Contracts Manager

Location: Templecombe, United Kingdom

Thales people provide armed forces customers with operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defence mission systems solutions at land, sea, and air. Our platforms extend across the battlespace including Above and Sonar, Electronic Combat, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Contracts Manager

Location: Templecombe, United Kingdom

• Are you keen to work on and impact a portfolio or bids and programmes within Thales UK?

• Are you enthusiastic to bring a forward-thinking approach and strong commercial skills?

• Do you have good knowledge of both the defence business and the commercial environment?

What the role has to offer

Due to continued growth within the Defence sector we have an exciting new opportunity for a  Contracts Manager to be based in our offices in either our Templecombe or Cheadle office.

Our Opportunity

You will join a diverse and high performing team in the Thales UK UWS Commercial team, which has substantial experience and expertise in managing high-value, high-complexity bids and contracts.

Working on bids and contracts for the FCAP sector within Under Water Systems business, you will have exposure to high profile internal and external stakeholders, working on challenging interesting programmes where you’ll be able to apply your technical proficiency to  lead and support this portfolio of work in our fast growing business ;

• Manage the contract baseline and lead contract change activities, with both the client and our internal stakeholders. 

• Provide the commercial voice and expertise across multi-functional teams and provide support and guidance to programme managers.

• Actively perform the commercial management of opportunities, identifying and managing the associated commercial risks and liabilities.

• Flexibility to travel to other sites in the UK and overseas is required to support internal/customer engagements.

About You:

You may currently be working in programme management, procurement, bid finance or another commercial role with a desire to move into contracts management, or you may be an experienced contracts manager keen to work on higher value, higher complexity contracts and bids.

• Excellent communication and influencing skills across contract/project and bid lifecycles

• Able to establish effective working relationships with key stakeholders

• Forward thinking, able to look at the broader strategy and outcomes beyond the immediate task; think proactively, creatively and anticipate needs

• Able to quickly make sense of complex/difficult scenarios, translating into strategy and tactical solutions

• Understanding of risk & opportunity and ability to manage and mitigate effectively

• Collaborative, customer-focused, consistent and flexible

• Resilient and tenacious to deal with the periods of high intensity work, notably during bid activity

• Ability to manage change in a manner that protects the company’s interests

• Good commercial/business awareness providing voice and expertise across the enterprise

• Good understanding of the wider defence business and commercial environment

• An awareness of the UK MoD SSRO approach to procurement

• An understanding of Trade Compliance issues and how they relate to defence contracting

Skills and Experience

• Ideally Knowledge and experience of MoD Contracting and Single Source Pricing.

• Experience of Bids/Proposals/Contract Changes, Contracts and Contract amendments.

• Contract negotiation experience

• Risk Management experience

• IACCM, CIPS would be desirable.

• Will need to be mobile/ flexible enough to visit other sites both in the UK and overseas at short notice when appropriate and safe.

What We Can Offer

We’re committed to giving you opportunities to be your best. We believe in embracing the passion and potential of our people, and to achieve this we offer market leading training, development and experiences, along with the opportunity to be mentored and coached by some of the smartest minds in the industry. We hire from within as our first priority, so you’ll have a myriad of opportunities within our diverse, global organisation.

Flexibility

Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

If you are interested in this role, we would encourage you to have informal chat with the assigned recruiter.

Thales is an equal opportunities employer and diversity and inclusion are integral to the success of Thales.

Security Clearance statement 

As standard, all successful candidates must possess the permanent right to work in the UK, and will be required to go through Government security clearance at BPSS (Baseline Personal Security Standard) Level prior to starting with us and then to obtain full Security Clearance (SC) in line with the United Kingdom Security Vetting (UKSV) requirements above. 

To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years.  In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.  As part of the vetting process you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, eligibility to work in the UK, time spent abroad over the last 5 years, as well as employment and / or educational history.

For further details of the evidence required to apply for security clearance please follow this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!