Commercial Manager

Talent Right; Sydney; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive base salary

Superannuation

Job summary

Talent Right partners with a specialist construction contractor to recruit a Commercial Manager who will own the commercial outcome across all projects. You will protect margins, manage risk, and lead negotiations with tier-one contractors and subcontractors.

This role sits with the Head of Delivery and CFO, shaping the commercial function as the business grows. You will join a national fencing contractor operating across Australia, delivering high-security fencing solutions to major projects.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in commercial management, contract administration or project controls.
• Deep knowledge of contract administration and claims management.
• Experience with tier-one head contractors and subcontractors.
• CPA/CA or tertiary qualifications in accounting, finance, law or construction are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Own upstream and downstream commercial exposure across all projects.
• Set strategy for variations, extensions of time, claims and negotiations.
• Protect and improve forecast margin and cash flow.
• Lead the Contracts Administrators and oversee procurement within budgets.

Skills

Commercial leadership

Contract administration

Forecasting

Stakeholder management

Education

CPA/CA or related finance degree

Accounting/Finance/Law/Construction quals

Tools

Jonas Premier

ERP systems

Job description

Talent Right is partnering with a specialist construction contractor to recruit a Commercial Manager.

This is not a role for someone who processes claims and files them. Our client needs a commercial lead who will sit in a progress meeting opposite Project Managers from Tier 1 firms and hold the line. If you would rather avoid hard conversations, this role will not suit you.

Our client is looking for a blend of commercial finance experience and contracts administration.

About the Client

Our client is a specialist fencing contractor operating nationally across Australia from offices in several states, delivering critical high-security fencing solutions into major construction and infrastructure projects.

Commercially, this client sits in the middle between tier one head contractors and the subcontractors that are both established firms down to small crews and sole traders.

The business has restructured from a state-based to a national operation, and the commercial function is being built out as part of that. Growth is quick, and that pace brings change.

About the Role

Reporting to the Head of Delivery and working closely with the Chief Financial Officer, you own the commercial outcome across every project the business runs.

That means protecting margin, managing commercial risk, and making sure the business realises its full contractual entitlement. You set the strategy on variations, extensions of time, claims and negotiations, and you are the escalation point when something becomes complex or disputed.

You will lead a team of Contracts Administrators, with a Procurement Officer and Project Coordinators proposed as the function grows. How that team is shaped is still open, and you will have a say in it.

The role also joins up three things that often sit apart: the contractual position, the cost-to-complete and forecast, and what actually gets invoiced. You will validate margin movements and revenue before month-end close, own the monthly project reporting dashboard, and give the Managing Director and CFO a forward view rather than a backward one.

Key Responsibilities

• Own upstream and downstream commercial exposure across all projects
• Set and approve the strategy for variations, extensions of time, claims and negotiations
• Make sure every commercial submission is contractually compliant and commercially defensible
• Protect and improve forecast margin at completion
• Act as the escalation point for complex or disputed commercial matters

Connect contracts, finance and delivery

• Align contractual positions with cost-to-complete, forecasts and cash flow
• Validate margin movements and revenue before month-end close
• Provide forward-looking commercial insight to the Managing Director and CFO
• Own the monthly project reporting dashboard and keep it accurate and on time

Drive cash flow and claims

• Finalise monthly claims with the relevant Project Manager before submission
• Keep progress claims accurate, on time, certification-driven and contract-compliant
• Oversee subcontractor claim assessment and payment alignment
• Reduce disputes, reversals and rework, and improve cash flow predictability

  Lead the commercial team

  • Lead, mentor and develop the Contracts Administrators
  • Oversee procurement within the commercial portfolio against approved budgets and forecasts
  • Improve pricing discipline, supplier performance and procurement governance

  Enforce systems and standards

  • Enforce the ERP as the single source of truth, and eliminate offline tracking and shadow systems
  • Standardise claim sheets, variations, departure schedules and subcontract templates
  • Keep variation and extension of time registers mandatory, current and centrally stored
  • Keep commercial records transparent, accurate and audit-ready

  Close the loop on tendering

  • Review tender pricing against project actuals
  • Feed lessons learned back into estimating and future tenders
  • Drive continuous improvement in pricing accuracy and risk allocation

  The Ideal Candidate

  • 10+ years in commercial management, contract administration or project controls within construction or infrastructure
  • Deep knowledge of contract administration and claims management, with a track record of protecting margin
  • Comfortable holding a firm commercial position with tier one head contractors, and equally comfortable managing a subcontractor base of small firms and sole traders
  • A genuine blend of contractual and financial capability, rather than strength in one and a gap in the other
  • Strong on forecasting, cost-to-complete and system-led reporting
  • Experience leading and developing a contracts or commercial team
  • Sound judgement under pressure, and the influence to hold your position with senior delivery people

  If you have worked for a tier one head contractor, or for a specialist contractor that has won well against them, you will be well placed. If your background is on the upstream client or consultancy side, approving or declining claims and managing a funding envelope, this is a different job and probably not the right move.

  CPA or CA qualification, or tertiary qualifications in accounting, finance, law or construction, are desirable rather than required. Experience with a construction ERP is expected, and Jonas Premier experience is an advantage. Utilities, infrastructure or public sector exposure also helps.

  Why This Role?

  • Full ownership of the commercial outcome across the business, not a single project
  • A direct line to the Head of Delivery and the Chief Financial Officer
  • A commercial function being built out, with real input into how the team is shaped
  • Scope to set the standards, systems and templates rather than inherit them
  • A business scaling quickly, with the project pipeline behind it
  • Competitive base and superannuation, with genuine flexibility for an exceptional candidate

  All applications are treated in strict confidence.