Flexible working: we recognise the importance of a healthy work-life balance, which is why we offer flexible working options including flexi-time, part-time, full-time, job share and compressed hours. Please note this role requires a minimum of 3 days per week in the office, with flexibility to work from home 1-2 days per week.
About us
MI5 keeps the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, its people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners, including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats. Through our protective security arm, we provide advice and guidance to government, businesses and other organisations about how to keep themselves safe. A role in MI5 means you’ll do unique and challenging work in a supportive and encouraging environment, making a real difference to UK national security.
The role
As an Associate Procurement Lead, you’ll provide a responsive, efficient and professional service in line with our commercial policy. Supporting the Procurement Lead within your team and working closely with customers at all levels, you’ll assist with the delivery of goods and services, and ensure requirements are delivered on time and meet expectations.
You could be working with our customer-facing teams, managing relationships, developing commercial solutions and agreeing the future pipeline and prioritisation of the workbook. Or you might be supporting commercial delivery within category teams across Technology, Estates, People and Professional Services, and the Supply Chain Security team. We also have roles in Commercial Operations, with responsibility for low value procurements, policy, audit, and management information.
Whichever area you’re working in, you’ll be part of a friendly, inclusive, welcoming and highly supportive team working across the Intelligence Agencies. You’ll work with a broad spectrum of people, from customers in highly sensitive operational areas to suppliers, government partners and our overseas counterparts.
Day-to-day, you’ll keep internal and external partners informed with progress, updates and any issues and risks regarding a range of procurement projects. You’ll monitor and review contract performance, ensuring key performance indicators (KPIs) are met while providing sustainable cost savings and value-added interventions. From gathering requirements and overseeing tendering, to contract implementation and management, you’ll apply best practice commercial principles to all you do.
Plus, you’ll task manage a team of your own, building their capabilities and enhancing their impact through the continuous development of working practices and approaches. You’ll share your enthusiasm and motivate those around you, providing support and approaching tasks with positivity. In doing so, you’ll add real value to a department making a genuine contribution to the safety of the UK.
The role offers a great balance of on-site collaboration and flexible working. A minimum of three days per week in the office is required, with the option to work from home on other days where business needs allow. Some posts—and opportunities to take on a broader range of responsibilities across the organisation—may require up to five days a week on site. The role may also involve occasional travel to other locations – this could be around 1 day per month, on average.
About you
You will bring your commercial acumen, knowledge of procurement processes and in-depth understanding of procurement activities to this role. With your extensive experience of working in a procurement and supply chain service, you’ll know how to secure value for money and deliver best practice. This will be supported by your ability to build rapport and develop strong working relationships with customers, suppliers, and your own team.
You will also understand how to develop a commercial pipeline, with consistent and repeatable management information to support prioritisation of the commercial work. Your experience will be in areas such as development and delivery of sub-category strategies, implementing KPIs and facilitating invitations to tender, working to improve the use of small to medium enterprises, increasing diversity, and of course delivering customer needs. You will have experience of drafting and negotiating contracts, with support from colleagues in Legal and Finance, in addition to managing significant spend and saving efficiencies.
You’ll have proven experience in at least one of the following: category management, contract management, sourcing, commercial policy and assurance, supply chain or low value procurement. We’ll look to you to find cost-saving solutions, so you’ll have knowledge of commercial approaches that deliver cash releasing savings and total cost reductions. Plus, you’ll be confident prioritising the commercial work for the customer to meet business demands.
Your expertise will be key and so will your ability to drive those around you. You’ll be a role model for your team, providing support and encouraging confidence through mentoring and knowledge sharing. You’ll take a positive approach to resolving issues and setbacks – analysing situations, making recommendations and improving our service to customers.
You’ll ideally have management experience, but this is not essential. You will also hold, or be willing to study towards, a professional commercial qualification such as Membership of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (MCIPS) or equivalent.
While not essential to the role, we are interested to hear from individuals who have experience of contracting for Cloud or Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled services or experience using AI or other Cloud enabled platforms in commercial delivery. Some of our roles involve working closely with the AI team to undertake projects across the business, onboarding AI with suppliers.
Training and development
No matter your experience or background, you’ll receive dedicated support when you join. We’ll work with you to build your own Personal Development Plan, whether that’s through mentorship with an assigned partner, or support towards gaining your MCIPS. From day one, you’ll get all the help and guidance you need to grow a rewarding career at the heart of national security.
Plus, you’ll be working in a culture committed to your development. There’s a wealth of core and technical skills training available within the organisation, as well as an induction into the function when you start, and regular check-ins with your manager. In short, you won’t be on your own – throughout your career, you’ll be surrounded by colleagues who want you to succeed.
Rewards and benefits
You’ll receive a starting salary of between £56,962 plus other benefits including:
- 25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, and an additional 10.5 public and privilege holidays
- opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme
- dedicated development budget
- interest-free season ticket loan
- excellent pension scheme
- cycle to work scheme
- facilities such as a gym, restaurant and on-site coffee bars (at some locations)
- paid parental and adoption leave
Equal Opportunities
At MI5, diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.
Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website.
We’re Disability Confident
MI5 are proud to have achieved Leader status within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people. Being Disability Confident, we aim to offer a fair and proportionate number of person-to-person interviews to any candidate who self-identifies as disabled and meets the essential criteria for the role. This is our ‘Offer of Interview’ (OOI). To secure an interview for this vacancy, the essential criteria (in order of application process) are:
- you'll be required to reach the minimum pass mark for the online Situational Judgement Test (SJT), which assesses criteria important for all roles in our organisation
- application sift, which will assess your motivation for the role, the organisation and your relevant experience. You will be required to meet the minimum pass mark set to be invited to an online interview
There is a wide range of extra support available throughout the recruitment process to enable you to do your best, see our website for information on reasonable adjustments we can offer.
What to expect
Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:
1. pre-screening questions, which will ensure you meet our initial eligibility to apply
2. online Situational Judgement Test (SJT) in which you rate the appropriateness of responses to a series of short scenarios
3. application sift, which will assess your motivation for the role, the organisation and your relevant experience
4. online interview, which will include motivational questions, technical questions and competency questions
5. if successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, subject to vetting
Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take up to 12-months to process including vetting, so we advise you continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer.
Before you apply
To work at MI5, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.
This role requires the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process here.
Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.
Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more securely.
The role is based in Cheltenham, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. A loan is available to support people relocating to London.
We offer reasonable reimbursement of travel costs for candidates attending in person interviews or assessments during the recruitment and vetting process. Full details will be provided with your interview or assessment invitation.
Reimbursement is discretionary and will only be made in line with the Candidate Expenses Policy, as amended from time to time. Candidates must book their own travel, using the most economical option, and provide original hardcopy receipts for reimbursement.
Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.
Right to withdraw statement:
Please be aware that we reserve the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.
