Manage new professional services requests coming through the procurement triage and intake process
Prioritising demand based on risk, value, and urgency
Act as the primary procurement contact for SOW‑related requests during the pre‑signature phase
SOW Review & Risk Assessment
Conduct detailed pre‑signature reviews of Statements of Work for professional services
Validate correct labour classification, distinguishing between:
Outcome‑based professional services
Staff augmentation / contingent labour (and flagging misclassification risks)
Where it's deemed necessary, supporting the re-routing of a requirement to staff Aug to the Contingent Labour buy channel
Assess clarity and robustness of SOW:
Scope, deliverables, milestones, and acceptance criteria
Commercial model (fixed price, time & materials, capped fees, etc.)
Risk allocation between the business and the supplier
Commercial Evaluation & Benchmarking
Review and challenge supplier commercials to ensure:
Appropriate transfer of delivery and performance risk to the supplier
Alignment between fees and defined outcomes
Use AECOM's third‑party AI tool to:
Analyse labour classification and delivery risk
Benchmark pay rates, fees, and pricing structures where available
Identify cost‑saving opportunities and areas for commercial improvement
Negotiation & Stakeholder Support
Provide clear, pragmatic negotiation recommendations to business requestors
Lead or co‑lead SOW negotiations directly with suppliers, focusing on:
Improved commercial outcomes
Risk mitigation
Value for money
Partner closely with Legal, HR, IT, and Finance as required to resolve issues
Ensure agreed commercial positions are accurately reflected in final SOWs
Governance & Continuous Improvement
Ensure compliance with procurement policies and engagement models
Support the development of standard SOW templates, playbooks, and negotiation guides
Share insights and recurring risks to improve upstream demand quality and sourcing outcomes
Key Spend Categories
IT, Transformation & Digital Services
HR & People Services
Professional & Consulting Services
Potential for Legal Services
Essential:
Proven experience (typically 4-8 years) in procurement or sourcing, with a strong focus on professional services
Hands‑on experience reviewing and negotiating Statements of Work (SOWs) pre‑signature
Strong understanding of:
Outcome‑based professional services vs staff augmentation models
Commercial risk in consulting and professional services engagements
Awareness of country-based legislation pertaining to labour classification and tax to effectively communicate the implications / risk to business stakeholders
Demonstrated experience leading supplier negotiations
Ability to interpret and challenge complex commercial and contractual structures
Desirable:
Experience working across global or multi‑business environments
Exposure to AI‑enabled procurement or contract analytics tools
Strong working knowledge of IR35 / worker classification risk (or equivalent)
Experience of procure to pay systems, eCatalogues, eSourcing platforms and spend analytics tools would be an advantage
Knowledge of Coupa and PowerBI would be an advantage
Skills, Capabilities & Technical Knowledge:
Very strong commercial acumen and negotiation skills
Confident stakeholder engagement with senior business partners
Ability to balance risk management with commercial pragmatism
Analytical mindset, comfortable benchmarking and challenging pricing assumptions
Able to operate autonomously while collaborating closely within a small specialist team
Resilient and results driven mentality to drive results across a diverse stakeholder landscape
Clear communicator, able to translate technical and commercial issues into practical guidance
Numerate with strong analytical skills included advanced MS Excel skills
Degree in commercial, procurement, business or engineering
Nationally recognized professional certification (eg Member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply or Certified Purchasing Manager or equivalent professional procurement and supply chain qualification).
At AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulen
Additional Information
We are establishing a new specialist sub‑team within Global Procurement focused on the pre‑signature review, commercial assessment, and negotiation of Statements of Work (SOWs) for professional services across the business.
The Procurement Sourcing Specialist will act as a front‑line commercial and risk partner to the business, ensuring that professional services engagements are correctly structured, appropriately classified, commercially robust, and competitively priced before supplier contracts are signed.
These roles will play a critical part in managing incoming demand, reviewing SOWs for risk and value, leveraging AI‑enabled insight, and leading SOW negotiations with suppliers in collaboration with business stakeholders.