Manager - Contracting

Manager, Contracting The Manager, Contracting is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day contracting operations supporting Neighborhood Healthcare’s Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) line of business. The Manager also supports the Director, Contracting in oversight and management of matters related to corporate-level risk management, compliance, and governance as it relates to contracting. This role provides contracting operational leadership, ensures adherence to enterprise contracting standards, and strengthens contract governance, compliance, and process optimization across all activities of the Contracts & Licensing Team. The Contracts Manager serves as a key leader within the Contracts Team and partners cross-functionally with Operations, Finance, Compliance, Clinical, IT, HR, and Executive Leadership to ensure timely, compliant, and strategically aligned contract execution. This hybrid role consists of 8 hours on-site and 32 hours remote per week, subject to organizational needs and performance expectations. Responsibilities Oversee all FQHC-related contracting activity, including vendor, provider, service, lease, MOUs and grant-related agreements. Manage day-to-day contract intake, prioritization, negotiation, redlining, and execution. Ensure contracts align with enterprise legal standards and risk thresholds. Provide guidance on interpretation of contractual terms and risk exposure. Train Contracts Team members and other Neighborhood Healthcare employees in policies, procedures, and best practices in contracting operations. Act as proxy for the Contracts Director in approvals for certain contracts. Supervise Contracts Specialists supporting the FQHC. Conduct regular 1:1 meetings with direct reports and provide constructive feedback regarding performance. Establish clear performance expectations, workflows, and accountability structures. Coach and develop team members in negotiation strategy, compliance awareness, documentation standards and customer service. Drive consistency in contract review quality, turnaround time, and customer service. Lead resourcing meetings, including reviewing Asana boards, assigning new contract requests, and providing guidance for contract requests requiring escalation. Track the volume and timeliness of all active/completed tasks and prepare reports and dashboards for review by the Director, Contracting. Draft, review, and negotiate a wide range of agreements, including vendor agreements, professional services agreements, provider arrangements, leases, SaaS, Master Service Agreements, clinical trial agreements, MOUs, subaward, and other operational contracts. Perform detailed legal and operational review of contract terms, including indemnification, limitation of liability, insurance requirements, data privacy provisions, payment terms, and termination rights. Lead negotiations with vendors and partners to achieve balanced contractual terms that align with enterprise risk standards and organizational priorities. Redline agreements and prepare counterproposals in coordination with internal stakeholders and leadership. Manage an active portfolio of contract requests while overseeing the work of Contracts Specialists. Escalate high-risk provisions, complex negotiations, or material deviations from enterprise standards to the Director of Contracting following governance protocols. Ensure finalized agreements are properly documented, executed, and recorded in the organization’s contract management systems. Implement and maintain a formal contract audit and legacy clean‑up program. Monitor contract exception rates and legal deviations. Ensure compliance with HRSA, CMS, and other regulatory requirements affecting FQHC operations. Liaise with Compliance leadership to ensure contracts comply with current regulatory requirements. Serve as subject matter expert for systems utilized by the Contracts Team such as Coupa, Asana, Leviathans Redline, and CLM. Lead CLM implementation and maintain system optimization in collaboration with the Director, Contracting. Lead initiatives to improve contract intake workflows, approval routing, documentation standards, and customer service. Enhance data integrity and reporting within contract management systems. Identify automation and AI opportunities to increase efficiency and reduce risk. Review and propose updates to enterprise contracting playbooks and escalation protocols. Serve as primary contracting liaison for FQHC leaders. Coordinate with leaders on department-specific contracting standards. Escalate high-risk or complex matters to the Director, Contracting in accordance with the governance framework. Respond promptly and proactively communicate with internal and external stakeholders. Maintain professional working relationships with all levels of Neighborhood Healthcare staff, partners, and vendors. Ensure the Contracts Team upholds high standards of customer service across the board. Education / Experience Bachelor’s Degree (or relevant equivalent experience) with 6+ years of progressive experience in contract management, healthcare contracting, or related field required. OR MBA/MHA with 5+ years of progressive experience in contract management, healthcare contracting, or related field. OR JD with 4+ years of progressive experience in contract management, healthcare contracting, or related field. At least 3+ years of progressive leadership experience required. Demonstrated project management capability, including leading cross-functional initiatives, managing timelines and deliverables, and driving process improvements from concept through implementation required. Experience in FQHC contracting operations preferred. Expertise with HRSA compliance considerations preferred. Experience in implementing and maintaining contract lifecycle management (CLM) systems preferred. Physical Requirements Ability to lift/carry 10 lbs. weight. Ability to stand for long periods of time. Additional Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities) Excellent verbal and written communication skills with demonstrated strong drafting, redlining, and proofreading capability. Strong understanding of risk allocation, indemnification, liability, and regulatory considerations. Strong relationship-building, stakeholder management, and conflict resolution skills. Ability to handle highly confidential information in a professional and ethical manner. Pay Range $113,600 - $172,800 annually, depending on experience. Compensation Disclosure The posted salary range reflects the designated pay grade for this position. While this range represents the broader classification of the role, actual compensation will be based on several factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s overall knowledge, skills, and experience, market data and industry benchmarks, internal equity within the organization, budgetary considerations and organizational needs. As a result, placement within the range is not guaranteed, and the full pay grade range may not be utilized. #J-18808-Ljbffr