Commercial Analyst — Data-Driven Contract Performance

South West Water Limited; Devon and Torbay; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 62,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

23 days annual leave

Holiday buy/sell

Pension scheme

Life assurance

Income protection

Parental leave

Employee share schemes

Health plan

Flu vaccination

EAP (Employee Assistance Programme)

On-site parking

Cycle to work

Car sharing

On-site canteen

Charitable giving

Volunteering day

Discounts platform

Job summary

South West Water is seeking a commercially minded Commercial Analyst to join the Operations Contracts Team. You will transform large volumes of data into insights to support decision-making, cost control and contract governance, focusing on Network Repair & Maintenance contracts.

You will work closely with operations, finance, contractors and commercial specialists to monitor performance, identify risks early and ensure expenditure is managed effectively.

Qualifications

• Experience in financial, commercial or business analysis.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret complex data sets.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to prioritise workloads effectively.
• Ability to work accurately under pressure and meet tight deadlines.
• Commercial awareness and a proactive approach to continuous improvement.
• Confident, self-motivated and capable of working collaboratively across multiple teams.

Responsibilities

• Manage the full contract data lifecycle: extract, cleanse, analyse and model high-volume data.
• Develop and maintain commercial dashboards using Power BI and Excel.
• Produce cost forecasts and monitor expenditure across contracts.
• Analyse cost and performance trends to identify risks, opportunities and efficiencies.
• Support monthly contract performance reviews with insightful reporting.
• Implement and maintain financial and commercial controls to strengthen governance.
• Audit contractor costs (labour, plant, materials, subcontractors) for NEC contract compliance.
• Provide detailed analysis and recommendations to support decision-making.
• Act as the commercial interface between contractors, operations, finance and quantity surveyors.
• Support procurement/table teams to optimise performance and spend.
• Identify process and reporting improvements to enhance financial controls.

Skills

Financial analysis

Commercial analysis

Advanced Excel

Stakeholder management

Problem solving

Time management

Commercial awareness

Collaboration

Education

Finance degree

Commercial management degree

Quantity surveying degree

AAT qualification

Tools

Power BI

Excel

Job description

South West Water is seeking a commercially minded Commercial Analyst to join the Operations Contracts Team. You will transform large volumes of data into insights to support decision-making, cost control and contract governance, focusing on Network Repair & Maintenance contracts.

You will work closely with operations, finance, contractors and commercial specialists to monitor performance, identify risks early and ensure expenditure is managed effectively.