Job Description

NHSBT plays a critical role by ensuring hospitals have the blood products, plasma, tissues, organs, and stem cells to deliver treatments and operations to patients. We take a proactive role in driving improvement and innovation, from emerging new technologies and evolving clinical practice, while reacting to changing demographics and trends. Every day, 24/7 we bring our values of caring, expert and quality to the services we provide up and down the country. At our heart, we are an organisation that enables daily acts of altruism helping people do something extraordinary for others. Commercial has a crucial role to play within NHSBT. We deliver critical outcomes across a broad range of categories. You will have the opportunity to transform our Commercial Function for the benefit of donors, patients, and hospitals. You will have the opportunity to use your outstanding leadership skills to coach, develop and lead the NHSBT team and our suppliers by shaping and delivering transformational change.
Main duties of the job
Leading a range of relationships and key strategic alliances with senior internal and external stakeholders to shape commercial strategies and ensure delivery of commercial activity across NHSBT. Ensuring the Commercial function provides an expert and valued service that business owners understand and believe in. Being the lead Commercial expert for the Science portfolio and responsible for the vision and strategy, managing a variety of complex work streams, often needing to shift between multiple areas. Leading category strategy, market shaping, strategic sourcing, and procurement strategy development. Preparing, analysing, interpreting, and investigating tender data, challenging suppliers proposals, presenting whole life cycle costs to the customers for consideration. Ensuring that contracts are well drafted, appropriate, and future proofed for the intended purpose, including an appropriate risk profile for both NHSBT and suppliers. Leading complex and high value negotiations and finalising major deals, achieving robust, cost-efficient, and contractual arrangements that represent best value for money. Leading the organisation to become more efficient at the same time as continuing delivery of quality and innovative services from suppliers and partners. Proactively developing and maintaining specialist commercial, financial, and legal knowledge and to have awareness of constantly changing markets.
About us
It takes all types of people to deliver the kind of service that saves and improves lives. At NHS Blood and Transplant, youll join a team of more than 6,000 people who are making a genuine difference to communities, families, friends, relatives and more across the UK. We play a unique and special role in the NHS by helping people do something extraordinary- donate blood, blood products, organs, tissues, or stem cells to save someone in need. Our three core values are what set us apart. They guide and inspire everything we do. By being caring, expertly meeting the needs of our patients and our people, and accepting nothing less than the best quality, we can do extraordinary work and help our people to do something extraordinary in their career, too. Three small words, one big difference - Caring, Expert and Quality. Together we'll save and improve more lives than ever. You will join us on our journey to create an inclusive workplace and aim to reflect the diverse communities we work with, and we positively encourage applications from all sectors of the community.
Details
Date posted
25 September 2025
Pay scheme
Agenda for change
Band
Band 8d
Salary
91,342 to 105,337 a year
Contract
Fixed term
Duration
6 months
Working pattern
Full-time
Reference number
007501
Job locations
NHSBT
Capitol Way
Barnsley
S75 3FG
NHSBT - Colindale
Charcot Road
London
NW9 5BG
NHSBT
500 North Bristol Park
Bristol
BS34 7QH
NHSBT
Vincent Drive
Birmingham
B15 2SG
NHSBT - Tooting
75 Cranmer Terrace
London
SW17 0RB
NHSBT
Plymouth Grove
Manchester
M13 9LL
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please view the attached recruitment profile which is a summary of the detailed and Person Specification for the full personal attributes we require for the role. You will need to demonstrate these throughout the recruitment process. Job description
Job responsibilities
Please view the attached recruitment profile which is a summary of the detailed and Person Specification for the full personal attributes we require for the role. You will need to demonstrate these throughout the recruitment process.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• Educated to Masters degree level and have a recognised MCIPS Professional Procurement Qualification, with significant/several years post qualification experience.
• Higher than average, demonstrable knowledge of IT skills is required. An up to date understanding of e-Procurement / IT / business intelligence technology and how this can be proactively developed, in order to enhance the deployment and automation of procurement processes.
• Demonstrates commitment to own continued professional development (CPD).

Experience
Essential

• Significant procurement management experience within a large, multi-disciplined organisation(s).
• At least significant experience operating at a strategic procurement level in a senior leadership role, working with multiple stakeholders, developing, and fostering effective partnership approaches, acquired through training and practical experience.
• Advanced theoretical and practical knowledge of procurement strategies, public procurement regulations, models, and the capability to deploy these effectively across the organisation. The intellectual capacity and capability to seek out better practice and external developments through National and International Networks and apply to NHSBT.
• Expert knowledge, understanding and experience of applying / implementing procurement initiatives including development of supplier relationships, Key Performance Indicators, Contracts within the wider NHS approach to governance and current better practice in this area. Additionally, to have a high

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• Educated to Masters degree level and have a recognised MCIPS Professional Procurement Qualification, with significant/several years post qualification experience.
• Higher than average, demonstrable knowledge of IT skills is required. An up to date understanding of e-Procurement / IT / business intelligence technology and how this can be proactively developed, in order to enhance the deployment and automation of procurement processes.
• Demonstrates commitment to own continued professional development (CPD).

Experience
Essential

• Significant procurement management experience within a large, multi-disciplined organisation(s).
• At least significant experience operating at a strategic procurement level in a senior leadership role, working with multiple stakeholders, developing, and fostering effective partnership approaches, acquired through training and practical experience.
• Advanced theoretical and practical knowledge of procurement strategies, public procurement regulations, models, and the capability to deploy these effectively across the organisation. The intellectual capacity and capability to seek out better practice and external developments through National and International Networks and apply to NHSBT.
• Expert knowledge, understanding and experience of applying / implementing procurement initiatives including development of supplier relationships, Key Performance Indicators, Contracts within the wider NHS approach to governance and current better practice in this area. Additionally, to have a high

Skills Required