Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager

NWG (Northumbrian Water Group); Chelmsford; On-site; GBP 68,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

NWG is seeking a Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager to oversee contract performance in the Essex and Suffolk region. The successful candidate will manage contracts worth over £15 million annually, ensuring high-quality service delivery and compliance. This role demands strong commercial leadership in a fast-paced environment and offers a unique opportunity to drive operational improvements in a vital utilities sector.

Benefits

Enhanced maternity pay

Enhanced annual leave

Company pension scheme

Digital GP

Employee Assistance Programme

Life assurance

Qualification loans

Professional subscription

Buy and sell annual leave

Discounts and cashback offers

Qualifications

• Proven experience managing large-scale service contracts.
• Strong understanding of compliance in procurement regulations.
• Experience in water or infrastructure sectors preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day operational performance of commercial contractors.
• Provide commercial oversight ensuring compliance with regulations.
• Identify and implement performance improvements and cost savings.

Skills

Commercial acumen

Leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Performance management

Project management

Education

Experience in utilities or regulated environments

Understanding of public procurement regulations

Job description

Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager

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Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager

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Join to apply for the Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager role at NWG (Northumbrian Water Group)

About The Role

About The Role

This role will be covering the Essex and Suffolk region – Occasional travel to Suffolk maybe required

About The Role

We’re looking for a dynamic and commercially astute Commercial and Contracts Operations Manager to lead the performance and commercial management of our third-party delivery partners across the Water Networks South region.

This is a pivotal role, responsible for overseeing contracts worth over £15 million annually, ensuring our external partners deliver high-quality, efficient, and compliant services. You’ll be the operational and commercial lead for a workforce of over 78 contractor staff, working across clean water repair, maintenance, reinstatement, traffic management, and aggregate services.

You’ll bring together fragmented contract oversight into a single, focused function — driving performance, improving financial control, and enabling our internal teams to focus on direct delivery.

What You’ll Be Doing

You will be leading the day-to-day operational performance of our commercial contractors, ensuring delivery against KPIs and service standards. It will be your responsibility to provide commercial oversight of contracts, ensuring compliance with procurement regulations and internal governance. Identifying and implementing efficiency improvements, cost savings, and performance enhancements across all third-party services.

You will also act as the primary liaison between NWG and our delivery partners, fostering strong, collaborative relationships. Monitoring and managing contractor performance, including health and safety compliance, financial tracking, and service delivery. In addition to supporting the development of contracting strategies and contribute to procurement planning and execution. As well as preparing and presenting performance reports, insights, and recommendations to senior stakeholders.

About You

You’ll be a confident and experienced commercial leader with a strong operational mindset. You’ll thrive in a fast-paced environment and be passionate about driving performance and value through effective contract management.

The successful applicant with demonstrate proven experience managing large-scale service contracts in a regulated or utilities environment (e.g., NEC3/4). In addition to a strong understanding of public procurement regulations (UCR). With the ability to lead operational performance and commercial outcomes. Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication skills are also a key requirement to this role.

It is also desirable if you have experience in water or infrastructure sectors. A background in performance management and continuous improvement. Plus experience managing teams or mentoring others in commercial best practice.

Here at Northumbrian Water/Essex & Suffolk Water, we embrace and value Diversity, Inclusion and Equity which means bringing your full self to work. We encourage and welcome all applications, as we believe and strive to be an equal opportunity employer committed in having a diverse community represented within all our teams, structures, and organisation. We have our colleague network groups, including Rainbow Support Network (LGBT+), REACH (Race, Ethnicity, and Cultural Heritage), WiSTEM (Women in STEM) and Thisability (disability and neurodiversity) networks too.

About Us

Here are NWG we strive to make Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) a Great Place to Work, for all. We embrace and value Diversity, Inclusion and Equity and encourage you to bring your full self to work. As an equal opportunity employer we’re committed to having a diverse community represented across our business.

We’re aware that not everyone will have every skill listed in the job description, and that female candidates are less likely to apply if they don’t have the full range of skills, however if you have some of the skills listed, we 'd encourage you to apply.

NWG At a Glance:

Our purpose at NWG is caring for the essential needs of our communities and environment, now and for generations to come.

We do this by providing reliable and affordable water and wastewater services for our customers.

We make a positive difference by operating efficiently and investing prudently, to maintain a sustainable and resilient business.

Our vision is to be the national leader in the provision of sustainable water and wastewater services. To support us in achieving our vision, we have five core values which are the guiding principles, defining who we are, what we do and how we do it.

Our Benefits

We’re a Great Place to Work because of the amazing people who work for us, and to say thank you we offer a range of benefits to colleagues.

Benefits to include, here’s just a few of them:

• Enhanced maternity pay
• Enhanced annual leave with additional special leave for Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve
• Company pension scheme
• Digital GP
• Award winning wellbeing website
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Life assurance
• Qualification loans
• Professional subscription
• Buy and sell annual leave
• Discounts and cashback offers
  
  

Ready to make a difference?

Apply now and help us shape the future of water services in the South.

About Us

NWG (Northumbrian Water Group) provides water and sewerage services to 2.7 million people in the North East of England as Northumbrian Water, and water services to 1.5 million people in the South East of England as Essex & Suffolk Water.

We are proud to serve our customers and we're committed to delivering great service, putting our customers at the heart of everything we do.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Contract

Job function

• Job function

  Legal

• Industries

  Utilities

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