Contracts & Supplier Manager

In the words of the team, you should leave your current role for this one because….

“OVO is such a cool place to work! Fabulous people and great hubs across the country that drive collaboration and team working. The culture truly puts its people at the heart of everything we do. It’s a fantastic opportunity to shape and build the new Supplier Management function & provide industry leading support to OVO's strategic suppliers. You can also make a massive impact on OVO’s path to Plan Zero by supporting our sustainability agenda and getting involved in purpose led initiatives. I really feel that our work adds value, makes a difference and contributes to our overall mission.”

Everyone belongs at OVO

At OVO, we are on a mission to solve one of humanity's biggest challenges, the climate crisis. And we know it takes all of us to change the world. That's why we need diverse people from all gender identities, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, life experiences and backgrounds to join us.

This role in a nutshell:

If you’re a contract and supplier manager with experience, we’d love to hear from you. We’re looking for a phenomenal communicator with superb communication skills. You’ll be a compassionate but tenacious negotiator who knows the right approach in a range of circumstances. It’s important you’re as comfortable working with contracts as you are working with people, and you’re ready for the challenge of getting the best out of supplier relationships in an organisation that’s fast-paced and highly collaborative.

Reporting to the Head of Supplier Management, you will be working as part of the centralised supplier management team. You'll be responsible for post contract management of OVOs strategic suppliers that are vital in helping OVO to achieve its goal to power human progress with clean affordable energy for everyone.  

You'll be joining the team during an exciting time when we are really starting to focus on the sustainability and social value of our partners. You will also be playing a key role in driving value from our existing supplier contracts and embedding new supplier management frameworks and policies into every day working practices across the organisation. No two days will be the same in this dynamic environment and you can make a real difference in a way that we grow our partnerships.

Your key outcomes will be:

• Monitoring the supplier performance to ensure contractual obligations are met, issues are raised and resolutions found in a timely manner.
• Identifying and handling commercial risks, issues and opportunities, owning mitigating actions and next steps.
• Handling in-life contract variations and changes to commercial terms.
• Driving the value proposition during the life cycle of the contract, looking at new opportunities to drive cost efficiency and recovering service credits/rebates in a timely manner.
• Supporting the procurement team during tender exercises and contract extensions.
• Establishing and handling robust relationships with the suppliers and internal team members at all levels of the organisation.
• Producing regular data led management information reporting and supplier metrics.
• Facilitating and driving collaboration between the internal teams and suppliers.
• Ensuring supplier contributions and initiatives towards OVO’s Plan Zero are measured, monitored and discussed during the regular governance meetings.
• Supporting the implementation of new supplier management system and processes.
• Championing a customer centric culture.

You will need to demonstrate:

• Commercial acumen with strong problem-solving skills and have an analytical approach.
• Confidence in influencing the agenda and driving outcomes with senior team members. 
• Being a positive and proactive problem solver who can manage both planned and reactive requirements simultaneously.
• Dealing with ambiguity, adopting change and decision making with confidence.

Ideally you will have:

• Proven experience in a similar role in contract and supplier management.
• In-depth understanding of all aspects of contract management including contract terms and conditions, in-life variations, negotiations and contract law.
• In depth understanding of all aspects of supplier management, including service level management and utilisation of recognised supplier management governance frameworks.
• Experience in delivering cost efficiency, process improvements and additional benefits.
• Consistent track record of developing and maintaining collaborative and partnership based relationships with the suppliers.
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills.
• Familiar with managing and measuring sustainability performance. 
• Solid understanding of agile working practices would be an advantage but not crucial. 
• Exposure to energy and/or technology businesses is desirable.