Higher Executive Officer (HEO) - DEFRA (DgC) / Natural England
| Posting date: | 20 March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £34,765 to £41,375 per year |
| Additional salary information: | National: Minimum £34,765 – Maximum £37,080 London: Minimum £38,795 – Maximum £41,375 For details of our pay on appointment policy, please see below under the heading ‘Salary’. |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 17 April 2026 |
| Location: | Nottingham |
| Company: | Government Recruitment Service |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 452272/7 |
Summary
- Support and lead the delivery of projects, procurements and contract / supplier management roles across an allocated customer category.
- Support the management and development of key supplier relationships to deliver exceptional performance in cost, service and quality.
- Build and sustain effective relationships with category customers.
- Provide day to day advice on commercial issues and governance across the relevant category, taking full account of risk, exploiting commercial opportunities and maximising value of money and savings.
- Prepare tender documentation and evaluation criteria, and lead from market engagement through to tender publication, evaluation, negotiations, and award.
Brief Overview:
Defra Group Commercial (DGC) is part of Defra, the central Government Department responsible for growing the rural economy; improving the environment; and safeguarding animal and plant health. DGC is responsible for providing a commercial service to organisations within the Defra Network.
This post requires the post-holder to assist customers to deliver value effectively and innovatively so that the customer organisation outcomes and objectives can be met alongside the fulfilment of Spending Review targets.
In accordance with Defra’s commercial policies and procedures the post requires commercial expertise to deliver low to medium risk and value projects (typically up to £500k), procurements and contract / supplier management within a market facing category team across the full commercial life cycle. They will be expected to deliver propriety and value for money whilst applying the Commercial life-cycle principles.
The work will involve promoting commercial policies and procedures whilst influencing the final outcomes. It includes the provision of expert advice to the business on commercial issues and governance and operational support to the team.
Support the team who manage the Natural England (NE) Nature Reserve Capital Portfolio within the Buildings Office team in Defra group Commercial.
The post holder will be expected to engage with colleagues across the country, building the Commercial network both internally and through the wider Defra network and Government Bodies. The team are based across the country and your local office will be your official base. Some travel will be required for team meetings, project meetings and training as required. The contract with be FT, with hybrid working of 40% home working and 60% in the office.
The Category Officer will report to a Senior Category Officer (SEO) and the role will entail all aspects of contract commercial support.
You will
- Lead and support the delivery of corporate outcomes and to ensure continuous improvement in the field of supplier relations and contract management
- Be responsible for embedding a commercially focused supplier and contract management culture within operational teams to influence compliance with Defra policy / legislation / best practice ways of working and contribute to the delivery of business plans.
- Keep up to date on changing legislation / best practice externally, to inform internal priorities and appropriate alignment.
- Contribute to the development of Defra policy / process at national / local level and monitor and advise on effective implementation in the business, in line with environmental targets.
- Build and sustain effective relationships with operational customers to understand issues and provide effective response / steer for operational needs specifically in relation to supplier relations and contract management.
- Train and help others on Government tools and guidance, policies, procedures, practices and techniques equipping them with the knowledge and skills to deliver their work in an effective and efficient manner
- Support team members to deliver results on time, to required quality standards and cost to fulfil the business plan and achieve / support environmental goals.
- Support the delivery of contracts such that sustainable impacts and opportunities are identified and managed throughout the commercial lifecycle.
- Manage own resources to meet business needs, including contract management applications, to maximise the efficient and effective use of finances and people to ensure that all activities are completed to time, cost and quality targets.
- Drive continuous performance improvement of the delivery of the Natural England pipeline ensuring commercial outcomes are delivered, savings achieved, processes reviewed and amended where appropriate
- Work with G7 and SEO’s to ensure the NE Smart Sourcing pipeline is kept up to date and Blue, Red and Amber projects are managed to drive capital delivery on time.
The post-holder will be accountable for:
- The provision of day-to-day advice on commercial issues and governance, taking full account of risk, exploiting commercial opportunities and maximising value of money and savings.
- The use of leading practice commercial tools to develop and implement commercial strategies
- Supporting the management of more complex (Gold and Silver) Contracts including
- Supporting the SEO and G7 across the full commercial lifecycle on more complex Contracts
- Supporting the management and development of key supplier relationships to deliver exceptional performance in cost service and quality
- Supporting the establishment and maintenance of excellent relationships within customer organisation and wider government with key stakeholders, raising the profile of commercial activity within customer organisations.
- Participating in the production of National/European Commercial standards and guidance to inform the business and improve commercial implementation, promoting commercial principles and applying policy where appropriate
- Representing the Commercial team at meetings with internal stakeholders and deputising for the Senior Commercial Officer as required.
- The management of mentoring and support to colleagues and team members (where appropriate) equipping them with the knowledge and skills to deliver their work in an effective and efficient manner.
- The use of Commercial and contract management IT systems and applications, and approval of the work of others who are using these
- Your own continuous professional development and keeping up to date on legislation, best practice and develop industry knowledge and commercial understanding within a commercial category and using this knowledge to support development of the Category and Sub-category plans.
Financial Scheme of Delegation
All Commercial Officers have a delegated authority at all stages of the commercial process:
- Sign-off of commercial strategies and contract award reports
- Make commercial commitments up to <£100k> per commercial project
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