The Senior Commercial Manager – Pre-Contracts is responsible for leading all commercial and contractual aspects of the bidding process across the portfolio. This role ensures that tenders are commercially robust, competitively priced, and aligned with the organization’s risk appetite and strategic objectives. The position plays a critical role in securing new contracts through effective leadership of pre-contract activities, stakeholder coordination, and risk.
Lead the preparation and submission of high-quality commercial proposals across service portfolio.
Ensure compliance with client requirements and internal governance including Delegation of Authority and Risk Review process.
Coordinate all cross-functional team’s inputs required for the commercial deliverables (e.g. technical, legal, finance, tax, operations) during bid development.
Develop competitive pricing strategies aligned with market conditions and company objectives across all RFI’s, ITT’s or other proposals submitted to customers.
Develop and lead cost estimates, financial models, and pricing assumptions to ensure accuracy and profitability.
Provide commercial input into bid/no-bid decisions.
Lead in bringing new and innovative commercial and sub-contracting structures / arrangements though internal process and subsequently to the market across the Asset Solutions portfolio.
Proactively work with other service line teams and functions to develop differentiated commercial offerings that maximise value to client.
Optimize commercial terms to enhance value while mitigating risk.
Lead in the identification of partnering requirements, selection and all associated agreements.
Coordinate the review and negotiation of contract terms and conditions.
Identify, assess, and mitigate commercial and contractual risks.
Develop risk registers and recommend mitigation strategies.
Ensure alignment with company policies, business contract protocols, and any local or regulatory specific requirements.
Identify and implement opportunities to support the development of all proposals.
Act as the primary commercial interface with clients during the tender phase.
Collaborate with internal departments including legal, procurement, finance, and operations.
Support senior leadership with commercial insights and reporting.
Ensure adherence to internal approval processes, due diligence, compliance and delegation of authority.
Maintain audit-ready documentation for all tendering activities.
Ensure all tender approvals are properly documented and retained.
Mentor and develop commercial pre contracts team members.
Foster a high-performance culture focused on accountability and continuous improvement.
Develop and maintain common pricing workbooks, CTR formats and rate catalogues.
Prepare detailed handover document for all new contract awards outlining
key risks and mitigations identified at tender stage
Key flow down terms are made clear to support supply chain teams when procuring goods and services in the delivery of the contract
Pricing narrative and how to apply the contract
Margin expectations from bid approvals.
Ensure annual audit programme is conducted along with Contracts team to ensure all approval actions and conditions are being managed during contract execution.
Benchmarking is conducted to ensure pricing books are reflective of live trends including KPI performance.
Degree level qualification in appropriate commercial, legal or business discipline.
Experience in the oil and gas sector with an excellent understanding of Operations services, Well Management, Brownfield projects and engineering, construction, Decommissioning contracts and commercial structures Demonstrable ability to apply innovative solutions
Track record of leading successful commercial / contracts teams.
Strong commercial acumen and financial analysis capability
Advanced negotiation and contract drafting skills
Deep understanding of risk allocation and mitigation strategies
Excellent leadership and stakeholder management abilities
High attention to detail with strategic thinking capability
Ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines
Strong communication and presentation skills.
Good familiarity with and experience of the upstream oil & gas sector.
Good knowledge of culture and business practices.
The candidate should be familiar Asset Operations, Asset Management/Development, Consultancy, Engineering and Well Management / Operations.
Should have broad commercial skills and be familiar with a range of commercial contract structures.
Needs to be a self-starter and organised and can handle multiple simultaneous tasks.
Must be strong on relationships and calm under pressure.
Understanding of financial markets and third-party financing.
