Senior Technology Contracts Manager

Senior Technology Contracts Manager

Are you a customer-focused partnership builder who takes pride in helping internal teams navigate complex procurement challenges to get what they need? Are you looking to collaborate cross-functionally with legal, cybersecurity, and technology teams to help accomplish key objectives?

If so, we are seeking a Senior Technology Contracts Manager in Utility Technology Services (UTS) within Tacoma Public Utilities (TPU). You will manage the full contract life cycle, acting as the key contact and subject matter expert for all contract-related and vendor activities. This includes development of new contracts, contract renewals, and modifications to existing contracts. You will be instrumental in supporting the negotiation of contract terms, conditions, modifications, incentives and remedies, while collaborating with stakeholders to ensure that their requirements are met. You will also manage the execution process – resolving problems, mitigating delays, assisting with audits, mediating disputes and escalating issues to keep our technology initiatives on track.

Responsibilities include:

• Strategic Partnership: Builds strong relationships with managers, subject matter experts, Cybersecurity, Risk Management, Legal, and Procurement to help support enterprise objectives.
• Contract Architecture: Point of contact for Legal for contracting processes. Contract development, and maintenance; works directly with Legal ensuring all contracts contain robust legal and organizational protections.
• Cross-Functional Liaison: Acts as liaison between Legal, Purchasing, Risk Management, Cybersecurity, and project lead(s)/sponsor(s) to ensure compliance with the City's procurement policy, processes, and standards.
• Contract Governance: Establishes contract management objectives, procedures, templates and workflow processes for vendor contracts, and deliverable schedules.
• Procurement Advisory: Guides leadership on selecting the optimal contract vehicles and procurement methods for diverse technology needs.
• Risk & Liability Management: Expertly evaluates contract formations with a focus on risk, indemnity, liability, and vendor non-performance.
• Solicitation & Statement of Work Development: Works alongside procurement and management to assist with developing statements of work (SOWs) and understands any current requests for information (RFIs), requests for quotations (RFQs) and requests for proposal (RFPs) that are in the pipeline.
• Market Intelligence: Understands relevant market trends and vendors. Tracks, gathers, and analyzes market and industry data.
• Executive Briefing: Translates complex contract terms into concise summaries, providing stakeholders with clarity on risks, opportunities, and obligations.
• Financial Value Optimization: Utilizes benchmarking and price analysis throughout the contract lifecycle to ensure competitive pricing, price protections (i.e. capping annual price escalations), and maximizing ROI.
• Contract Portfolio Stewardship: Updates and verifies for accuracy all contract storage locations, database administration, share sites, and spreadsheets. Communicate current contract portfolio and expiration reports to business.
• Regulatory Compliance (CIP-013): Understands NERC CIP-013 processes concerning vendor and contract requirements and supports the process to ensure compliance.
• Correspondence: Leads development of draft letters/memos, waivers, proofreading, editing, and finalizing for various contracts.

Qualifications

Minimum Education* Bachelor's degree in public or business administration or directly related field Minimum Experience* 4 years of progressively responsible analytical and/or program coordination/management work in area related to assignment *Equivalency: 1 year of experience = 1 year of education

Desired Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, finance, business law, or closely related field
• Five years' experience negotiating and managing contract life cycles, with an emphasis on technology or IT service agreements
• Experience in managing large complex contracts in one or more IT categories, including hardware, software, service, and communication
• Experience with Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), cloud hosting, and enterprise licensing agreements
• Interpersonal and effective communication skills
• Certified Commercial Contract Manager Certification or in process of acquiring certification
• ITIL experience
• Knowledge of IT concepts and systems

Knowledge & Skills

• Data-Driven Decision Making & Analysis: Synthesize complex, high-volume data from diverse sources to effectively solve problems, evaluate risks, and drive rational decision-making. Develop and deliver clear, concise, and comprehensive written reports leveraging a variety of reporting methods to audiences of varying technical sophistication.
• Commercial & Legal Contract Literacy: Deep understanding of contract anatomy, legal terminology, and standard commercial clauses (e.g., limitation of liability, indemnification, intellectual property rights, and warranties). Ability to interpret complex legal frameworks and apply them practically to technology agreements.
• Procurement & Contract Lifecycle Expertise: Knowledge of end-to-end contract management principles, structured negotiation strategies, along with sourcing processes such as RFIs, RFQs, and RFPs.
• Information Management & Reporting: Systematically collect, document, and maintain records to ensure critical data is highly organized & actionable for subsequent analysis.
• Technical Knowledge: Utilize enterprise procurement systems such as Ariba and SAP to execute contract management related activities. Utilize Contract Lifecycle Management software to streamline work. Data reporting experience including data mining, analysis, and research. Expert level knowledge and understanding of Microsoft Office suite.
• Customer Engagement & Strategic Partnership: Able to build high-trust relationships across internal business units and technical teams to deliver an exceptional customer service experience. Ability to act as a responsive advocate, translating customer needs into complete, value-driven solutions while navigating shifting priorities and resolving conflicts with diplomacy.
• Effective Communication: Capable of translating complex, technical, legal, or financial concepts into clear, actionable insights for diverse stakeholders. Tailor messaging to align cross-functional teams and drive consensus on critical business decisions.
• Organizational Savvy & Professionalism: Deliver timely, high-integrity results while protecting confidentiality and navigating complex organizational dynamics with patience. Use feedback and self-reflection to continuously sharpen effectiveness.