Commercial & Contracts Director

Job Summary

In conjunction with the CCO and Senior Leadership Team, the Commercial & Contracts Director will pursue the integrated commercial success of the organisation and programmes under management. The role requires strong commercial and technical experience, together with people management, client management, and business development input to ensure the business goals and objectives can be met. This includes seeking organisational or operational efficiencies to drive revenue expansion, increasing synergies between departments to reduce costs, and taking leadership in working alongside all functional teams to promote a culture of accountability for success and financial results. The Commercial & Contracts Director will demonstrate leadership through continual pursuit for ethics, integrity, and compliance, and the promotion of the company’s vision and culture.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

General

• Understand and promote the company vision, culture, business plan, and strategic objectives, both internally and externally.
• Understand and promote the company’s HSE and sustainability goals and objectives.
• Provide reporting metrics and content as required in accordance with the prescribed format, content, and frequency.
• Understand construction contractors dynamics, business drivers, mindsets and motivations preemptively prevent LEAD exposure commercially and contractually; manage risk proactively.

Revenue Growth

• Provide input on business development planning, target clients and consultants, and business, development activities.
• Active engagement with existing and target clients to ensure client satisfaction, repeat business and expanded opportunities for new business.
• Oversight of all procurement and tendering, tender management, tender risk reviews, and tender costs to meet business objectives.
• Strategic oversight on LEAD bid pricing, risk, contingency and margin discussions

Cost Control/Management

• Oversight of all projects financial performance
• Ensure implementation of cost control policies on all projects and internal departments.
• Increase reliability of financial reporting and revenue forecasting through interrogation of data and forensic management of the cost review process.
• Ensure project risks are identified and managed through the implementation of a robust risk management system.
• Oversee and maintain benchmarking data and metrics and develop targets for efficiency gains on projects.
• Lead negotiations to facilitate the placing and compliant execution of prime contracts, sub-contracts, nominations, LPO’s, etc. on a best-for-project basis.
• Negotiate and clarify contractual requirements in meetings with consultants, contractors, and vendors.

Cash

• Focus on cash management and cash collections/disbursement in line with cash flow objectives.
• Oversee retention and bond/guarantee collections and discharge.
• Oversee project cash flow forecasts both internal and programme-wid.

Claims/Variations

• Provide strategic commercial and contractual direction on all claims and claim resolution strategies.
• Maintain oversight on all claims and variations.
• Review and approve all service providers’ claims and/or variations.
• Oversee and manage any program disputes or adjudication/arbitration cases.

Procurement

• Oversight of all procurement activities.
• Participate in procurement activities, tender reviews and vetting, and supplier management initiatives.
• Ensure all service providers are engaged on formal, properly executed subcontracts on a best-for-project basis.
• Maintain executive-level relationships with key suppliers and vendors.

People

• Responsible for overall development of commercial, and contract teams, including overall structure, training, and setting commercial performance objectives.
• Responsible for recruitment of commercial staff.

Technical Competencies

• BSc in Quantity Surveying or similar technical qualification from a reputed University.
• 15-20 years of previous similar experience with similar responsibilities, including relevant senior management experience.
• Broad construction experience in the building, civil, and MEP sectors.
• Previous experience in claims participation with successful outcomes, upstream and downstream.
• Outstanding ability to negotiate and represent company’s best interests while keeping relationships intact
• Ability to integrate contractual obligations with commercial/business needs
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skill.
• High proficiency in oral and written skills sets, good technical, operational, and contractual writing skills for reports and presentations.
• Intuitive; develops empathy with external parties and colleagues in appropriate ways
• Engenders trust and respect from external parties and colleagues and leads with integrity
• Responsive and flexible, works unsupervised, and does the right thing without asking about it.
• Plans ahead, good preparation, organises time and other resources effectively
• Enjoys a highly transparent and performance-oriented work environment
• Professional, business-like, and presentable. Worldly and comfortable in diverse cultures, varied geographies, and VIP client environments.
• Expressing ideas effectively in individual and group situations

Behavioural Competencies

• Strong written and oral communication skills, excellent interpersonal skills
• Leadership skills
• Time management