Chief Commercial Officer — Project-Development Pipeline

The mandate

Customer and operating evidence now point to commercial execution varying materially across markets within a multinational-owned infrastructure developer and asset operator. The immediate arena is the project-development pipeline during a public-private partnership expansion. For mandate 348, the successful executive inherits decisions that have been deferred, competing stakeholder expectations and a need to establish facts before committing further capital.

The Chief Commercial Officer operating perimeter covers approximately £17,500 million in project and operating-asset portfolio, with activity spanning several project-development pipeline customer, product and delivery clusters rather than a single asset. The Chief Commercial Officer Infrastructure remit carries direct influence over roughly 1,675 colleagues and third-party capacity.

The group board and the relevant risk and people committees want a Chief Commercial Officer who can convert ambiguity into a short list of explicit choices for the project-development pipeline. The Chief Commercial Officer Infrastructure seat must resolve a public-private partnership expansion, while preserving the underlying strengths of the project-development pipeline. For mandate 348, value will come through sharper allocation, stronger leaders and an operating cadence that exposes variance early.

The Chief Commercial Officer’s first year on the project-development pipeline is expected to end with repeatable growth, price realisation and strategic-account depth. In mandate 348, authority covers resources and leadership appointments; material trade-offs go directly to the board sponsor.

Why this seat is open

This is a newly created Chief Commercial Officer — Project-Development Pipeline seat, established because a public-private partnership expansion now requires one accountable executive rather than distributed ownership. The board has classified the appointment as urgent and intends to move from qualified shortlist to offer within 6–8 weeks. Interim governance protects the project-development pipeline, but it is not a substitute for a permanent appointee. The external search remains confidential to avoid unnecessary disruption before the appointment is agreed.

What you will own

• Set the Chief Commercial Officer value-creation thesis for the project-development pipeline, translate it into no more than five enterprise priorities and stop work that does not support them.
• Carry stewardship of approximately £17,500 million in project and operating-asset portfolio, including allocation, risk acceptance and board forecasts.
• Lead the Chief Commercial Officer Infrastructure organisation of about 1,675 employees and partners, appointing a team with clear decision rights and credible succession for every critical seat.
• Resolve the project-development pipeline economics and execution constraints created by a public-private partnership expansion, with Chief Commercial Officer-approved owners, dated milestones and transparent escalation thresholds.
• Establish one Chief Commercial Officer operating review across commercial, customer, financial, people, technology and risk outcomes for the project-development pipeline; remove reconciliations that obscure accountability.
• Have led price, pipeline and strategic-account decisions with direct responsibility for profitable revenue in mandate 348.
• Build the Chief Commercial Officer’s three-year succession and capability plan for the project-development pipeline, reducing dependence on individual executives and improving mobility across the wider Infrastructure organisation.

The first 12 months

• Days 1–90: Validate the project-development pipeline baseline, meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to commercial execution varying materially across markets, assess the leadership team, stabilise immediate delivery risks and agree a board-owned scorecard with explicit decision gates.
• Months 4–9: Make the principal Chief Commercial Officer portfolio and organisation choices for the project-development pipeline, install the new operating cadence, fill critical leadership gaps and deliver the first measurable release of cash, capacity or customer value.
• Months 10–12: Demonstrate a repeatable project-development pipeline trend against repeatable growth, price realisation and strategic-account depth, lock the following year’s capital and talent plan, evidence control sustainability and present a credible three-year value case with downside actions.

What the board will measure

• Delivery of the Chief Commercial Officer’s agreed first-year project-development pipeline value case within a 10% tolerance, with variance explained before rather than after the relevant quarter closes.
• A Chief Commercial Officer forecast that remains decision-useful across three consecutive quarters and reconciles the project-development pipeline’s operating, cash, customer and people assumptions.
• Closure of the Chief Commercial Officer mandate’s highest-priority project-development pipeline risk and execution issues by their board-approved dates, with independent evidence that fixes are sustained.
• Retention of at least 90% of critical project-development pipeline talent and ready-now successors for at least 70% of the Chief Commercial Officer’s direct reports.
• A quantified Chief Commercial Officer-owned improvement in the project-development pipeline operating constraint behind a public-private partnership expansion, supported by a clean baseline and named data owner.
• Clear stakeholder confidence in mandate 348: no unresolved high-severity escalation older than 30 days and no material surprise withheld from its agreed governance forum.

The person

You are currently a Chief Commercial Officer, Sales President or Business Unit Head in a multinational-owned Infrastructure or adjacent enterprise. In relation to the project-development pipeline, your Chief Commercial Officer track record includes a transition where the original plan was no longer sufficient; you can explain your choices, evidence and numerical impact. Candidates from infrastructure, construction, utilities, transport assets or project finance will be considered where the operating model, customer stakes and governance intensity match this Chief Commercial Officer brief.

As a Chief Commercial Officer candidate, you bring 22–28 years of progressive Infrastructure or adjacent-sector experience, consistent with the 22-28 experience band. At minimum, you have carried a P&L, book, budget or accountable portfolio of £10,150 million and led an organisation of at least 1,175 people.

For mandate 348, the board wants two transitions: a difficult project-development pipeline portfolio choice and a leadership-system change during a public-private partnership expansion. As the prospective Chief Commercial Officer for this project-development pipeline, you must challenge optimistic cases and still create followership. References for mandate 348 must distinguish your contribution from the institution around you.

The Chief Commercial Officer must be based in London; international relocation is supported, but this Infrastructure role is not designed as a remote appointment.

Non-negotiables

• Current or recent accountability at the level of Chief Commercial Officer, Sales President or Business Unit Head, with direct exposure to a board, investment committee or equivalent Infrastructure governance forum.
• Proven Chief Commercial Officer ownership of at least £10,150 million and leadership of no fewer than 1,175 employees in a comparable project-development pipeline context.
• One completed Infrastructure or adjacent-sector example of commercial execution varying materially across markets with outcomes sustained for at least two reporting periods after the initial intervention.
• Sector credibility from infrastructure, construction, utilities, transport assets or project finance; experience that is purely functional and lacks Chief Commercial Officer-level project-development pipeline consequences will not meet the bar.
• Willingness to meet the London location expectation, complete conflicts and background diligence, and protect the confidentiality of mandate 348.

Compensation and terms

The anticipated Chief Commercial Officer package is £290,000–390,000 base + annual incentive and LTI, calibrated to the final project-development pipeline scope and the candidate’s current mix. Any long-term participation for mandate 348 follows standard vesting and performance conditions. The Chief Commercial Officer appointment in London, centred on the project-development pipeline, offers regular exposure to the group board and the relevant risk and people committees. A notice period of up to 6 months can be accommodated for the selected executive in mandate 348.

Confidentiality

This search is being conducted without naming the client for mandate 348. Identifying information will follow only when both sides elect to proceed under confidentiality; nothing in the published mandate should be treated as a clue to ownership or brand for mandate 348.