Contracting Specialist, Senior - Procurement

Contracting Professional

We are seeking a skilled contracting professional to lead and support the negotiation and execution of contracts for corporate services, professional advisory engagements, and healthcare-related services. This role will focus on drafting, reviewing, and managing complex agreements that drive value, mitigate risk, and ensure compliance across the organization.

Responsibilities

In this role, you will:

• Draft, review, and negotiate contracts including MSAs, SOWs, amendments, service agreements, and SaaS agreements
• Interpret legal and business terms to ensure alignment with organizational goals and regulatory requirements
• Collaborate with Legal, Compliance, Finance, IT, and business stakeholders to resolve issues and finalize agreements
• Customize contract templates for clarity, consistency, and risk mitigation; apply redlining best practices and maintain contract hygiene
• Guide stakeholders through the contracting processfrom intake to signatureensuring complete documentation, strong SOWs, and adherence to internal policies and preapproval requirements
• Draft competitive bid documents and manage vendor selection and qualification through a competitive bid process for goods and/or services
• Promote ESG and supplier diversity goals through sourcing and contracting strategies
• Partner cross-functionally to address complex issues (e.g., IP/data rights, privacy, security, regulatory addenda, BAAs/DPAs, SLAs, termination/transition assistance, subcontracting, open source/SBOM, audit/controls)
• Track and report key metrics such as savings/avoidance, cost to serve, cycle time, compliance, and risk via dashboards and scorecards
• Proofread, edit, and fact-check legal documents for accuracy and consistency
• Assist with vendor management, including resolving disputes, performance concerns, and terminations
• Ensure compliance with all Blue Shield contracting and purchasing policies

Qualifications

In this role, you will need:

• A bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
• A minimum of 5 years of experience in strategic sourcing or contracting, with a focus on corporate, advisory, or healthcare services
• Healthcare payer experience (Medicare, Medicaid, Commercial) is a plus
• Advanced degree or certifications (e.g., CPSM, CIPP/US) preferred
• Contracting Expertise: Strong grasp of core agreement structures and the interplay between legal and business terms
• Confidently interprets and communicates contract issues with legal teams, aligning supplier edits with client requirements
• Expert redlining & negotiation across complex commercial and risk terms (limitation of liability, indemnities, data/security, privacy, IP, SLAs, benchmarking/most-favored terms, termination & transition)
• Writes clear and concise contract language aligned with client expectations and culture
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams including Legal, Finance, and Compliance
• Excellent communication, analytical, and organizational skills
• Familiarity with procurement systems and CLM tools (e.g., SMP, Jaggaer, DocuSign)
• Advanced skills in Microsoft Word for contracting, Excel for data analysis and PowerPoint for executive-ready presentations
• Outstanding communication (written/oral), executive presence, and the ability to simplify complex issues