Location:  Luton, England

Commercial Assistant
Job Description

One of the UK's leads in Aerospace, Security and Defence, within the Bedfordshire area, has an exciting new opportunity for a Commercial Assistant to join their team on a permanent basis.

What you'll be doing:

• Working within the Support and Service Solutions (S3) UK Line of Business you will be required to support bids and projects with customer engagement and contracts management.
• You will help ensure that good business is won and successfully delivered by applying best practice and functional governance processes adherence.
• You will work under supervision from your line manager within a multi-disciplined Integrated Project Team (IPT) and with guidance and assistance act as the commercial point of contact for the customer.
• You will assist prepare pricing and offers and help with other team members develop the commercial content for the bids and proposals.
• You will assist processing offers through our order processing system and ensuring customer and billing milestones are adhered to.
• You will support the team with customer negotiations and the agreement of terms and conditions.
• You will also assist the team in developing customer relationship and look for opportunities to secure additional or follow on work.
• You will provide assistance to the team in supporting multiple project teams at a number of locations and be required to travel to support these teams

Key Responsibility Areas:

• Work in multi-disciplined project teams, providing commercial and contract management support
• Process Customer orders through SAP business management system
• Become the customer's point of contact for all contractual matters across various contracts
• Assist in the preparation and submission of letters of offer
• Assist in the preparation of the Commercial Proposal
• Working with the Legal Department and the Project teams, prepare, draft and assist with negotiation of Customer terms and conditions of contract and other non-standard agreements
• Support the commercial bid approval process in accordance with the company's procedures
• Assist the team with working closely with the Procurement and Finance functions to ensure key Customer Terms and Conditions are flowed down into supplier terms and conditions.
• Provide assistance with customer billing and payments
• Support Project meetings as required Identify areas for personal development to enhance capabilities that add value to the business
• Develop a strong customer relationship that enables opportunities for follow on orders and additional work
• Help identify key commercial risks and bring them to the attention of the IPT
• Assist the team with export compliance
• Assist the team manage confidential information
• Assist the team manage intellectual property

Skills, Qualifications & Knowledge Required:

• A team player Provide assistance to commercial team as required
• A self-starter and a starter finisher
• Ability to work unsupervised at times and sometimes with virtual project teams
• Relationship building skills with cross-functional colleagues, customers and suppliers
• Microsoft Office knowledge and application of Excel, Word and Power Point
• Good communication skills, written and oral and presentations skills

Desirable:

• Education to degree level or equivalent, legal or business-related degree preferred
• A familiarity with SAP and its functionality
• Understanding of a basic business finance, profit and loss, margin and mark up, escalation, foreign exchange
• Basic Understanding of export compliance, ITAR, EAR, import taxes and duties
• Basic understanding of contract law and its application.

Intrinsic Factors:

• Willing to learn and progress within the commercial function
• Proactive, tenacious, results driven
• Copes with moderate pressure
• Methodical and has eye for detail
• Prepared to travel when required (in the UK)