Senior Cost Assurance Consultant
Posted 13 days 15 hours ago by Poutrix
As a Senior Cost Consultant within our Cost and Commercial Assurance (CCA) practice, you will support assurance reviews on major programs, focusing on NEC3/NEC4 Option C (Target Cost) and/or Option E (Cost Reimbursable) contracts. You will apply core Quantity Surveying skills and commercial audit techniques to validate costs, strengthen contract controls, and provide actionable insights. This role combines traditional QS expertise with digital tools to improve efficiency and transparency. Hybrid working with occasional travel to client sites.
Role Accountabilities- Plan and deliver cost and commercial assurance reviews on NEC Option C/E projects, including open book validation, pain/gain calculations, fee/risk allowances, and disallowed costs.
- Support payroll/timesheet audits and cost verification across labor, plant, materials, and subcontractors; reconcile samples to source records and test rates, accruals, and invoices.
- Review compensation events, early warnings, and target movements; provide evidence based analysis to support dispute avoidance.
- Assess contract compliance and commercial control frameworks; contribute to recommendations for process, data, and reporting improvements.
- Prepare clear findings reports and simple dashboards for project teams; present outcomes and assist in closing actions.
- Use data and low code/no code tools (e.g., Excel/Power Query, Power BI) to automate testing and analytics that improve efficiency.
- Degree in Quantity Surveying, Commercial Management, or related field.
- Professional membership (RICS/CICES or equivalent).
- Experience with NEC3/NEC4 contracts (Option C and/or Option E) and exposure to commercial or payroll audits on projects or frameworks.
- Core QS skills (measurement, estimating, valuation, change control, forecasting) with ability to interpret datasets and trace costs to source evidence.
- Proficiency with Excel and data analysis; interest in Power BI or similar tools and curiosity for low code/no code solutions.
- Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills, with ability to challenge constructively and support corrective actions.
- Experience using Power Query/Power Automate; basic SQL or Python exposure; sector experience in infrastructure (e.g., transport, water, energy).
We want you to be able to bring your best self to work every day which is why we take equality and inclusion seriously and hold ourselves to account for our actions. Our ambition is to be an employer of choice and provide a great place to work for all our people. We believe that by working together diverse people with different experiences develop the most innovative ideas. Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the heart of how we improve quality of life and we work closely with our people across six ED&I Workstreams: Age, Disability, Faith, Gender, LGBT+ and Race. A diverse and skilled workforce is essential to our success.