Regional REFM Commercial and Governance Lead
Houston, TX, US, 77002

A member of the REFM regional leadership team, the Regional RE&FM Commercial & Governance (C&G) Lead is the regional commercial and governance anchor for RE&FM. The role safeguards commercial discipline, compliance, and predictable governance across the regional RE&FM portfolio and enables self-service for the Business in line with the RE&FM SLA. The role is a subject matter expert (SME) across budgets and costs, payments, external partners, leases, and master data, and ensures solid data foundations for regional decision-making, aligned to global frameworks and SLAs with other Support teams.
RESPONSIBILITIES
• Anchor and embed global RE&FM commercial governance frameworks, guardrails, tools, templates, and ways of working across the region, ensuring consistent application across sites and countries.
• Contract Account Manager for REFM Partners, Vendors, Contractors, etc.,,
• Act as the regional guardian of commercial compliance, decision rights, and approval frameworks, challenging decisions that sit outside agreed guardrails and reinforcing predictable governance routines.
• Serve as the regional budget and cost transparency anchor, ensuring visibility and explanation capability at site, country, and regional level, aligned to the Finance SLA and global timelines.
• Support regional leaders and budget owners by providing data-based commercial insight, including deep dives on deviations and drivers to enable proactive management actions.
• Ensure an efficient and compliant operational financial flow (PR, PO, and invoice governance) within RE&FM, serve as the escalation point for blocked, parked, or disputed invoices, and implement root-cause fixes to help prevent repeat issues.
• Safeguard external partner commercial compliance, ensuring governance routines and payment structures are set up correctly for RE&FM-owned contracts, and providing guidance to enable Business self-service for Business-owned contracts, in line with the RE&FM SLAs.
• Ensure adherence to global lease processes and tools for RE&FM-owned leases, including IFRS 16 governance, and ensure effective handoffs and data quality across RE&FM, Legal, and Finance in line with agreed SLAs.
• Offer specialized guidance on buying channels, procurement paths, and payment configurations (for example, direct debit for rent, utilities, and facility operations) in alignment with Procurement frameworks and products.
• Maintain and validate RE&FM cost centre structures and master data stewardship (RE&FM side), ensuring high data quality and alignment between operational reality and financial structures.
• Offer guidance on the RE&FM time registration setup and in-depth knowledge of the Investment Request process, aligned with global frameworks.
• Build capability and confidence across RE&FM and the Business through training, guidance, and knowledge sharing, reducing reliance on one-to-one support by improving clarity and repeatable ways of working.
• Support learning across regions and continuous improvement by working closely with the Global RE&FM C&G Lead and sharing input that helps refine global frameworks and operating practices.
• Take part in cross-functional and cross-regional projects and initiatives, perform analysis, reporting, and other ad hoc deliveries, as needed.
• Serve as a temporary backup resource in rare cases, within agreed-upon guardrails and service-level expectations.
QUALIFICATIONS
• Methodological and structured mindset
• Resilient in complex settings
• Experience with process ownership and improvement by identifying root causes and preventing repeat, instead of firefighting
• Extensive experience in commercial governance, financial controls, and operational finance flows in a complex, multi-site environment.
• Demonstrated capability in budget anchoring, cost transparency, and turning financial data into practical decision support for leaders.
• Experience working with external partners and vendors (for example FM/IFM providers), including governance routines, payment structures, and performance expectations.
• Thorough understanding of compliance and control requirements, with the ability to apply guardrails in a practical, business-friendly way.
• Ability to create clarity and enable self-service of non-experts through training, guidance, and repeatable ways of working.
• Skilled in managing stakeholders across RE&FM, Finance, Procurement, Legal, and business leadership, with the ability to secure support from senior stakeholders without formal authority.
• Comfortable operating in a matrix environment, balancing regional delivery needs with global standards and cross-regional consistency.
• Effective written and spoken communication skills, including the ability to break down complex subjects and promote consistent adoption with audience-specific messages
• Proficient in SAP, Ariba, Microsoft tools, CoPilot, etc,
• Experience with MS office products (excel, ppt, copilot, etc)
• Bachelor's degree (Business, Engineering, etc.) Post graduate degree required (MBA, MS, etc.).
• 5 to 10 years comprehensive experience in role or similar responsibility.
COMPETENCIES
• Ensure commercial governance and compliance is applied consistently across the regional RE&FM portfolio, including clear decision routes and approval frameworks.
• Provide reliable cost transparency and decision support, including budget anchoring and explanation of deviations and drivers.
• Enable predictable, compliant operational financial flows (PR/PO/invoice governance), including escalation handling and root-cause improvement.
• Safeguard commercial governance and compliance for key vendors within agreed scope and interfaces.
• Enable self-service capability for RE&FM and the Business through practical guidance, training, and clear ways of working aligned to global frameworks and SLAs.
WHAT WE OFFER
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The environment is an open office setting and the noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
CCPA Notice for California Applicants
Our commitment to a fair hiring
At Vestas, we evaluate all candidates solely based on their professional experience, education, and relevant skills. To support a fair recruitment process, we kindly ask that you remove any photos, dates of birth or graduation, gender pronouns, marital status, or other personal information not relevant to the role before submitting your CV/resume. Your CV/resume should focus on your professional and educational background, along with the necessary contact details (email and phone number). We train our hiring teams in inclusive evaluation and regularly review process outcomes to ensure fairness.
DEIB Statement
At Vestas, we recognize the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion in driving innovation and success. We strongly encourage individuals from all backgrounds to apply, particularly those who may hesitate due to their identity or feel they do not meet every criterion. As our CEO states, "Expertise and talent come in many forms, and a diverse workforce enhances our ability to think differently and solve the complex challenges of our industry". Your unique perspective is what will help us powering the solution for a sustainable, green energy future.
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About Vestas
Vestas is the energy industry’s global partner on sustainable energy solutions. We are specialised in designing, manufacturing, installing, and servicing wind turbines, both onshore and offshore.
Across the globe, we have installed more wind power than anyone else. We consider ourselves pioneers within the industry, as we continuously aim to design new solutions and technologies to create a more sustainable future for all of us. With more than 200 GW of wind power installed worldwide and 40+ years of experience in wind energy, we have an unmatched track record demonstrating our expertise within the field.
With 39,000 employees globally, we are a diverse team united by a common goal: to power the solution – today, tomorrow, and far into the future.
Vestas promotes a diverse workforce which embraces all social identities and is free of any discrimination. We commit to create and sustain an environment that acknowledges and harvests different experiences, skills, and perspectives. We also aim to give everyone equal access to opportunity.
To learn more about our company and life at Vestas, we invite you to visit our website at www.vestas.com and follow us on our social media channels. We also encourage you to join our Talent Universe to receive notifications on new and relevant postings.
Nearest Major Market: Houston