Ocado Retail
Commercial Lead – Technology & Operations
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Contract type: Permanent
Location: Hatfield (Hybrid working – 3 days in the office)
Working hours per week: 40 hours
Level: Lead
Application Closing Date: Friday, 17th July
About Us
Our mission is to deliver joy in every shop, through unbeatable choice, unrivalled service, and reassuringly good value. We’re also on a mission to empower our business with smart technology; we’ve recently launched our AI Academy, providing a tailored AI learning journey for every colleague.
We’re Ocado Retail, a market-leading joint venture between Ocado Group and M&S, and the world’s largest dedicated online supermarket, ocado.com. Not only is Ocado the only place to shop a full range of M&S food online, it’s also the home to the widest online supermarket range in the UK and champion of small, independent brands. We’re also the brains behind Zoom by Ocado, our same-day grocery delivery service.
About The Team And The Role
Operating at the intersection of retail excellence and cutting-edge logistics automation, Ocado Retail manages a complex, tech-driven supply chain ecosystem. We are looking for a Commercial Lead (Technology & Operations) to act as the primary commercial bridge between Ocado Retail and Ocado Group.
This is a highly collaborative, analytical role focused on investment appraisal and strategic governance. You will take ownership of evaluating the business cases for new warehouse technology, automated systems (MHE), and fulfilment infrastructure—ensuring that every capital investment (CAPEX) aligns with Ocado Retail’s financial and operational targets. You will be responsible for managing relationships and performance tied to an annual spend of over £200 million. Acting as an internal relationship lead, you will collaborate across matrixed corporate lines to monitor project delivery, optimise commercial logic, and ensure our existing automated assets achieve peak efficiency.
What You’ll Do
- Capacity Forecasting: Take accountability for translating both short-term (3-month) and long-term capacity forecasts into clear capacity requests for Ocado Group.
- Investment Appraisal & ROI Modelling: Lead the commercial evaluation of new technology applications, automation rollouts, or warehouse expansion projects. Build and maintain robust financial/operational models (Excel/Google Sheets) to assess return on investment (ROI) and cost-benefit trade-offs.
- Performance and Productivity: Monitor the performance, productivity, and efficiency of vendor-provided equipment (MHE) and technologies.
- Contract Management: Ensure agreements are in place to secure the capacity guarantees we need.
- Commercial Optimisation: Collaboratively review fee structures, commercial logic, and contractual milestones to ensure maximum cost-efficiencies for the business. Evaluate the achievement of business case goals for the new technology deployed in our warehouses.
- Cross-Functional Relationship Management & Matrix Collaboration: Successfully navigate a complex, matrixed environment with interconnected stakeholders, building strong, collaborative relationships across different corporate entities to drive alignment, e.g., Finance Business Partners
- Issue Resolution: Proactively identify and resolve performance issues to ensure contractual obligations are consistently met.
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Who You Are
- Background: Experience in a Commercial Analysis, Supply Chain, Logistics, or Business Partnering environment.
- Analytical Power: Strong financial and data modelling skills; comfortable creating and manipulating spreadsheets from scratch to drive business decisions.
- Stakeholder & Relationship Management: Exceptional communication skills with the ability to manage complex corporate dynamics, collaborate across dotted lines, and influence senior stakeholders.
- Commercial Acumen: The confidence to challenge technical teams, question cost structures, and hold strategic partners accountable to timelines and deliverables.
- Sector Knowledge: A strong understanding of retail, warehouse operations, automation (MHE), or e-commerce supply chains is highly advantageous.
What’s In It For You
By joining Ocado Retail, you’ll have the chance to experience life at the world’s largest online retailer, work with an amazing bunch of people who challenge what’s possible each day, and grow your skills and career in online retail. You’ll also be part of our AI Academy, a dedicated learning journey designed to empower every colleague with the smart technology skills of the future.
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If that’s not enough to tempt you, you’ll also get access to loads of great benefits to sweeten the deal. Here’s a taste of what we offer:
- Health & Wellbeing: Private medical insurance with option to add your family, Digital GP appointments, market-leading family policies, mental health support, discounted gym memberships, dental insurance, and more.
- Spend & Save: Annual bonus scheme split between personal and business objectives, recognition with reward platform, up to 7% matched pension contributions, 15% Ocado discount, 20% M&S discount, free breakfast every day in the office, electric vehicle leasing scheme, and free shuttle bus from Hatfield station to the office.
- Never miss the moments that matter: Hybrid working, 26 days holiday plus 8 flexible bank holidays, options to buy extra holiday, 2 weeks work from anywhere, and lifestyle break opportunities.
Our Hiring Process
Lucky for us, we receive a high volume of applications and genuinely appreciate the time and effort invested by every candidate. To ensure a fair and thorough process, every application is reviewed by a member of our team. If your skills and experience are a strong match, a Talent Partner will contact you to discuss the role and guide you through the next steps of our hiring process.
Your Application and AI
In the spirit of innovation, we welcome you to use AI tools in your application, just as we use them in our own business at Ocado Retail. However, as you leverage this technology, please don’t lose sight of the most important element: your unique self. Your experiences, passions, and personality are what truly set you apart. Ensure that your application still authentically conveys who you are and why you’re a great fit for us.
Everyone’s Welcome
We’re an equal opportunities employer, which means that we make sure all potential colleagues are treated fairly and equally. We want to ensure everyone has a fair chance to apply; if you need this job description in an alternative format (e.g., larger print, different document type, etc.), please reach out to us at careers@ocadoretail.com and we’ll be happy to assist you, and if you require reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know on the application form.
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