Commercial Manager

Centum; Ireland; Remote; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Centum Engineering is seeking a Senior Commercial Manager to provide leadership across projects and operations in Ireland, the UK and Europe. You will oversee contracts, cost control, forecasting, cash flow, procurement, variations, claims and commercial risk, working with project delivery, planning, finance and senior management teams.

The role demands strong commercial and contractual experience in construction, engineering or industrial environments, with the ability to influence outcomes

Qualifications

• Senior commercial management experience within construction, engineering or industrial environments.
• Strong contractual knowledge across UK, Irish and/or European projects.
• Proven experience managing cost control, forecasting and cash flow.
• Experience with variations, claims and Extensions of Time (EOTs).
• Experience leading Quantity Surveyors and commercial teams.
• Strong negotiation skills dealing with clients, contractors and professional advisors.
• Commercially decisive and evidence-led approach.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead contract reviews, negotiations and commercial agreements.
• Oversee cost-to-complete, forecast cash flow and margin.
• Provide leadership to the Quantity Surveying function.
• Ensure commercial reporting is accurate, evidence-based and audit-ready.
• Support strategic commercial decision-making across the business.

Skills

Senior commercial management

Contractual knowledge

Forecasting

Cost control

Cash flow management

Variations & claims

Negotiation

Leadership of QS

Analytical thinking

Communication to senior management

Problem solving

Tools

Excel

Job-costing systems

Commercial reporting tools

Project dashboards

Job description

Commercial Manager

Location: Ireland / UK / Europe as required
Job Type: Full-Time
Reporting to: Managing Director

Build Your Career with Centum Engineering

Centum Engineering is continuing to grow across Ireland, the UK and Europe, delivering major engineering projects across a range of sectors.

As part of this continued growth, we are looking for an experienced Commercial Manager to take a senior role within the business, providing commercial leadership across our projects and operations.

This is a key position with responsibility for contracts, cost control, forecasting, cash flow, procurement, variations, claims and commercial risk, while working closely with our project delivery, Quantity Surveying, Planning, Finance and senior management teams.

The successful candidate will bring strong commercial and contractual experience from a construction, engineering or industrial environment and be confident making commercially informed decisions across multiple projects.

The Role

As Commercial Manager, you will have end-to-end commercial responsibility across projects, helping ensure work is commercially structured, effectively controlled and delivered in line with agreed financial objectives.

You will provide commercial input from tender and estimation through project delivery and final account, ensuring risks are identified early, changes are properly controlled and senior management has clear visibility of project performance.

Key Responsibilities

Contract Management & Commercial Governance

• Lead contract reviews, negotiations and commercial agreements.
• Ensure contracts clearly define scope, assumptions, commercial terms and risk.
• Maintain visibility of contractual risks and obligations across projects.
• Ensure project teams understand key contractual requirements, notices and timelines.

Cost Control & Forecasting

• Maintain strong oversight of project costs, earned value and commercial performance.
• Monitor labour, materials, plant and subcontractor expenditure.
• Oversee cost-to-complete, final margin and cash-flow forecasting.
• Identify potential margin erosion or commercial risks early and implement appropriate recovery plans.
• Ensure Quantity Surveying, Planning and project teams remain commercially aligned.

Commercial Team Leadership

• Provide leadership and direction to the Quantity Surveying function.
• Work closely with Planners and project teams to ensure programmes are realistic and commercially aligned.
• Maintain consistent commercial processes, reporting standards and controls across projects.
• Support project teams in protecting and maximising project margin.

Variations, Claims & Change Control

• Lead commercial change management across projects.
• Oversee variations, dayworks, scope changes and client instructions.
• Ensure contractual and Early Warning notices are issued within required timescales.
• Ensure variations are properly priced, evidenced, submitted and progressed.
• Support the preparation and negotiation of applications for payment, Extension of Time claims and other commercial claims.

Cash Flow & Applications

• Maintain a strong focus on positive project and business cash flow.
• Oversee timely payment applications and certifications.
• Monitor payment terms, retentions and outstanding payments.
• Work closely with Finance to ensure receipts and forecasts remain aligned.

Procurement & Commercial Risk

• Provide commercial oversight of procurement activities.
• Ensure purchasing decisions remain aligned with project budgets, programmes and cash flow.
• Review supplier and subcontractor commercial terms where required.
• Identify and manage commercial risks relating to pricing, lead times and contractual exposure.

Reporting & Senior Management

• Provide clear and accurate commercial reporting across projects.
• Report on cost versus earned value, cash flow, variations, claims, risks and opportunities.
• Provide senior management with visibility of forecast outcomes and margin at risk.
• Support strategic commercial decision-making across the business.
• Ensure commercial reporting is accurate, evidence-based and audit-ready.

What We're Looking For

We are looking for an experienced commercial professional who is confident operating at a senior level within a fast-moving engineering or construction environment.

The successful candidate should demonstrate:

• Senior commercial management experience within construction, engineering or industrial environments.
• Strong contractual knowledge, ideally across UK, Irish and/or European projects.
• Proven experience managing cost control, forecasting and cash flow.
• Strong experience with variations, claims and Extensions of Time (EOTs).
• Experience managing or leading Quantity Surveyors and commercial teams.
• Strong negotiation skills and confidence dealing with clients, contractors and professional advisors.
• A commercially decisive and evidence-led approach.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Advanced Excel skills, particularly around forecasting, cash flow and margin analysis.
• Experience with job-costing systems, commercial reporting and project dashboards.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to report clearly to senior management.
• Ability to remain calm under pressure while maintaining strong commercial controls.

Why Join Centum?

Centum Engineering is continuing to expand its operations across Ireland, the UK and mainland Europe.

This position offers an experienced commercial professional the opportunity to take a senior role within that growth, influencing how projects are commercially structured, controlled and delivered.

You’ll work closely with our senior management and project delivery teams while helping establish consistent commercial standards across an expanding portfolio of major engineering projects.

For someone looking to take ownership, influence commercial strategy and play an important role in the continued development of a growing international engineering business, we’d like to hear from you.