Job info |
Job info details |
Job title |
Corporate Contracts Officer |
Strategic team/Directorate |
Financial Services |
Service |
Finance |
Business unit |
Commercial Services |
Responsible to (day to day issues) |
Policy and Compliance Manger |
Accountable to (line manager) |
Policy and Compliance Manger |
Salary grade |
28 - 31 |
JE ref |
FIN059 |
1. Key purpose of job
- To manage and monitor a diverse and complex portfolio of corporate contracts with external Suppliers and Council wholly owned companies, delivering works, goods and services for Torbay Council.
- To manage and lead on the collection, collation and reporting of contractual information, data, spend, performance, social value data from external Suppliers and Council wholly owned companies, leading on the contract modification process for corporate contracts.
- To manage and lead on the exit of corporate contracts, working with procurement colleagues and council officers to plan for future need, and to assist with the mobilisation of new contracts.
- Responsible for ensuring corporate suppliers and where applicable Council wholly owned companies comply with their contractual obligations, including suppliers financial standing, policies, insurances, modern slavery statements and any other necessary documents.
2. Anticipated outcomes of post
- A proactive, effective, and compliant approach to the management of corporate contracts and contracts delivered through Council wholly owned companies, underpinned by a robust framework for addressing risk, identifying and celebrating success and managing poor performance.
- An in-depth understanding of the diverse and complex council portfolio of corporate contracts and the activities carried out by Council wholly owned companies, as well as future corporate need.
- Positive relationships with suppliers are in place which support effective contract and supply chain management, innovation and improvements in delivery.
- Best value and budget maximisation are delivered through the provision of effective and consistent commercial advice and support.
3. List key duties and accountabilities of the post
- Responsible for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children at all times.
- Responsible for managing a diverse and complex portfolio of contracts with external Suppliers (including Council wholly owned companies), ensuring effective management of conflicting priorities and changing circumstances, whilst ensuring contractual obligations and deadlines are met.
- Responsible for understanding and managing internal customer and supplier expectations, to ensure effective delivery of contracts.
- Developing strong partnerships with internal customers and external Suppliers, providing advice and support on issues relevant to contracts.
- Responsible for ensuring the Council acts in accordance with its contractual obligations and Suppliers are delivering goods, services and works in line with agreed contract terms and conditions.
- To lead on operational meetings with Suppliers, celebrating success, dealing with complaints, poor performance and default notices and, where required, develop improvement action plans jointly with the Supplier and monitor implementation/progress against such plans.
- To be a first point of contact for Suppliers and sub-contractors, making decisions to manage contentious and complex situations which may impact contractually or financially on either the Council or the Supplier. Handling matters with tact and diplomacy to prevent significant detrimental impact on delivery or causing reputational damage.
- Responsible for identifying and implementing mutually acceptable solutions to resolve problems as promptly as possible.
- Using creativity and innovation to develop and implement systems and processes which drive continuous improvement of performance, service quality and customer satisfaction, and meeting corporate need for each individual contract.
- To take a creative an innovative approach when identifying solutions, and to take into account that no two contracts are the same, and problems need to be addressed on an individual and contract specific basis.
- Responsible for processing paperwork for the variation, modification, and extension of contracts in accordance with contractual deadlines and legislative requirements.
- Responsible for the effective management and monitoring of identified budgets in compliance with Financial Regulations.
- To manage and lead on the development of accurate and timely reports and updates on contract performance and issues across corporate Council contracts to stakeholders, management and senior management. To ensure reporting and provision of information is provided with due consideration of the commercially sensitive nature and potential political impact of the information being provided.
- To manage the collation, analysis, and quality assurance of data to inform continued development of goods and services.
- Responsible for identifying learning from existing contracts and Suppliers and using that knowledge to influence the early development of service specifications and sourcing plans.
- Responsible for undertaking trend analysis to diagnose service delivery problems.
- Reporting on these trends and identifying solutions to resolve problems, and assist in the development and implementation of action plans to maintain and continually improve levels of service.
- Responsible for maintaining a detailed knowledge and awareness of legislation, policy, practice and procedure in order to ensure the delivery of and inform the Council’s Financial Regulations and Contract Procedures.
- Responsible for contributing to the delivery of the PCMC Strategy by taking learning of existing contractual compliance issues to deliver improvements within the management of corporate contracts.
- Support the Senior Contracts Officer and wider PCMC Team in embedding the Council’s approach to contract management.
- Responsible for ensuring confidentiality of information in respect of records maintained and tasks undertaken.
- Any other duties commensurate with the post as may be required from time to time.
