Senior Construction Contracts Manager

Placements24; Gauteng; On-site; ZAR 1,800,000 - 3,200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical cover

Generous annual leave

Paid professional subscriptions

Flexible work options

Job summary

WSP in Sandton is seeking a Senior Construction Contracts Manager to provide strategic commercial leadership across major infrastructure projects. The role focuses on governance, risk management, commercial strategy, dispute management and leadership to support executive decision making.

You will advise project directors, drive contract negotiations under NEC and FIDIC, mentor teams, and ensure compliance with regulatory and corporate governance.

Qualifications

• Degree in Quantity Surveying, Construction Management, Engineering, Project Management or Law.
• 15+ years' experience in senior commercial/contractual leadership roles on large infrastructure or energy projects.
• Deep expertise in NEC, FIDIC and bespoke contracts.
• Professional registration (e.g. RICS, SACQSP) strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership on commercial and contractual matters across major projects and programmes.
• Develop and implement commercial strategies aligned to business, project and client objectives.
• Lead negotiation of complex contracts, major variations, claims and final accounts.
• Act as a key advisor to project directors and senior leadership on contractual, risk and commercial issues.
• Oversee dispute resolution, claims strategy and engagement with legal advisors and external consultants.
• Establish and enforce commercial governance, controls and risk mitigation frameworks.

Skills

Strategic commercial leadership

Negotiation & dispute management

Executive stakeholder engagement

Governance & risk management

Mentorship & leadership

Education

Degree in Quantity Surveying

Construction Management

Engineering

Project Management

Law

Job description

WSP – Senior Construction Contracts Manager (Sandton)

WSP is one of the most diverse consulting firms in Africa. To further our strategic business execution plan, we are seeking leaders that share our guiding principles - we value our people and our reputation; we are locally dedicated with international scale; we are future focused and challenge the status quo; we foster collaboration in everything we do and we have an empowering culture and hold ourselves accountable. We are committed to the achievement and maintenance of diversity and equity in employment.

Key Role

Provide strategic commercial and contractual leadership across major, high risk and complex projects or programmes. The role focuses on governance, risk management, commercial strategy, dispute management and leadership, supporting executive decision making and shaping best practice across the business.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership on commercial and contractual matters across major projects and programmes
• Develop and implement commercial strategies aligned to business, project and client objectives
• Lead negotiation of complex contracts, major variations, claims and final accounts
• Act as a key advisor to project directors and senior leadership on contractual, risk and commercial issues
• Oversee dispute resolution, claims strategy and engagement with legal advisors and external consultants
• Establish and enforce commercial governance, controls and risk mitigation frameworks
• Mentor and develop senior and intermediate contracts/commercial professionals
• Support tendering, pricing strategies and contract negotiations at bid stage
• Drive continuous improvement, lessons learnt and best practice in commercial management
• Ensure compliance with regulatory, contractual and corporate governance requirements

Health & Safety

• Role model standards for SHEQ performance and behaviour consistent with the company's health, safety, environmental and quality vision and policies by influencing those around you
• Contributing to the identification of SHEQ risks and driving processes to achieve Zero Harm
• Embracing, displaying and promoting the company values and ensuring a safe working environment is maintained at all times

Degree in Quantity Surveying, Construction Management, Engineering, Project Management, Law or equivalent

15+ years' experience in senior commercial/contractual leadership roles on large infrastructure or energy projects

Deep expertise in NEC, FIDIC and bespoke contracts

Professional registration (e.g. RICS, SACQSP) strongly preferred

Key Competencies and Generic

• Strategic commercial leadership
• Expert negotiation and dispute management skills
• Executive level stakeholder engagement
• Strong governance and risk management capability
• Mentorship, influence and decision making at Senior Level

Additional Information

What if we can have work-life balance? What if we can be rewarded in ways that support our individual needs? What if we can be accepted for who we are? Here at WSP - we can! WSP recognizes that work is only one part of our lives and making time for the other things in our life is important - be that our families, our friends or ourselves. So, if working from home, working part‑time or having flexible start and finish time will help with this let us know as part of your application. As well as rewarding you with competitive pay, WSP offers standard benefits including first class medical cover, generous days annual leave, and paid professional subscriptions.