Senior Commercial / Procurement Manager – Defence

Turner & Townsend; Bristol; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading consultancy firm in the UK is seeking a Senior Commercial and Procurement Manager to join their Defence Team. This role involves working directly with Defence Clients to lead procurement strategies, manage contracts, and mitigate risks. The ideal candidate will have extensive procurement knowledge, strong commercial judgement, and experience with project management tools. A professional qualification in a relevant field is required, along with the ability to achieve UK MoD Security Clearance.

Qualifications

• Deep knowledge of procurement principles and contract management.
• Ability to identify suitable commercial approaches and assess trade-offs.
• Experience in programme and project management.

Responsibilities

• Lead procurement and commercial strategy development.
• Manage contracts from inception to close-out.
• Conduct business analysis and solve complex procurement problems.

Skills

Procurement knowledge

Contract management

Stakeholder engagement

Leadership

Risk management

Commercial judgement

Education

Professional qualification in Business or Procurement/Supply Chain Management

Training in Defence and Security Public Contracting Regulations

Tools

Project management tools

Job description

Senior Commercial and Procurement Manager – Defence (UK)

We are currently seeking Senior Commercial and Procurement Managers to join our growing Defence Team at Turner & Townsend. In this role you will work directly with Defence Clients, supporting them in delivering outcomes across the end‑to‑end commercial lifecycle.

Role Overview

As a Senior Commercial/Procurement Manager you will:

• Lead procurement and commercial strategy development.
• Manage contracts from inception to close‑out.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate risk, ensuring business success.
• Negotiate and drive continuous improvement initiatives.
• Ensure governance and compliance with internal policy and legal frameworks.
• Conduct business analysis and solve complex procurement problems.

Role Objectives

• Deliver service excellence by deploying market‑leading capability.
• Manage risk and performance to safeguard client and business success.
• Facilitate business transformation and stakeholder engagement.
• Provide formal and informal leadership through coaching and mentoring.

Required Experience and Skills

• Deep knowledge of procurement principles, contract management and/or contract placement.
• Ability to identify the most suitable commercial approach and assess trade‑offs.
• Experience using programme, portfolio and project management tools.
• Ownership of decisions at tender evaluation stage with strong commercial judgement.
• Development and commercial assurance of business cases, strategies and contracting approaches.
• Implementation of contract and supplier management strategies to extract maximum value.
• Proactive monitoring of supplier performance and driving continuous improvement.
• Leadership experience providing strategic direction.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement, including chairing internal and external meetings.

Security Clearance

Due to the sensitive nature of these projects you must be a SOLE UK National capable of achieving and maintaining UK MoD Security Clearance (SC). Holding SC currently is desirable but not mandatory.

Qualifications

• Professional qualification(s) in Business, Procurement/Supply Chain Management, Law, Project Management, or a similar discipline, or equivalent experience.
• Training or sufficient experience in Defence and Security Public Contracting Regulations (DSPCR), Public Contract Regulations (PCR) and/or the Procurement Act 2023.

EEO Statement

Turner & Townsend is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees and actively encourage applications from all sectors of the community.