Commercial Manager

Join the Sequora Academy

Advanced Academy Practitioner

Hybrid (Plymouth) | 35K to 45K

Experienced Commercial Role | Support and Develop Others

Real Living Wage Employer | Disability Confident Employer

Bring your experience. Strengthen delivery. Help someone else grow.

Experience with Purpose

At Sequora, we believe experienced professionals can make their strongest contribution by combining sound commercial judgement with a genuine commitment to helping others develop.

We are recruiting a Senior Commercial Practitioner to join a two-person Sequora-managed commercial capability pod supporting live project delivery within Capita’s Public Sector Commercial Deals Team. You will work alongside a Core Academy practitioner, providing guidance, first-line quality assurance and practical support while also taking ownership of defined commercial work packages.

You may already have experience coaching, mentoring or supporting less-experienced colleagues. Equally, you may be ready to take that step now. What matters is the ability and desire to share your judgement, create confidence and help another person grow without taking over or creating dependency.

A Role That Combines Delivery and Development

This is a hands-on commercial role. You will contribute directly to live work while helping the Core practitioner build capability through clear guidance, thoughtful challenge, constructive feedback and good professional example.

• Be employed, line-managed and supported by Sequora.
• Work as the senior member of a two-person commercial capability pod.
• Take ownership of defined commercial work packages within agreed boundaries.
• Provide first-line review and quality assurance for Core practitioner outputs.
• Guide and support the Core practitioner through live work and feedback.
• Continue your own development through the Sequora Academy capability model.
• Build evidence of delivery, judgement, leadership and capability development.

What You Will Be Doing

You will provide Commercial Manager-aligned support across a range of activities, according to agreed priorities and delegated remit:

• Own defined commercial work packages and support bid readiness.
• Review commercial and contract documentation, identify obligations and highlight risks.
• Analyse risks, dependencies and issues, draft mitigations and escalate clearly.
• Prepare governance narratives, coordinate evidence and support approval readiness.
• Review pricing assumptions, dependencies, contingency concerns and deliverability risks.
• Support supplier flow-down review, negotiation preparation and issue visibility.
• Coordinate stakeholders, clarify requirements and provide structured updates.
• Sequence pod activity, maintain delivery rhythm and support prioritisation.
• Review Core outputs before wider circulation, improving clarity, accuracy and alignment.
• Support, guide and develop the Core practitioner without taking over or creating dependency.

The Experience We Are Looking For

You should bring relevant, transferable experience from one or more areas such as commercial management, procurement, bid support, contract management, supplier management, finance, legal operations, project delivery or public sector delivery.

You do not need to have followed one particular career route. We are interested in the judgement you have developed, the way you work with others and your readiness to use your experience to strengthen both delivery and another person’s development.

• Applied commercial judgement and the ability to form a clear, evidence-led view.
• Experience coordinating work, stakeholders or defined work packages.
• Confidence identifying risk, uncertainty, dependencies and the need to escalate.
• Clear written and verbal communication suited to different audiences.
• Professional maturity, reliability and confidence without ego.
• A genuine interest in supporting, guiding and developing others.
• Willingness to remain coachable and continue developing your own capability.

The Seven Attributes We Look For

We will assess the same seven attributes used across the Sequora Academy, with evidence expected at a level appropriate to an experienced practitioner:

• Curious Sense Making: Question, clarify and understand before proposing action.
• Evidence-Led Judgement: Weigh evidence and options and explain a defensible view.
• Courageous Responsibility: Own your impact, raise concerns and act responsibly under pressure.
• Dependable Follow Through: Plan, communicate, keep commitments and close the loop.
• Learning Agility: Use feedback and experience to improve your next action.
• Purposeful Persistence: Sustain effort, adapt your approach and seek support in time.
• Human Awareness and Collaborative Impact: Understand yourself and others, listen well and contribute to collective success.

Supporting the Core Academy Practitioner

A central part of this role is helping the Core practitioner succeed. This means creating the conditions for them to learn through real work, not simply completing the work on their behalf.

• Explain context and expectations clearly.
• Ask questions that build understanding and judgement.
• Give timely, respectful and useful feedback.
• Review work constructively before wider circulation.
• Model calm judgement, reliability, collaboration and respectful challenge.
• Encourage appropriate ownership while remaining available when support is needed.
• Recognise when to guide, when to challenge and when to escalate.

Who This Could Suit

This opportunity may suit an experienced commercial, procurement, contract, bid, supplier, finance, legal operations, project or public sector professional who wants to combine meaningful delivery with the opportunity to support another person’s development.

It could suit someone who has previously coached, mentored, supervised or informally supported colleagues. It could also suit someone who has built substantial experience and is now ready to use it to help others grow.

Why Join Sequora?

• An experienced role combining live commercial delivery with capability development.
• The opportunity to help shape the quality, confidence and working rhythm of a two-person pod.
• Employment, line management, coaching and development through Sequora.
• Live commercial and bid delivery experience.
• Hybrid working based in Plymouth.
• Real Living Wage Employer.
• Disability Confident Employer.
• An inclusive recruitment process, with reasonable adjustments available where needed.

Clear Role Boundaries

The pod can prepare, analyse, draft, coordinate, challenge, recommend and escalate. Within an expressly agreed remit, the Senior Commercial Practitioner may lead defined work packages and progress agreed activity. Final commercial, legal, pricing, governance, negotiation and risk acceptance authority remains with Capita unless specifically delegated in advance.

About Sequora

Sequora develops capability through structured development, coaching and live delivery experience. We invest in people, combine experienced judgement with emerging potential and create opportunities for individuals to build meaningful professional careers through real-world work.

www.sequora.co.uk

Apply Today

Application Process

Submit a CV and covering letter that explain why you want to apply to Sequora and join the Academy. You will be sent an application pack with a link to an MS Form to complete.

What happens after we receive your application form?

1. Application review

Your CV, covering letter and application will be reviewed against the role requirements, your motivation, the seven attributes, Sequora values, relevant experience and IT capability.

2. Initial Microsoft Teams interview

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to an initial Teams interview to discuss their application, motivation, examples and suitability for the opportunity.

3. Further assessment

Candidates may then be invited to an assessment day, a face-to-face interview, or both, depending on the role and recruitment approach.

4. Selection and onboarding

Successful candidates will progress to the relevant pre-employment checks, onboarding and Academy induction requirements.

Important:

You will be employed by Sequora, not Capita. The live delivery assignment supports Capita’s Public Sector Commercial Deals Team. Future opportunities may arise after the 2 year pathway, but no future role is guaranteed.

We process your personal data in line with our Applicant Privacy Notice Privacy Policy which can be found on our website.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion StatementWe are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and particularly encourage applications from disabled people, under-represented groups and those with diverse experiences and perspective. 

As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is accessible and inclusive. If you require any reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, including completing the application form or attending an interview, please let us know and we will work with you to meet your needs.

If you need information about this role in an alternative format, or would like support with your application, please contact Warren Stonebridge