Contracts Manager (Procurement)

Lynx

About The Position

Lynx is seeking an experienced, business-minded Procurement and Contracts Manager to own procurement and inbound contracting for a growing technology company delivering software, SaaS, and professional services, primarily in the aerospace and defense industry. The role manages the vendor lifecycle from intake, sourcing, evaluation, and onboarding through negotiation, execution, administration, renewal, and closeout. It works closely with Finance, IT, Engineering, Operations, and executive leadership, and reports to the Director of Legal Operations. The position serves as the primary liaison between vendors and the legal team, helping select suitable vendors, obtain favorable terms, and appropriately manage legal and commercial risk. The successful candidate will become a trusted partner to Legal and the business, help bring vendors on board efficiently, secure favorable pricing and terms, improve visibility into spend and contractual commitments, and ensure material risks receive appropriate review. The role balances speed, commercial practicality, and risk management, and involves independently managing sourcing processes and negotiations with sophisticated vendors while applying company playbooks, pre-approved fallback positions, and sound judgment about escalation. The role uses LinkSquares as the contract lifecycle management platform and leverages AI tools to support contract review, redlining, summarization, obligation tracking, and vendor research and comparison, with human validation and care in handling confidential information. It also supports due diligence, audits, corporate transactions, compliance initiatives, and other Legal department projects as needed.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
At least 3 years of procurement, strategic sourcing, contracts management, commercial contracting, or comparable experience; preferably in software, SaaS, technology, or professional services.
Demonstrated experience managing vendor selection and sourcing processes, including RFPs, vendor evaluations, and competitive bids.
Experience reviewing and negotiating vendor or commercial agreements using standard terms and preset fallback positions.
Working familiarity with common technology contract terms, including software licensing, SaaS, confidentiality, data protection, warranties, indemnities, and limitations of liability.
Experience negotiating directly with vendors, including pricing, renewal, and termination terms.
Hands-on experience with contract lifecycle management platforms; LinkSquares preferred.
Comfort using AI tools to improve contracting efficiency, with judgment about accuracy, confidentiality, and the need for human review.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Strong organization and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple negotiations, renewal deadlines, and stakeholders simultaneously.
Sound judgment about when to escalate issues to counsel or senior management.
Comfort operating in a fast-moving environment with evolving processes and priorities.

Nice To Haves

Experience with software/SaaS and professional services procurement, particularly in the aerospace and defense industry.
Experience with government contracting and the FAR/DFARS, including subcontract and supplier flow-down requirements.
Experience with spend analysis, vendor management, or procurement and spend management tools.
Familiarity with CLM, electronic signature, and AI-assisted contract review platforms.
Familiarity with CRM and business systems such as Salesforce.

Responsibilities

Manage the end-to-end procurement and contracting process for inbound vendor, supplier, and service-provider relationships, from intake through execution and renewal.
Partner with stakeholders to define requirements and support vendor selection through market research, RFIs/RFPs, vendor demos, and evaluations of capabilities, pricing, and risk.
Support vendor due diligence and onboarding, including security, financial, and compliance reviews with IT, Security, and Finance.
Prepare, review, negotiate, and administer vendor agreements using company standard templates, including software and SaaS agreements, MSAs, SOWs, services and consulting agreements, NDAs, procurement agreements, subcontractor/reseller/teaming agreements, amendments, renewals, and order forms.
Serve as the primary point of contact for vendor contract negotiations.
Negotiate pricing, payment terms, multi-year commitments, and renewal terms in partnership with Finance and budget owners.
Review vendor terms against company standards and flag legal, commercial, operational, financial, security, and compliance risks.
Negotiate key contract provisions using standard terms and pre-approved fallback positions, and escalate matters beyond those positions to Legal.
Support purchase requisition and purchase order processes and help ensure purchases align with budgets, approval thresholds, and company policy.
Own renewal tracking and processes, engage business owners early, and drive renegotiation, consolidation, or non-renewal decisions.
Monitor vendor performance against contractual commitments and service levels, and lead business reviews and issue resolution as needed.
Track and analyze vendor spend to identify savings opportunities, vendor consolidation, and redundant tools or services.
Coordinate contracting with Finance, IT, Security, Engineering, Operations, and other stakeholders; work with Legal to include applicable security requirements and flow-down terms in vendor and subcontractor contracts.
Escalate significant or non-standard legal issues to the Director of Legal Operations as appropriate.
Manage executed agreements and contractual obligations, including renewal dates, notice periods, pricing and volume commitments, reporting requirements, and milestones.
Use LinkSquares to manage contract intake, the repository, renewal tracking, and reporting in accordance with established processes.
Use AI tools to assist with contract review, redlining, summarization, obligation tracking, and vendor research and comparison, validating outputs and protecting confidential information.
Identify opportunities to streamline procurement and contracting workflows, reduce cycle times, and improve consistency.
Assist with due diligence, audits, corporate transactions, compliance initiatives, and other Legal department projects as needed.