4. Budgetary/Financial Responsibilities of the post
- No direct budgetary responsibility but has role in ensuring contracts awarded by the Council are put in place and managed in accordance with the Council’s Constitution, UK Public Contracts Regulations and EU Procurement Directives and that the appropriate financial due diligence checks have been undertaken.
- To manage and monitor a diverse portfolio of high value and complex externally commissioned contracts on behalf of the Council and other strategic partners as appropriate, within the agreed policy and processes for each organisation. This includes budgetary monitoring to ensure spend is on track and appropriate action is taken to address any pressures.
- Key supplier/contract management responsibility for a diverse portfolio of corporate contracts.
5. Supervision/Line Management Responsibilities of the post
- Day to day responsibility for overseeing and directing the work of the Data and Compliance Officer.
- Direct management of external contracts and the Council’s relationship with a wide range of corporate suppliers and Council wholly owned companies.
6. Working environment and conditions of the post
- Normal working environment and conditions.
- Direct management of external contracts and the Council’s relationship with a wide range of corporate suppliers.
7. Physical demands of the post
8. Specific resources used by the post
- The post will be responsible for the use and safekeeping of standard office equipment, laptops, etc.
9. Key contacts and relationships
- External:
- Council wholly owned companies.
- All contracted suppliers, in particular corporate and key strategic suppliers.
- All local authorities within the South West Region.
- Other public sector bodies, including Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, South Devon and Torbay Clinical Commissioning Group, Blue Light Services, National Parks Authority, and Torbay Schools and Academies.
- Voluntary and Community Sector.
- Internal:
- Senior Leadership Team.
- Heads of Service.
- Officers and Elected Members.
- Section 151 Officer and Monitoring Officer.
10. Other duties
- To undertake additional duties as required, commensurate with the level of the job.
Other Information
- All staff must commit to Equal Opportunities and Anti-Discriminatory Practice.
- The Council operates a Smoke-Free Policy and the post-holder is prohibited from smoking in any of the Council's buildings (including Council owned and Council leased buildings, but excluding designated areas in residential schemes), enclosed spaces within the curtilage of buildings, and Council vehicles. The Council does not permit smoking breaks within work time, however, in services where the flexi-scheme is in operation, employees may take reasonable break times outside of core hours, in accordance with flexi-time arrangements. Employees should follow the flexi-scheme procedure for agreeing time away from their duties in the normal manner with their immediate colleagues and line manager, with break start and finish times being recorded, as with any other break-time arrangement.
- The post-holder is expected to familiarise themselves with and adhere to all relevant Council Policies and Procedures.
- The post-holder must comply with the Council’s Health and Safety requirements as outlined in the H&S policy appropriate to the role.
- This post is office based at Tor Hill House but the post holder may be required to move their base to any other location within the Council at a future date.
- The post is eligible for both hybrid and permanent home working with requirement for site visits as necessary.
- The post-holder must be committed to the Council’s Core Values for employees – “Torbay Council employees are committed to being forward thinking, people orientated and adaptable - always with integrity”. Evidence will be sought during the probation and appraisal processes.
- If you are required to use your own vehicle on Council business or drive a council vehicle you will be asked to provide information on any driving endorsements by accessing www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence and providing a code to your Line Manager in order to share your driving licence information with the Council.
- You will be asked to complete a Criminal Records Self Declaration Form. Criminal convictions will only be taken into account when they are relevant to the post. You will only be asked to disclose ‘unspent’ convictions.
Person Specification
Note for Candidate
All Candidates
The supporting statement on your application form will be used to assess ability to meet the essential requirements of the role, so you should explain how you meet each of the numbered essential requirements within your supporting statement.
In a competitive situation, the desirable criteria may be taken into consideration, so you are encouraged to show how you also meet each of the desirable criteria.
Candidates who consider that they have a disability
Reasonable adjustments will be made to the job, job requirements or recruitment process for candidates with a disability.
If you consider yourself to have a disability you should indicate this on your application form, providing any information you would like us to take into account with regard to your disability in order to offer a fair selection interview.
Where ever possible and reasonable we will make adjustments and offer alternatives to help you through the application and selection process.
If you have indicated that you have a disability on your application form you will be guaranteed an interview if you clearly demonstrate in your supporting evidence how you broadly meet the essential requirements of the role.
Job info |
Job info details |
Job Title |
Corporate Contracts Officer |
Strategic team/Directorate |
Financial Services |
Service |
Finance |
Business unit |
Commercial Services |
Skills and effectiveness
Essential skills and effectiveness
- The ability to manage multiple and complex contracts, taking full accountability for all aspects of delivery, and ensuring that all stakeholders are fully engaged.
