Procurement Manager (Government Equivalent - Commercial Practitioner) Ref. 3705

Job Description

Flexible working: we recognise the importance of a healthy work-life balance, which is why we offer flexible working options including flexitime, part-time, full-time, job share and compressed hours. Please note this role requires a minimum of three days per week in the office, with flexibility to work from home one to two days per week. There will also be a requirement to travel to other locations as needed.

About us

MI5 keeps the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, its people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners, including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats. Through our protective security arm, we provide advice and guidance to government, businesses and other organisations about how to keep themselves safe. A role in MI5 means you’ll do unique and challenging work in a supportive and encouraging environment, making a real difference to UK national security.

The role

As a Procurement Manager, you’ll provide a responsive, efficient and professional service in line with our commercial policy. You’ll assist with the delivery of goods and services and ensure projects are delivered on time and in-line with requirements. You’ll work closely with customers at all levels while providing support to the Associate Commercial Lead within your team.

You could be working with our customer facing teams, managing relationships, developing commercial solutions and agreeing the future pipeline and prioritisation of the workbook. Or, you might be supporting commercial delivery within category teams across Technology, Estates, People and Professional Services, and Supply Chain Security. We also have roles in Commercial Operations, where you’ll be responsible for low value procurements, policy, audit, and management information.

Whichever area you’re working in, you’ll be part of a friendly, inclusive, welcoming and highly supportive team working across the intelligence agencies. You’ll work with a broad spectrum of people, from customers in highly sensitive operational areas to suppliers, government partners and our overseas counterparts.

Day-to-day, you’ll keep internal and external partners informed with status updates on a range of procurement projects. You’ll create and manage contracts as well as monitor and review their performance, ensuring key performance indicators are met. From gathering requirements and overseeing tendering to contract implementation, you’ll identify substantial cost savings and value-added interventions. In short, you’ll apply best practice commercial principles to all you do.

Plus, you’ll task manage a small team of people, building their capabilities and enhancing their impact through the continuous development of working practices and approaches. You’ll share your enthusiasm and motivate those around you. In doing so, you’ll add value to a department making a genuine contribution to the safety of the UK.

The role offers a great balance of on-site collaboration and flexible working. A minimum of three days per week in the office is required, with the option to work from home on other days where business needs allow. Some posts and opportunities to take on a broader range of responsibilities across the organisation may require up to five days a week on site. The role may also involve occasional travel to other locations. As an inclusive organisation we welcome applications from people seeking flexible working patterns.

About you

You’ll bring commercial acumen, customer focus and knowledge of procurement processes to this role. With your experience of working in a procurement and supply chain service, you’ll know how to secure value for money and deliver best practice. This will be supported by your ability to build rapport and develop strong working relationships with customers, suppliers, and your own team. You’ll identify solutions and bring enthusiasm, as well as an understanding of the security implications of what we do.

You’ll have experience in at least one of the following: contract management, sourcing, commercial policy and assurance, supply chain or low value procurement and invoicing. Additionally, you might also have experience of managing a supplier, or working in a role that requires purchasing, bill management, or drafting and managing contracts. We’ll look to you to find cost-saving solutions, so you’ll have knowledge of category management approaches that deliver cash releasing savings and total cost reductions. Plus, you’ll be confident prioritising the commercial workbook for the customer delivery of business as usual.

Your expertise will be key, and so will your ability to drive those around you. You’ll be a role model for your team, providing support and encouraging confidence through mentoring and knowledge sharing. And you’ll take a positive approach to resolving issues and setbacks, analysing situations, making recommendations and improving our service to customers.

Additionally, you’ll hold, or be willing to study towards, a professional commercial qualification such as the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) Level 4 (or equivalent).

While not essential to the role, we are interested to hear from individuals who have experience of contracting for Cloud or Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled services or experience using AI or other Cloud enabled platforms in commercial delivery. Some of our roles involve working closely with the AI team to undertake projects across the business, onboarding AI with suppliers.

Training and development

No matter your experience or background, you’ll receive dedicated support when you join. If you don’t already hold one, with our encouragement, you’ll study towards a professional commercial qualification such as the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) Level 4 (or a business equivalent). We’ll work with you to build your own progression plan, including mentorship with an assigned partner.

Plus, you’ll be working in a culture committed to your development. There’s a wealth of core and technical skills training available within the organisation, as well as an induction into the function when you start and regular check-ins with your manager. In short, you won’t be on your own – throughout your career, you’ll be surrounded by colleagues who want you to succeed.

Rewards and benefits

You’ll receive a starting salary of between £47,677 (London) or £45,331 (Cheltenham, Manchester and Buckinghamshire) plus other benefits including:

• 25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 public and privilege holidays
• opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme
• dedicated development budget
• interest-free season ticket loan
• excellent pension scheme
• cycle to work scheme
• facilities such as a gym, restaurant and on-site coffee bars (at some locations)
• paid parental and adoption leave

Equal opportunities

At MI5, diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website.

We’re disability confident

MI5 are proud to have achieved Leader status within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people. Being Disability Confident, we aim to offer a fair and proportionate number of person-to-person interviews to any candidate who self-identifies as disabled and meets the essential criteria for the role. This is our ‘Offer of Interview’ (OOI). To secure an interview for this vacancy, the essential criteria (in order of application process) are:

• pre-screening questions, which will ensure you meet our initial eligibility to apply
• application sift, which will assess your motivation for the role, the organisation and your relevant experience. You will be required to meet the minimum pass mark set to be invited to an online interview

There is a wide range of extra support available throughout the recruitment process to enable you to do your best, visit our how to apply page for information on reasonable adjustments we can offer.

What to expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

1. An initial online application form including pre-screening questions to ensure you meet our eligibility criteria
2. Online Situational Judgement Test (SJT) rating the appropriateness of your responses to a series of short scenarios. The SJT tests criteria important for all roles in our organisation
3. An application sift, which will assess your motivation for the role, the organisation and your relevant experience
4. An online interview, which will include motivational questions, technical questions and competency questions
5. If successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, subject to vetting

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take 9 to 12 months to process including vetting, so we advise you continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.

Before you apply

To work at MI5, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.

This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process here.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.
Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more securely.

The roles are based in London, Cheltenham, Manchester and Buckinghamshire, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. A loan is available to support people relocating to London.

We offer reasonable reimbursement of travel costs for candidates attending in person interviews or assessments during the recruitment and vetting process. Full details will be provided with your interview or assessment invitation.

Reimbursement is discretionary and will only be made in line with the Candidate Expenses Policy, as amended from time to time. Candidates must book their own travel, using the most economical option, and provide original hardcopy receipts for reimbursement.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

Right to withdraw statement:
Please be aware that we withhold the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.