Senior Commercial Manager
📍 London & South East (hybrid site / office)
📄 Contract / Interim Engagement
🏗 Residential & Mixed-Use Projects
The Brief
We are engaging an experienced Senior Commercial Manager on a contract basis to provide hands-on commercial leadership across live residential and mixed-use construction projects.
This is a delivery-critical role for a commercially strong professional who has progressed through Quantity Surveying and is comfortable operating at senior level on active schemes. The focus is on commercial control, contractual discipline, cashflow, and risk management under real programme pressure.
This is not an advisory or oversight role. You will be embedded within project teams, owning outcomes and stabilising commercial performance.
Scope of the Role
You will be responsible for:
* Leading commercial governance across one or more live projects from award through final account
* Managing JCT contract administration (NEC exposure beneficial), including notices, correspondence, and contractual compliance
* Owning CVRs, forecasting, valuations, and monthly commercial reporting with clear narrative and variance control
* Controlling change through variation instruction, valuation, and substantiation
* Leading subcontract procurement strategy and negotiations, ensuring robust scopes and risk allocation
* Managing commercial issues early to avoid disputes and supporting claims where required (EOT, disruption, loss and expense)
* Driving cashflow performance, including applications, payment cycles, and pay-less notice support
* Coaching project and site teams to improve commercial records, substantiation, and discipline
* Interfacing with external parties while keeping commercial control in-house
* Maintaining strong audit trails, document control, and decision logs
Required Background
* Strong background in Quantity Surveying / Commercial Surveying, ideally contractor-side
* Proven experience leading commercial delivery on live construction projects
* Strong working knowledge of JCT contracts; NEC experience advantageous
* Confident managing contractual correspondence and notices
* Strong cost control capability across CVRs, forecasting, change management, and final accounts
* Commercially firm but delivery-aware when negotiating with subcontractors
* Comfortable working with Design Managers, Technical Leads, and Site Teams
* Calm, decisive, and credible under pressure
Desirable Experience
* Interim or contract senior commercial roles
* Exposure to claims-heavy or recovery environments
* Experience stabilising projects mid-delivery
* Familiarity with digital commercial reporting and document control
* MRICS, MCIOB, or equivalent beneficial but not essential
📩 Interested?
Apply with your CV or get in touch for a confidential contract discussion.