Contracts Manager

Position Overview

An established, industry-leading global manufacturer of commercial and industrial equipment is seeking a highly organized, process-driven Contracts Manager to join its growing legal team. Operating across multiple corporate entities with an active footprint in both the US and Canada, our organization employs over 1,000 people and supports a fast-growing distribution network.

In this pivotal role, you will own the entire contract lifecycle—from initial intake and redlining to post-signature compliance and renewal tracking. You will serve as the primary operational bridge between Legal, Sales, Supply Chain, and Finance teams, ensuring robust legal protection while maintaining strong business velocity.

Key Responsibilities

• Contract Triage & Negotiation: Review, draft, and negotiate a high volume of commercial contracts. This includes distributor/dealer agreements, vendor procurement contracts, equipment leasing/financing terms, service-level agreements (SLAs), and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).
• Playbook Management: Utilize and maintain the Legal Department’s pre-approved guidelines to independently handle standard red lines and escalate high-risk or non-standard terms to internal counsel.
• Entity & Cross-Border Guardrails: Ensure all contracts are executed under the correct corporate entity (across 5 distinct subsidiaries) and align with cross-border shipping, tax, and liability structures between the US and Canada.
• Lifecycle & Compliance Tracking: Own the post-signature process. Track contract expiration dates, auto-renewals, price-escalation clauses, and volume-purchase milestones to protect company margins and supply chain continuity.
• Sales Enablement: Act as the primary point of contact for the Sales team to expedite contract reviews, answer routine questions, and streamline the quote-to-cash pipeline.
• Legal Tech Administration: Manage and optimize the company's Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) software platform, ensuring clean data entry, accurate tagging, and robust reporting.

Qualifications & Skills

• Experience: 10+ years of dedicated experience as a Contracts Manager or Senior Contracts Administrator. Experience in manufacturing, supply chain, heavy equipment, or logistics is highly preferred.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree required. Professional contracts certifications or a Paralegal certificate is a strong plus.
• Industry Knowledge: Solid understanding of commercial concepts, including Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filings, equipment leasing/financing structures, and basic shipping/risk of loss terms (Incoterms).
• Cross-Border Exposure: Familiarity with or exposure to doing business in Canada (e.g., Canadian distribution structures or provincial compliance) is a strong asset.
• Tech Savvy: Hands-on experience implementing or heavily administering a CLM tool (such as Ironclad, Link Squares, Conga, or similar) and SAP .

Desired Core Competencies & Soft Skills

• Business-Partner Mindset: A professional who looks for ways to get to "yes" safely and quickly; exceptional communication skills to translate legal requirements into practical business terms for sales and operations.
• High EQ & Composure: Ability to remain calm and collaborative under pressure, effectively de-escalating competing pressures from internal stakeholders.
• Service-Hearted & Low Ego: Approaches internal stakeholders as partners, translating complex legal issues into practical business solutions without being overly academic or rigid.
• High Adaptability & Feedback Receptive: Thrives in a collaborative team environment, willingly sharing ownership of tasks during high-volume periods, and possesses the professional maturity to accept constructive feedback to continuously improve processes.

What We Offer

• Compensation: $110,000 – $125,000 base salary, depending on experience.
• Bonus: Discretionary/performance-based bonus opportunity.
• Benefits: Comprehensive benefits package (Medical, Dental, Vision, 401k match).
• Environment: The stability of a well-established, globally recognized manufacturing brand with a collaborative, low-ego team culture.