Commercial Manager - C&P - Birmingham

Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS); Birmingham; On-site; GBP 43,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading transport company is looking for someone to support their Buildings and Facilities portfolio within Supply Chain Operations. This includes managing cost reporting, compliance monitoring, and advising on projects. The ideal candidate will have experience in investment project management, a relevant degree, and strong negotiation skills. This is a permanent position based in Birmingham, offering a salary between £43,588 and £51,719 per annum.

Qualifications

• Experience managing investment projects.
• Understanding of railway construction contracts.
• Good understanding of the construction/railway industry.

Responsibilities

• Support project teams in compliance monitoring.
• Manage cost reporting within Network Rail framework.
• Monitor and report on all commercial aspects of projects.

Skills

Commercial management

Good negotiation skills

Education

Degree in a related subject

Membership of a relevant professional institute

Job description

About Network Rail

Join Our Team at Network Rail!

Are you ready to make a difference in people\'s lives? At Network Rail, we connect passengers and freight customers, ensuring safe and efficient transportation across the country. We\'re an organisation where people truly matter, and when you join us, you matter to us and millions of others.

We\'re dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive organisation that reflects the passengers we serve. To achieve this, we\'re committed to becoming an open, diverse, and inclusive workplace, leveraging the skills and expertise of our talented workforce. Together, we strive to create a safe and accessible railway for everyone. Discover more about the importance of Diversity and Inclusion at Network Rail by clicking here.

Investing in our people is key to enhancing the safety, reliability, and efficiency of our railway system. If you\'re passionate about making a meaningful impact, then this opportunity is for you! Click here to learn about our vision for a simpler, better, greener railway, and here to learn about our approach to safety and how it\'s at the heart of everything we do.

About our people and the recruitment process - We\'re an inclusive employer of choice and we welcome applications from everyone! We encourage our colleagues to work flexibly, as we know traditional working patterns don\'t always fit. If you want to consider working flexibly, just let us know and we\'ll do our best to help and invest in your career with us, whilst you have a healthy work life balance.

We\'re also a Disability Confident Leader employer and we\'ll try our best to adapt the process and offer a reasonable alternative to help support people with disabilities access, apply and interview for roles.

If you\'re ready to make a real difference, we\'d love to hear from you!

Brief Description

Route Services is a division of Network Rail that provides the Routes with services so they can help Network Rail deliver a better railway for a better Britain. We support the Routes with a myriad of services and supplies they need to maintain and operate the railway. To learn more, please click here to watch our video.

This role sits within Supply Chain Operations (SCO), an area of the business which supplies and delivers the logistics, materials, components, rail and road fleet that enable the maintenance and renewal of the railway.

SCO keeps the materials, machinery and components required by its customers moving - making sure they are on-site when needed so work can go ahead as planned and on schedule. Watch our video Working in Supply Chain Operations

Working with us is More than a Salary

About the role (External)

The role will support the Buildings and Facilities portfolio and project team, which is one of the distinct portfolios within the overall programme. The B&F portfolio has the following characteristics:

• The portfolio has c75 live projects, and use of contracts based on NEC4 is common.
• The projects tend to be relatively short duration and relatively low value (eg. £1.5m), although there are a number of high value high profile projects too
• The portfolio is fast moving, with demanding stakeholders, which then in turn requires skill and agility in respect of management of costs in oracle
• Cost reporting is key to be able to demonstrate control across such a fast-paced environment

