Pre-Contracting Manager - IT Services

We are looking for an experienced Pre-Contracting Manager IT Services to support our IT sourcing and contracting efforts across the North American region. This role will play a critical part in managing vendor negotiations, ensuring compliance with business policies, and leading pre-contract due diligence activities. The ideal candidate will bring a strong understanding of the IT services ecosystem, commercial contracting, and regional market dynamics to drive favorable outcomes for the organization

Key Responsibilities

1. Pre-Contracting Lifecycle Management

- Lead end-to-end pre-contract activities for IT services engagements including software, SaaS, cloud, managed services, and consulting.

- Coordinate intake, documentation, internal approvals, and risk assessments before contract execution.

2. Vendor Negotiations

- Lead or support commercial and contractual negotiations with North America-based vendors and global suppliers.

- Secure optimal pricing, terms, SLAs, liability clauses, and performance metrics while balancing business needs and risk appetite.

- Identify leverage opportunities during renewals, volume-based deals, or multi-region contracts.

3. Stakeholder Engagement

- Partner with IT, Legal, Compliance, InfoSec, Finance, and regional business teams to ensure contracting alignment and readiness.

- Act as a liaison between internal teams and vendors to resolve scope, compliance, or pricing issues before formal contracting.

4. Risk and Compliance Management

- Conduct due diligence in accordance with internal procurement, legal, and data privacy guidelines (e.g., SOC 2, GDPR, CCPA).

- Flag and mitigate risks related to vendor performance, data handling, cybersecurity, and regulatory compliance.

5. Documentation and Governance

- Maintain accurate and audit-ready documentation including SOWs, business cases, risk checklists, and negotiation summaries.

- Track and report on key contracting metrics, timelines, and negotiation outcomes