As a Regional Head of Commercial at Colt Data Centre Services (DCS), you will be at the forefront of shaping our commercial landscape, taking ownership of contract negotiations for major deals and ensuring optimal outcomes. In this role, you will be instrumental in balancing commercial acumen, risk mitigation, and contract strategy to drive the success of hyperscale data centre projects across key global markets. Collaborating closely with our Legal, Procurement, and Delivery teams, you will establish robust processes to secure the best commercial positions and align with our ambitious global strategies.
In this dynamic role, versatility and proactivity are key. You will navigate complex landscapes with finesse, leading stakeholders on a journey towards shared success. You will play a pivotal role in formalising and enhancing key commercial processes, fostering direct communication and relationships with stakeholders, and driving efficient and effective procurement practices, ensuring alignment with company guidelines and objectives.
With Colt DCS committed to investing billions in constructing Hyperscale Data Centres across our core markets, your expertise will be instrumental in securing and managing the contracts that underpin these ventures. If you thrive in a fast-paced environment, relish the opportunity to drive impactful change, and excel at building strong relationships, we invite you to join us on this exciting journey
Mission
Your main activities as Regional Head of Commercial will be to:
• Lead Commercial Strategy: Supervise the activities of the Commercial, Procurement, and OFCI teams, ensuring optimal workload balance, performance tracking, and skill development. Engage in vendor assessments and comparisons to foster cost-effective solutions and drive best-in-class procurement.
• Drive Customer-Centric Delivery: Collaborate with sales and delivery teams to ensure customer agreements are embedded into project designs and timelines. Align commercial terms with delivery teams to ensure the success of contracts while considering total cost of ownership.
• Monitor and Control Multiple Projects: Oversee the commercial aspects of diverse, high-value data centre projects. You will review project KPIs, mitigate risks, and drive solutions for on-time and within-budget delivery. You will also ensure comprehensive commercial reporting to meet both internal and customer expectations.
• Embed Commercial Acumen in Decision-Making: Ensure a commercial approach is applied in all procurement activities, factoring in total lifecycle cost—not just initial expenses. Work cross-functionally to identify cost-saving opportunities and manage procurement risks in a way that maximises return on investment (ROI).
• Vendor & Supply Chain Management: Cultivate strong relationships with stakeholders, including customers, consultants, and contractors. Navigate market conditions, secure diverse supply chain connections, and ensure timely issue resolution.
• Contract Negotiations & Risk Management: Manage commercial contract negotiations, ensuring terms support the successful and sustainable delivery of hyperscale data centre projects. Provide mentorship to the procurement team on contract negotiation, cost control, and risk management.
• Claims & Risk Control: Oversee claims management and ensure Colt's position is protected. Regularly report on any claim issues and potential risks to project success.
Strategic Priorities and Commercial Acumen
In this role, you will:
• Supervise activity of the Commercial, Procurement & OFCI teams, balancing workload, tracking performance, achievement, skill development and administrative oversight. Provide advice and assistance to staff to maintain a high level of efficiency, motivation and professional performance. Ensure effective utilisation of Colt resources and external consultant and vendor services. Participate in detailed vendor assessments and comparisons ensuring that various stakeholders contribute to effective outcomes
• Lead Contract Negotiations: You will spearhead negotiations with key stakeholders to establish commercial terms that align with the company’s financial goals and delivery timelines. Your ability to negotiate complex contracts with cost control and risk mitigation in mind will be crucial to maintaining Colt's competitive edge.
• Optimise Procurement Processes: You'll ensure that procurement is carried out efficiently, with a keen eye on both direct costs and total cost of ownership (TCO). You’ll develop and maintain commercial processes that minimise cost escalations and ensure value for money across all projects.
• Market Intelligence and Commercial Insight: Maintain a strong understanding of market trends, inflation risks, and contractor pricing strategies. Your commercial insight will guide decision-making and ensure that Colt remains agile in an evolving marketplace.
• Risk Mitigation: Focus on proactively identifying risks related to market conditions, vendor performance, and legal obligations. You’ll ensure that contracts include risk-sharing mechanisms and are structured to protect Colt from unforeseen price escalations.
• Provide external-facing relationship management support with stakeholders including customers, end-users, consultants, contractors, suppliers etc. understanding current market trends, maintaining clear lines of communication, securing strong and diverse supply chain connections, communicating fair and transparent expectations and prompt, results-oriented resolution of any problems that arise
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Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
• Cost Control: Ensure all projects are delivered within agreed-upon budget limits, with an emphasis on cost reduction through effective procurement.
• Contract Negotiations: Successfully negotiate contracts with key vendors, reducing overall project costs by at least 5-10% through effective risk-sharing and cost-saving initiatives.
• Risk Management: Maintain zero contract-related disputes that escalate to litigation through proactive claim management and stakeholder engagement.
• Timely Delivery: Ensure projects meet contractual delivery deadlines, driving efficiency in project execution.
• Customer Satisfaction: Achieve a customer satisfaction rating of 90% or above based on successful alignment of commercial terms and delivery commitments.