SEH Ltd Commercial expertise, delivered with clarity.

SEH Ltd

Commercial expertise, delivered with clarity.

Latest Articles

Brief Before Budget: Eight Assumptions UK Commercial Teams Should Record Before Tender
Commercial Guidance

Brief Before Budget: Eight Assumptions UK Commercial Teams Should Record Before Tender

Most cost surprises in UK commercial projects begin in an unclear brief, not in poor delivery. This eight-point audit helps clients and project teams record the assumptions, exclusions, interfaces and acceptance criteria that must be settled before pricing starts.

Lead Times Are Promises Until They Are Slots: A Programme Confidence Test for UK Commercial Projects
Opinion

Lead Times Are Promises Until They Are Slots: A Programme Confidence Test for UK Commercial Projects

Long-lead items do not become delays on the day they arrive late; they become delays when a quoted lead time is treated as a confirmed slot. This programme confidence test gives UK commercial teams a practical way to separate supplier hope from commercial reality.

The Inherited Project: Ten Tests for a Handover Pack That Earns Its Signature
Opinion

The Inherited Project: Ten Tests for a Handover Pack That Earns Its Signature

A handover pack is not a closing document; it is the operating manual for everyone who inherits the asset. This ten-point checklist argues that completion ceremonies should wait until warranties, training, asset records and defects are genuinely usable by the people on the ground.

The Waiting Room Premium: How Slow Approvals Inflate UK Project Costs
Commercial Guidance

The Waiting Room Premium: How Slow Approvals Inflate UK Project Costs

Delayed commercial decisions are often treated as neutral housekeeping. In practice, every extra week a yes sits in a queue carries a cost in preliminaries, supplier capacity and programme certainty. This article sets out a practical way to measure decision latency, delegate authority sensibly and shorten approval cycles without weakening governance.

Clear Records, Fewer Surprises: A Six-Document Test for UK Commercial Projects
Commercial Guidance

Clear Records, Fewer Surprises: A Six-Document Test for UK Commercial Projects

If a UK commercial project cannot produce six core records within ten minutes, control may be thinner than the status report suggests. This deep-dive checklist explains what good looks like for each document, what goes wrong without it, and the questions clients should ask before the project drifts.

The Casual Yes: How Informal Approvals Undermine UK Commercial Projects
Opinion

The Casual Yes: How Informal Approvals Undermine UK Commercial Projects

A thumbs-up in a project chat can feel like progress. In practice, informal approvals are where scope creep, payment disputes and accountability gaps begin. This opinion piece sets out a lightweight approval protocol that keeps speed without losing the record.

Seven Metrics That Separate a Good Supplier from a Great One, and Why Most Scorecards Miss Them
Opinion

Seven Metrics That Separate a Good Supplier from a Great One, and Why Most Scorecards Miss Them

Supplier scorecards are easy to produce and remarkably hard to make useful. A balanced set of seven measures, properly weighted and reviewed quarterly, can turn a paperwork exercise into a genuine commercial tool.

Reading the Warning Signs: A UK Buyer's Playbook for Supplier Insolvency in 2026
Commercial Guidance

Reading the Warning Signs: A UK Buyer's Playbook for Supplier Insolvency in 2026

Supplier failure rarely arrives without warning. This practical guide sets out the distress signals UK buyers should monitor, the contract clauses that actually help when a supplier wobbles, and a ten-step response plan for the weeks before any formal insolvency event.

Before You Sign Again: Seven Commercial Questions for UK Contract Renewals in 2026
Commercial Guidance

Before You Sign Again: Seven Commercial Questions for UK Contract Renewals in 2026

Renewal season is a commercial decision point, not an administrative formality. This practical self-audit sets out seven questions UK managers should ask before renewing a contract in 2026, from scope creep and indexation to exit costs and dispute resolution.

Clearer, Not Cleverer: The Case for Plain English in UK Commercial Advice
Opinion

Clearer, Not Cleverer: The Case for Plain English in UK Commercial Advice

UK clients do not need more commercial jargon; they need advice that makes trade-offs, risks and costs visible. This opinion piece argues that plain English is not a simplification of expertise but the clearest proof of it.