85 - Corporate Support Officer - Procurement (Maternity cover)

Hours: Full time or part time (minimum 0.81 FTE / 30 hours a week)

Purpose of the post

We are seeking a motivated and detail-oriented professional to join our team on a 12-month fixed-term appointment covering a period of maternity leave, with the potential for extensions should the post-holder extend their maternity leave, or otherwise not return on the expected date. Reporting to the Senior Finance Manager, you will play a key role in managing operational purchase-to-pay processes, monitoring contracts and associated reviews, and supporting wider commercial activity between the IMA and its sponsor department, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).

In this role, you will engage with a broad range of stakeholders, including senior leaders, and provide expert advice on procurement activity. A critical aspect of your responsibilities will be ensuring the IMA’s compliance with procurement regulations, Government Spend Controls and Managing Public Money. This is an excellent opportunity to make a meaningful impact while working in a dynamic environment.

What will you be doing?

Procurement

• Oversee operational purchase-to-pay processes, including raising purchase orders and tracking internal activity.
• Monitor procurement activity and report on SLAs (service level agreements) in line with objectives.
• Resolve invoice hold errors and payment delays using available data on a weekly basis.
• Act as the main contact and subject matter expert for supplier management, maintaining accurate supplier lists and liaising directly with suppliers to resolve issues.
• Maintain effective relationships with MoJ and shared services colleagues to ensure timely resolution of procurement issues.

Commercial

• Act as SME for the Contract Management Framework (CMF), leading functional review meetings with MoJ stakeholders, reporting to the Deputy Director, Head of Strategy and Corporate Services (DD, HoS & CS).
• Plan and execute post-implementation, boundary, and exit reviews for IMA contracts.
• Support teams with commercial activity, including preparing business cases, specifications, tender documents, and evaluating tenders.
• Develop cyclical reporting on the CMF for the Executive Team and Board, with support from DD HoS & CS.

Finance

• Support budget holders with forecasting and provide monthly transaction reporting to MoJ Finance Business Partners.
• Liaise with audit stakeholders (e.g., GIAA, NAO) and provide evidence as needed.

Contact with others:

• Internal: Budget holders, forecast managers, Heads of Department, Senior Finance Manager
• External: Finance Business Partner, commercial support, Transaction Team, Supplier Support Team, Shared Services providers, Suppliers.

• The duties/responsibilities listed above describe the post and are not intended to be exhaustive. The Job Holder is expected to accept reasonable alterations and additional tasks of a similar level that may be necessary.

• All posts within the IMA operate as a flexible resource to ensure the requirements of the business are met and as such the post holder may be required to undertake other duties in their role or duties in other parts of the business at their grade to meet business priorities.

• In carrying out their duties the post holder will respect the IMA’s commitment to equality of opportunity and the diversity of the IMA and its stakeholders.

Essential Skills

• Self-motivated and able to work with minimal supervision;
• A good understanding of financial transactions such as purchase orders and invoices
• Supportive approach when dealing with stakeholders
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to form close working relationships with colleagues
• Ability to operate with discretion and work with confidential information
• Proven experience working in a fast-paced environment with changing priorities, demonstrating resilience
• Ability to work well under pressure and can prioritise workload and tailor this to meet the needs of the business;
• Intermediate knowledge / user skills of Excel and MS Teams
• Good analytical skills
• Good written and verbal communication skills

Desirable Skills

• Experience of working in a government or public service department in a finance, procurement, or commercial setting.
• Good understanding of Cabinet Office Spend Controls

Behaviours

• Managing a Quality Service – Lead Behaviour
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together