If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the role please contact Sami Dean, Senior Procurement Officer – samantha.dean@leeds.gov.uk.

Interview Stages

The interview process will be 2 stages:

Stage 1:

Following successful shortlist of your application, you will be invited to attend a virtual interview in the first instance, this interview will be an informal discussion to explore your interest in the role, relevant experience and suitability against the essential criteria.

Stage 2:

Following successful shortlisting after the stage 1 interview you will be invited to attend a face-to-face interview which will consist of the following:

• Presentation: Candidates will be required to respond in a presentational format to a scenario, this will be submitted prior to the interview, and candidates will be asked to deliver their presentation, this will then be followed by supplementary questions in relation to the presentation delivered.
• Interview: Candidates will participate in a structured interview consisting of competency and experience-based questions aligned to the requirements of the role and Job Description.

We welcome applications from everyone and actively seek a diverse range of applicants from all backgrounds and cultures. We particularly encourage applications from, but not limited to, women, carers, veterans as well as LGBT+, ethnically diverse, disabled and care experienced people.

This role is based in the UK. Home Office guidance states that candidates must evidence their right to work in the UK prior to commencing employment, either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme or having secured any other relevant work visa.

If you do not have the right to work in the UK, you must consider your own eligibility for sponsorship for a particular role through the Skilled Worker visa route before applying. To be eligible for sponsorship you'll usually need to be paid the standard salary rate of at least £41,700 per year or meet one of the other eligibility criteria. Please ensure you are eligible before applying.

Job Description Job Purpose

Working as part of the team, you will live and model values and behaviours to help us to achieve our ambition to become the best city council in the country. Your role will be important in ensuring the council is more enterprising and efficient and ensuring that the authority has in place proper arrangements for the administration and delivery of procurements and supporting complex procurements. The role operates within the context of the council’s Business Plan Objective to increase efficiency.

Responsibilities

The duties outlined are not meant as an exhaustive list and will also comprise any other duties within the spirit of the post commensurate with the job evaluation outcome for this post.

The post holder will be responsible for providing and leading professional advisory and management functions in respect of procurements which are of moderate complexity, risk and value, supporting complex procurements advising clients and ensuring compliance with procedures, process, current contractual arrangements and a range of statutory and regulatory undertakings, supporting a category management approach and advising members and directorates on related commercial activity.

The Procurement Officer will be able to demonstrate relevant skills and experience in the management of procurement projects and will be responsible for supporting the management and monitoring of procurements within identified categories to reduce spend and achieve efficiencies.

Specific Responsibilities Also Include

• Manage procurements of moderate complexity, risk and value, and support complex procurements within a context of budget pressures and funding restrictions, ensuring the delivery and improvement of services which meet the needs of our communities and stakeholders.
• Provide advice and guidance on procurement matters across the authority to senior officers and other stakeholders.
• Support effective joint working within the council. Provide guidance and support to colleagues, clients and immediate line reports, creating an organisational culture of shared accountabilities, learning and continuous improvement.
• Support new ways of working and partnership working with key clients both internal and external to the council, to improve corporate priority outcomes and to ensure that developments and improvements remain focused on delivering outcomes for local people.
• Promote and support positive solutions to achieve diversity and equality of opportunity in all aspects of service delivery, community engagement activity and human resource areas.
• Support effective consultation and communications with colleagues, clients, councillors, partners and other stakeholders in accordance with council policy.
• Support open, responsive and accountable government, ensuring good governance compliance with financial and procurement procedures.
• Manage all aspects of risk and be responsible for the safety of staff, clients and contractors in accordance with all statutory obligations and relevant health and safety policies.
• Manage procurements of moderate complexity, risk and value, and where appropriate support procurements which are more complex and/or of higher risk and higher value, contributing to the delivery of the council’s procurement category management function and commercial approach as a whole.
• Contribute to the identifying and resolving of risks and issues in specific procurements.
• Assist the Procurement Category Manager in providing advice to service departments prior to the commencement of the procurement, including procurement options appraisal, procurement plan, specification, pricing models, innovative partnership arrangements.
• Coordinate and manage the tender process to Invitation to Tender stage including contributing to the development and preparation of tender documents for signoff, setting of evaluation criteria and methodology, publishing of relevant documentation and coordinating input from legal, technical and financial specialisms.
• Contribute to, and where appropriate manage, the procurement process to Contract Award including evaluation of tenders and drafting and issuing of relevant documentation.
• Provide post-procurement advice and management, including the Contract Management Plan.
• Provide advice regarding contract extensions, variations and termination of contracts.
• At all stages of the procurement process respond to and communicate with bidders on behalf of the council.
• Assist with the development, management and monitoring of the implementation of category management and category plans across identified categories of spend.
• Report on spend and proactively advise departments regarding off-contract, non-contract and quasi-contract spend, achieving a reduction in such spend.
• Assist in reducing procurement costs and improving efficiency by identifying areas suitable for corporate contracts and e-procurement, and developing other appropriate contractual arrangements.
• Maintain a record of the savings achieved through the introduction of more efficient and economic procurement arrangements.
• Contribute to and guide the preparation and authorisation of contract document to ensure that properly drafted contracts are entered into; implement standardised documentation across procurements and categories.
• Develop and monitor procurements undertaken on a regional and inter-council basis.
• Help develop the skills and abilities of client based staff to enable them to undertake procurement projects of varying size and complexity.
• Provide advice and guidance on the implementation of, and ensure compliance with,