Join Great Western Railway – Proud to Support Our People and Our Passengers

At GWR, we're more than a train company - we're the proud custodians of one of the UK's most iconic rail networks. Every year, we help over 100 million people travel across the South West, South Wales and London, through some of the country's most scenic routes.

With a modern fleet, ambitious plans for the future, and a 91% customer satisfaction score, we're on a journey of continuous improvement. Our people are at the heart of that journey and the Procurement Team have an essential role to play in the success of GWR - through our strategic sourcing and our approach to supplier management.

About the team:

Our Vision: Be a trusted partner, that enables the business to achieve value for money every time.

At GWR, we understand the importance of investing in our employees' professional growth. 

As a Procurement Manager, you'll have access to a structured career progression path within both GWR and our parent company, First Group. Whether you're looking to enhance your skills, take on greater responsibilities, or pursue leadership positions, we're committed to supporting your career development every step of the way.

About the job:

The role of the Procurement Manager will be to lead on a variety of procurement projects across all spend areas, supporting the team during the transition to Public Ownership, and reporting to a Senior Procurement Manager.

To succeed in this position, you will be an enthusiastic, self-motivated individual with good interpersonal skills who has the ability to work both independently and within a wider multi-functional stakeholder team.

As the successful candidate, you will have experience in the following areas:

• PA23, Utilities or Public Contracts Regulations
• Contract negotiation
• Contract management
• E-procurement knowledge

Your main responsibilities will be:

• Lead, develop and implement effective sourcing strategies to maximise through life value for money of our contracts
• Lead and develop competitive tender exercises in a regulated procurement environment (PA23)
• Develop and maintain effective relationships with various stakeholders across GWR, First Group and external stakeholders
• Identify opportunities to consolidate suppliers and rationalise contracts
• Support the team with transition activities
• Support Senior Procurement Managers with complex regulated (PA23) compliant tendering
• Support Supplier Relationship Management activities in driving efficiencies and benefits
• Conducting commercial negotiations for both new requirements and contract renewals

The Reward

As well as a great team environment and comprehensive training, all GWR colleagues enjoy a range of benefits including:

• on-going development,
• defined benefit pension scheme with the Railways Pension Scheme,
• free rail travel across the GWR network for you and your family,
• company-sponsored health care plan,
• discounted shopping and gym membership
• employee assistance programme and much more.

About You

You'll need to:

• Be leading on all aspects of tender drafting, issuing and evaluation in procurement projects
• Ensure all procurement activities align with PA23 and procurement procedures
• Have demonstrable experience in post award contract management
• Have great communication skills
• Have excellent organisation skills in terms of time-management and workload
• Be proficient with MS Office, in particular MS Excel and Word
• Proactive in driving projects and reporting updates to all stakeholders

As a minimum you'll need to have:

• Have or be working towards MCIPS qualification
• Previous experience in a procurement role
• A basic understanding of contract law
• Proven experience in the development of good relationships with both internal and external senior stakeholders
• Proven demonstrable experience of managing supplier relationships and performance
• Excellent organisational skills
• Excellent analytical and data management skills

About the location:

This role is based in Milford House, Swindon.

Application

Please apply online via our website https://careers.firstgroup.co.uk/brand-gwr

If you have any problems applying, please email gwrrecruitment@gwr.com

We all belong at GWR. This is our vision for providing an inclusive environment for all our colleagues, ensuring all candidates have an equal opportunity to access meaningful employment. 

We value our differences such as age, gender, LGBTQIA, ethnicity, religion and disability. We maintain zero tolerance towards any form of prejudice towards our colleagues, customers, and future talent.

We celebrate and encourage diversity of thought, progressive ways of working and seeing all our colleagues grow and thrive.

We review all roles and job descriptions to ensure they are accessible and, where possible, we support and provide flexible working options; we recommend that you refer to each vacancy description for further details.

If you require additional support to complete your application due to a disability or neurodivergent condition such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, or autism, please follow the links below. We encourage you to share any additional needs you may require so we can provide a fair and equal process for all who apply.

https://exceptionalindividuals.com/neurodiversity/

https://www.healthassured.org/blog/neurodiversity/

INGWR