Key Accountabilities

1. Support the programme and project teams in monitoring for breaches of compliance with Network Rail Corporate governance and rules in a timely manner.
2. Manage cost reporting of all allocated projects within the Network Rail reporting framework including Cost Forecasting, Anticipated Final Cost, Cost of Work Done, Gross Billing and Current Contract Value.
3. Monitor, manage and report on all commercial aspects of allocated projects, flagging issues and proposing mitigation actions at the earliest opportunity to Project Manager and/or Programme Manager (functional reporting line) and/or Senior Commercial Manager.
4. Monitor awareness of all activities on allocated projects in order to influence decision making from a commercial perspective. Review contractor delivery; including leading valuation of medium value/medium risk contracts and attending all progress meetings to actively influence contractor\'s commercial behaviours, delivery and activity.
5. Manage assessment and valuation of contractor\'s applications and processing of payment certification in accordance with Network Rail processes, contractual terms and conditions and commensurate with contractual entitlement. Challenge cost elements, audit where appropriate and check valuations are consistent with agreed site progress.
6. Provide pro-active advice and guidance to Project Managers on all change including proposed scope changes, recommending appropriate action in accordance with Network Rail change control systems and produce all required documentation for approval in accordance with levels of delegated authority, including comparative estimates where required, in a timely manner.
7. Produce applications for payment/invoices to outside clients in accordance with relevant funding agreements, including supporting documentation as appropriate.
8. Identify and advise on all commercial risk/claim events.
9. Provide of ad-hoc management information and analysis to promote informed decision-making.
10. Produce appropriate commercial correspondence and contractual notices for issue in accordance with contractual conditions. Check commercial records are retained and archived properly upon close out.
11. Undertake final account settlements and internal reconciliation to project close-out as per the project authority, project plan and within agreed timescales.
12. Support demonstration of efficiencies and continual improvement of estimating by undertaking cost analysis of completed projects and feedback as per Cost Allocation Feedback process.
13. Support pre and post contract procurement activities as appropriate.
14. Provide support to estimating resources, offering guidance and advice on project scale/scope as required.
15. Support the negotiation of all prices under existing contracts/framework agreements (including the negotiation of target costs) and fully participate in the associated quantitative risk assessment and value management workshops, as required.

Job Skills, Experience and Qualifications

Essential

• Demonstrable experience in commercially managing investment projects
• Demonstrable relevant experience
• Good understanding of railway and construction industry forms of contract
• Good understanding of the construction/railway industry
• Good negotiation skills

Desirable

• Educated to degree standard or equivalent in related subject
• Membership of a relevant professional institute, chartered status
• Significant experience of working within a generalist commercial environment
• Awareness of industry issues

How to apply (External)

Vacancy type: This role is permanent.

Location: This position is based in Baskerville House Birmingham. Commercial team members and members in the wider programme team are located in Milton Keynes and Waterloo, and you will be required to travel to these locations for work from time to time.

Hours: 35 hours per week with hybrid working - 3 days in the office - and travel as required.

Salary range: £43,588 to £51,719 per annum, depending on skills and experience.

Closing date: 13 October 2025. Late applicants will not be accepted. This role is being advertised internally and externally.

You will need to complete a supporting statement addressing how you meet the essential criteria, please complete this as part of the application process and add this to your CV in one document Applicants who do not complete this statement will not be shortlisted. Please see attached guide - How to complete Supporting Statement.

If you cannot access the guide, please contact [e-mail] and we will send you a copy.

Click 'Apply now' to submit your application.

If you would like to speak to the Resourcing Team, please contact [e-mail]

If you would like any reasonable adjustments support during your application or throughout the recruitment process, please do not hesitate to contact the Resourcing Team who will happily assist.

Below are some examples of adjustments we can make:

• Changing a provision, practice or 'the way things are done' - For example, we can give candidates extra time to complete online tasks or interviews as needed.
• Changing a physical feature of our workplace - For example, office/room layout can be adapted to accommodate individual needs.
• Providing extra equipment or assistance - For example, we can provide sign language interpreters and support workers where needed. Alternative document formats can be made available.

There are lots of other adjustments we can consider - please just ask!

The recruitment process will consist of shortlisted candidates being invited to take part in the following;

• Competency Based Interview

Candidates who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by phone or email.

For further information about how we recruit, please visit: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/careers/how-we-recruit/

Drugs and Alcohol Standard:

For some of our roles all prospective external candidates offered a conditional role will be required to undergo and pass a drugs and alcohol test. Your application will be rescinded if you record a positive test. All positive drugs and alcohol test results for prospective candidates will be securely held on Sentinel database and a 5 year suspension from applying for a safety critical role, a role which requires PTS certification or a Key Safety role on Network Rail Managed Infrastructure will be enforced.

More information can be found in our Drugs and Alcohol Guidance document.

You can visit Evenbreaks Career Hive for advice on accessibility support if you\'re unsure of the options available. Should you require any reasonable adjustments/modifications, please add a note to your application.

Network Rail Benefits - To find out about what benefits we offer, click here

All offers of employment are conditional upon satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks. Click here for more information

***Some of our roles require face to face Drugs & Alcohol testing. Further details will be shared with you as part of your formal offer.***