Procurement Specialist

Venesky-Brown’s client, a public sector organisation in Inverness, is currently looking to recruit a Procurement Specialist for an initial 9 month contract on a rate of £500/day (Inside IR35).

Candidates can work fully remotely.

All applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of application and be resident in the UK.

Responsibilities

• You will act as the key point of contact for internal and external stakeholders on all procurement activities associated with your Category area of focus but will include other functional areas as required and will work closely with the Procurement Team to ensure that lessons learned are embedded in the development of procurement and contract processes. The post holder will be expected to operate confidently in a developing procurement environment, exercising professional judgement, prioritising workload effectively, and constructively challenging stakeholders where required to ensure compliance and value for money.
• You will be expected to conduct a proactive Category Management approach to our ongoing spend commitments within your allocated categories by working closely with colleagues to utilise economies of scale and buying power in the aggregation of demand for common goods and services across all airports and corporate functions, whilst at the same time supporting local supplier opportunities and wider local community gains. You will provide expertise within the Procurement Team to support a more strategic approach to buying on the basis of risk and cost and will provide close support to the functional teams resulting in increased value to the organisation and achievement of corporate strategic aims.
• You will be expected to support the capital project programme planning and annual revenue budget planning processes.
• A key aspect of the role will be supporting stakeholders with varying levels of procurement knowledge and experience. The post holder will be expected to positively influence behaviours, encourage early engagement with Procurement, and support the consistent adoption of compliant and proportionate procurement approaches as part of a wider cultural change.
• You will expertly co-ordinate, lead and execute end-to-end procurement activity from early engagement and strategy development, through tender preparation, publication and evaluation, to contract award and post-award support. You will advise stakeholders on appropriate procurement routes, governance and compliance requirements, and manage procurement exercises in line with Procurement Policy and relevant legislation.
• As part of the implementation of Category Management and to provide staff with more efficient and compliant procurement processes, you will identify strategic sourcing opportunities and support the development and implementation of suitable and compliant corporate agreements.
• You will evaluate and implement cost/resource saving initiatives and define and lead development projects within the Procurement function, as instructed by the Category Manager and/or Head of Procurement that will lead to savings/efficiencies.
• Provide specialist procurement support for capital works projects, including advising on appropriate contract terms and contract models, such as NEC where applicable, ensuring adherence to these and compliance with public procurement legislation. Support early supplier engagement and market analysis to inform infrastructure procurement strategies, considering factors such as supplier capacity, risk management, and whole-life costing.
• You will consider the application of sustainability aims as an intrinsic element of each procurement project in terms of social value, local community benefit, fair work practices and environmental gains to contribute to net zero targets.
• You will encourage project teams to engage early with Procurement and consider ‘circular economy’ approaches in the planning stages of procurement projects to influence improved sustainable outcomes from a whole life perspective.
• Where relevant, you will engage with staff to liaise with local community groups and stakeholder groups to provide demand-led community outcomes within our tender packs, where appropriate.
• You will work closely with legal advisors to prepare, review and comment on draft contracts for inclusion in tender packs and support the negotiation of terms with suppliers.
• Support contract management processes for a variety of contracts which may include NEC-based contracts ensuring that all contractual obligations, risk allocations, and early warnings are managed effectively.
• Work closely with project teams, engineers, and legal advisors to ensure smooth execution of contracts.
• You will work with internal stakeholders to achieve strategic objectives and ensure adherence to procurement policies. You will review tender specifications and requirements against a range of areas including but not limited to fair work practices, carbon monitoring and reduction, delivery of community benefits, data protection and cyber security. When awarding contracts, you will seek out opportunities for improvement and innovation in support of strategic goals.
• You will support the process to review and update the procurement strategy and policies to consider new initiatives relating your category area and wider procurement matters.
• You will support and contribute to the roll-out of training, engagement and knowledge development for procurement and operational staff on procurement processes and policies.
• Ensure procurement strategies for infrastructure projects incorporate risk mitigation measures, including financial risk, supplier failure, and project delivery challenges.
• Contribute to infrastructure governance and compliance processes, ensuring all procurement aligns with industry best practices, public procurement law, and Scottish Government procurement policy.
• You will utilise a range of internal and external tools and systems during the procurement cycle.
• You will contribute to the development, implementation and maintenance of digital procurement tools.
• You will contribute to the ongoing review of corporate procurement risks and be responsible for mitigation actions where these are allocated to you.
• You will contribute to the development and update of procurement templates in order to ensure that these are kept up to date and reflect best practice and organisational policy.
• Using the Finance System, you will analyse expenditure data on commodity demand across the business for common items and procurement spend by commodity/supplier/contract. The data will be used to inform project decision-making, category management and procurement strategies.
• You will be a role model for highest standards of independence and objectivity during all procurement activities. You will advocate for good governance practices and ensure these are followed, taking account of internal policies and procedures as well as applicable law and regulation. You have a high degree of awareness of conflict of interest and will follow ethics policies. You will monitor economic, social and governance matters, and be alert to ethical issues in the supply chain including bribery and collusion, modern slavery, and fair work.