- Ability to develop sound interpersonal relationships, with excellent communication and presentation skills.
- Ability to work to challenging deadlines and work with competing demands.
- The ability to prioritise workloads within timescales and meet deadlines – to operate effectively across complex work cultures and environments. Ability to use resources effectively and efficiently.
- Numerate with analytical skills to evaluate data (particularly financial information).
- Ability to use standard MS Office applications and a willingness to acquire new ICT skills.
- The ability to present complex and sometimes contentious information in an easy-to-understand and concise manner to a range of different audiences.
- Ability to communicate with senior internal clients and an ability to influence the key relationships which enable better contractual performance.
- The ability to make decisions and recommendations, sometimes at short notice and take responsibility for them.
- Ability to work subject to deadlines involving changing problems, circumstances and conflicting priorities.
- Ability to assimilate, understand, analyse interpret and communicate complex information and data to inform decision making.
- Ability to make decisions that may have significant implications for others and confidently provide rationale.
- Confident and competent when under external and internal scrutiny.
- Proven problem-solving skills and the ability to identify causes and determine a range of informed and imaginative, innovative solutions without reference to others.
- Tact, consideration and diplomacy skills are required by the post holder, e.g., in order to manage the expectations of customers.
Desirable skills and effectiveness
- Ability to work to the Council’s core values of being forward thinking, people oriented and adaptable, always with integrity.
- Project management skills.
- Training / coaching / mentoring skills.
- Ability to organise and record meetings.
- Presentation skills.
Knowledge
Essential knowledge
- In depth knowledge and understanding of the principles of supplier relationship management and contract management, including the commercial cycle, cost and efficiency savings, budget, and performance management.
- Understanding of contract formation and development.
- Demonstrable procurement knowledge including contract negotiation, strategic sourcing methodology, and awareness of the impact actions taken can have during a contract’s life cycle, current contract law and dispute resolution, statistical and data analysis, UK and applicable EU contracts legislation.
- A good understanding of the key and emerging issues within local government procurement and the processes which underpin contract management in the public sector.
- An awareness of current political and economic issues and how these relate to procurement and contract management within local government.
- Knowledge around terms and conditions and complex contractual situations, applicable to a wide variety of different disciplines and fields.
- Up to date knowledge of Microsoft Office 365, in particular Excel, Word, Power point, Project, Outlook and Access.
Desirable knowledge
- Project management.
- Understanding of public sector governance processes to ensure that deadlines are met for effective decision-making timelines.
- A sound understanding of local authority financial regulations and contract procedures.
- POP/PL modules / finance systems.
- Knowledge of the commissioning and procurement cycles and their practical application within a real contract environment.
- Contractual law and contract drafting.
Experience and achievements
Essential experience and achievements
- Experience of service provision to an appropriate standard to maintain a quality of service that effectively meets customer and organisational expectations.
- Experience across goods, services and works contracts in a variety of specialisms.
- Experience of monitoring and managing contract and supplier performance.
- Experience of working proactively within a procurement / contract management environment.
- A track record of service improvement in a commercial contracting environment.
- Experience in risk assessment and risk management strategies.
- Experience in problem solving and involving and influencing operational professionals to improve service delivery.
- Track record of delivering against targets.
- Experience of working with suppliers strategically to improve products, services or works delivery, whilst delivering best value, quality, innovation, and Social Value.
- Ability to recognise and develop commercial opportunities, sometimes in demanding or difficult situations, to the benefit of the Council.
- Ability to be flexible and identify new ways of working to ensure effective delivery of services and to improve systems and processes across the Council.
Desirable experience and achievements
- Experience of performance management techniques to drive service improvement.
Qualifications/professional memberships
Essential qualifications/professional memberships
- Educated to Degree Level or equivalent or demonstrable academic or professional ability or experience in the relevant field.
- Government Commercial Function (GCF) Contract Management Practitioner level or Level 3 Advanced Certificate in Procurement and Supply or equivalent or 2 years’ experience in an operational contract management or commercial role.
- Willingness to study towards Government Commercial Function (GCF) Practitioner level or Level 4 Diploma in Procurement and Supply or equivalent.
Desirable qualifications/professional memberships
- Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) in Word & Excel or equivalent.
- PRINCE2 Foundation or equivalent.
Other requirements
Other requirements of the job role
- Demonstrates a commitment to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.
- Ability to carry out the physical requirements of the role (i.e., manual handling).
- Ability to travel efficiently around the Bay/South West/UK in order to carry out duties.
- Ability to accommodate occasional/permanent homeworking.