user, service or operational outcomes.
- Engage Accelerator colleagues early enough to shape the problem, commercial approach and intended user outcomes.
- Challenge resource-based or predetermined-solution requirements where these would constrain value or learning.
- Select and justify outcome-based, capacity-based, output-based or resource-based approaches according to uncertainty, maturity and risk.
- Design work packages that support discovery, incremental commitment, evolving priorities, proportionate review points and clear exit or break mechanisms.
- Define and govern service-points or comparable flexible charging models without using story points, velocity or completed backlog items as contractual performance measures.
- Develop reusable work-package templates, outcome measures and commissioning guidance.
Supplier Management
- Act as primary relationship manager for contracted suppliers.
- Facilitate issue resolution.
- Monitor contractual performance.
- Drive continual improvement.
Reporting
- Produce regular reporting covering:
- Utilisation
- Spend
- Customer Demand
- Supplier Performance
- Delivery Outcomes
- Risks and Issues
- Utilisation
Qualifications
- Desirable professional qualifications include:
- WorldCC Contract and Commercial Management Practitioner or Advanced Practitioner, ideally supported by learning or experience in agile, adaptive or outcome-based contracting.
- CIPS Level 5 or 6.
An active SC clearance is required for this role. At a minimum, candidates must be eligible and willing to undergo security clearance. Due to the short-term nature of the contract and the urgency of the requirement, the client may prioritise applicants who already hold active SC clearance and meet all essential criteria.
Our Company:
Malikshaw Interim & Executive is a specialist provider of talent management solutions helping our clients transform the delivery of our public services. As an Equal Opportunities Employer, we combine providing the best talent with delivering diverse, inclusive workforces and particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented. These include people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, disabled people, LGBTQI+ people, and women.
How to Apply:
Please apply through the link provided to send your application directly to the Recruiter managing this assignment.
Disability Confident:
As a member of the disability confident scheme, the Client guarantees to interview all candidates who have a disability and who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of candidates who have a disability who meet all the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group.
Armed Forces Covenant:
As a member of the Armed Forces Covenant, the Client guarantees to interview all veterans or spouses / partners of military personnel who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of ex-military candidates / military spouses or partners, who meet all of the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group.
If you qualify for any of the above, please notify us on your covering letter and your recruiter will confirm if the client is a member. We will then be in touch to discuss your suitability and arrange your Guaranteed Interview.
Should you require reasonable adjustments at any point during the recruitment process or if there is a more accessible way for us to communicate, please do let me know.
- Establishment of effective, compliant and adaptable commercial arrangements.
