Senior Procurement Manager

Cirrus Selection; Stevenage; On-site; GBP 59,000 - 72,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

Pension

Job summary

Cirrus Selection invites applications for a Senior Procurement Manager role based in Bristol. You will lead a team of procurement specialists across subcontracts for complex defence programmes, guiding tendering, negotiation and contract execution.

The role blends strategic commercial leadership with risk and opportunity management, working with technical teams at senior levels and travelling to suppliers across the UK and Europe.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in procurement or subcontract management, ideally within defence, aerospace, or another regulated engineering sector.
• Demonstrable line management experience, leading a team of procurement or commercial specialists.
• Strong negotiation skills, with a track record of authoring and reviewing contracts and terms and conditions.
• Experience of competitive tendering and supporting new business proposals.
• CIPS or MCIPS qualification preferred, though not essential with strong subcontract management experience.
• Comfortable balancing procedural rigour with commercial pragmatism.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of procurement specialists managing subcontracts across the full lifecycle of in-service support projects.
• Negotiate terms and conditions with critical suppliers, resolving contractual disagreements.
• Safeguard delivery on cost, quality and schedule for sophisticated sub-systems.
• Work closely with technical and project teams at senior level, providing commercial guidance and managing risk and opportunity.

Skills

Procurement / subcontract management

Line management

Negotiation

Competitive tendering

CIPS/MCIPS

Contract management

Job description

Senior Procurement Manager

Based in Bristol

Salary up to £65,000 + 21% Bonus, Pension

Ready to step up from procurement into people leadership, or already leading a team and looking for a role with more weight behind it? This is a senior subcontracts and procurement management position on complex, high-value defence programmes.

You'll lead a team of procurement specialists managing subcontracts across the full lifecycle of in-service support projects, from tendering and negotiation through to contract execution and ongoing supplier management. It's a role with real commercial responsibility, negotiating terms and conditions with critical suppliers, resolving contractual disagreements, and safeguarding delivery on cost, quality and schedule for sophisticated sub-systems.

You'll work closely with technical and project teams at senior level, providing commercial guidance and managing risk and opportunity across multiple frameworks. Expect regular travel to suppliers across the UK and occasionally Europe.

What you'll need:

• Proven experience in procurement or subcontract management, ideally within defence, aerospace, or another regulated engineering sector
• Demonstrable line management experience, leading a team of procurement or commercial specialists
• Strong negotiation skills, with a track record of authoring and reviewing contracts and terms and conditions
• Experience of competitive tendering and supporting new business proposals
• CIPS or MCIPS qualification preferred, though not essential with strong subcontract management experience
• Comfortable balancing procedural rigour with commercial pragmatism

Security Clearance: Due to security requirements, you will need to hold current British citizenship (dual UK nationals with British citizenship also eligible).