Contracts | Category Manager
About The Position
The Category Manager will lead strategic sourcing and supplier management across IT services, software, SaaS, IT labor, and Professional Services in a financial-services environment. This is a strategic role, not transactional purchasing: the manager owns complex sourcing initiatives from gathering business requirements through supplier selection, contract negotiation, implementation, and ongoing vendor governance. The role partners closely with IT, Legal, Finance, Information Security, Risk, and business leaders to develop category strategies that balance cost, service, performance, and organizational risk. The successful candidate will build credibility with stakeholders, understand the supplier landscape, lead supplier discussions, explain contract risks and tradeoffs, and establish measurable governance practices. The role combines detailed contract work with broader category strategy, while protecting organizational interests and maintaining productive supplier and stakeholder relationships. The position is a contract role based in Austin, Texas, with a hybrid workplace arrangement.
Requirements
- Strong experience working within a centralized procurement, strategic sourcing, category management, or Vendor Management Office environment.
- Demonstrated ownership of end-to-end sourcing projects rather than responsibility for only individual portions of the procurement process.
- Experience sourcing IT services, software, SaaS, IT labor, Professional Services, or related indirect categories.
- Strong working knowledge of procurement processes, supplier governance, and vendor lifecycle management.
- Hands-on experience leading complex supplier and contract negotiations.
- Working knowledge of common agreements such as MSAs, SOWs, SaaS or software agreements, SLAs, and Data Protection Addendums.
- Ability to evaluate and negotiate commercial terms, licensing and pricing models, service requirements, renewals, termination language, warranties, remedies, and performance commitments.
- Experience partnering with IT, Legal, Finance, Information Security, Risk, and business stakeholders to develop sourcing and vendor strategies.
- Ability to use spend analysis, market intelligence, rate benchmarking, competitive bidding, and TCO analysis to support sourcing decisions.
- Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills, including the ability to explain recommendations, negotiate competing priorities, and influence decision-makers.
- Organized and analytical, with the ability to manage multiple complex sourcing projects simultaneously.
Nice To Haves
- Experience supporting procurement or vendor management within banking, credit unions, financial technology, insurance, or another regulated environment.
- Experience with supplier risk assessments, information-security requirements, privacy provisions, and contract compliance.
- Familiarity with procurement, contract lifecycle management, source-to-pay, spend analytics, or vendor-management platforms.
- Bachelor’s degree or relevant equivalent experience.
- Professional certifications such as CPSM, CPM, CSCP, or similar credentials.
Responsibilities
- Lead end-to-end strategic sourcing initiatives for IT services, software, SaaS, IT labor, and Professional Services.
- Partner with business leaders to understand operational goals, technical requirements, budget considerations, supplier challenges, and risk priorities.
- Develop category and sourcing strategies using spend data, market intelligence, competitive benchmarking, supplier analysis, and total cost of ownership.
- Lead competitive sourcing events, including RFPs, RFQs, and RFIs.
- Evaluate suppliers based on capabilities, pricing, service, security, risk, compliance, and overall business value.
- Develop and lead negotiation strategies for complex technology and service agreements.
- Review, negotiate, and redline contracts in partnership with Legal, Information Security, Risk, and business stakeholders.
- Negotiate pricing models, licensing terms, service levels, payment terms, warranties, renewal provisions, termination rights, remedies, and other commercial terms.
- Manage strategic supplier relationships throughout the vendor lifecycle.
- Establish SLAs, KPIs, scorecards, governance routines, and corrective-action plans to improve supplier performance.
- Identify opportunities for cost savings, supplier consolidation, demand management, process improvement, and risk reduction.
- Support ongoing VMO initiatives, procurement controls, contract compliance, and supplier-governance standards.
Benefits
- Medical, dental, and vision coverage, if eligible.
- Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital coverage, if eligible.
- 401(k) Retirement Plan with pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available, if eligible.
- Voluntary Life and AD&D insurance for the employee and dependents, if eligible.
- Short- and long-term disability coverage, if eligible.
- Health Spending Account (HSA), if eligible.
- Transportation benefits, if eligible.
- Employee Assistance Program, if eligible.
- Time off/leave, including PTO, vacation, or sick leave, if eligible.
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What This Job Offers
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
