Director, Contracts

About the role

The Director, Contracts is the enterprise owner of all Government & Regulated client contracts across North America, with end-to-end accountability from verbal award through contract execution.

Responsibilities

• Own and manage a high-volume, high-value contract pipeline (~40–100 concurrent contracts) across North America.
• Maintain real-time visibility into pipeline health, deal status, bottlenecks, and execution readiness.
• Ensure seamless progression from verbal award → drafting → negotiation → approval → execution.
• Establish prioritization frameworks to balance speed, risk, revenue recognition, and operational capacity.
• Drafting, Negotiation & Commercial Leadership:
  • Lead the drafting and negotiation of agreements, including MSAs, SOWs, amendments, and renewals.
  • Partner with stakeholders to shape:
    • Pricing frameworks
    • Delivery timelines
    • Performance obligations
    • Risk allocation and liability structures
    • Navigate complex negotiations
    • Ensure contract language aligns with:
      • Proposal assumptions
      • Financial models
      • Staffing and delivery plans
      • Risk allocation and liability structures
      • Regulatory and funding requirements
• Risk Management & Contract Governance:
  • Ensure all contracts effectively protect the company’s financial, operational, and reputational interests.
  • Identify, assess, and mitigate legal, compliance and regulatory risk.
  • Identify, assess and mitigate delivery and execution constraints.
  • Establish governance frameworks for:
    • Contract approvals
    • Risk escalation
    • Deviation from standards
• AI-Driven Process Optimization & Systems Leadership:
  • Lead the transformation of the contracts function through AI and automation.
  • Design and implement scalable systems for:
    • AI-assisted contract drafting and redlining
    • Automated risk flagging and clause identification
    • Predictive cycle-time and bottleneck analysis
    • Contract abstraction and obligation tracking
    • Build standardized playbooks, modular templates, and approval paths to dramatically reduce turnaround time without increasing risk.
    • Continuously evaluate and deploy emerging AI tools to improve accuracy, speed, and consistency.
  • Stakeholder Coordination:
    • Serve as a trusted partner to key stakeholders across the organization.
    • Ensure alignment on:
      • Contract terms
      • Commercial expectations
      • Delivery assumptions
      • Risk tolerance
    • Maintain strong external relationships with client legal, procurement, and contracting teams.
  • Compliance & Regulatory Alignment:
    • Ensure contracts comply with:
      • Federal, state, and local laws
      • Regulatory requirements
      • Public funding and grant conditions
      • Internal policies and controls
    • Maintain deep familiarity with government contracting environments, including utilities and publicly funded programs.
    • Proactively adapt contract frameworks in response to regulatory shifts or funding changes.
  • Leadership & Team Development:
    • Lead and develop a high-performing contracts organization.
    • Set clear expectations for:
      • Accountability
      • Responsiveness
      • Quality and consistency
    • Elevate the team from execution-focused contract administration to strategic contract advisory.
    • Build bench strength, succession plans, and scalable team structures to support growth.

  Requirements

  • 10+ years of progressive experience in contracts management, legal operations, or commercial negotiations.
  • Proven ownership of large, complex, multi-year contracts.
  • Direct experience with:
    • Utilities
    • Public agencies
    • State and/or federal government contracts
  • Strong leadership experience managing and developing others.
  • Bachelor’s degree required.
  • Strongly Preferred:
    • Experience with AI-enabled contracting tools, CLM platforms, or contract automation initiatives.
    • Background in energy efficiency, clean energy, infrastructure, or other regulated industries.
    • Familiarity with federally funded or incentive-based programs.
    • Experience working in matrixed, multi-region organizations.
    • Exposure to Salesforce or enterprise systems supporting opportunity and contract tracking.

  Qualifications

  • Proven track record of successful contract management and negotiation.
  • Experience with large-scale contract management and execution.
  • Ability to manage and prioritize multiple contracts simultaneously.
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
  • Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively within a team.
  • Experience with contract lifecycle management (CLM) systems.
  • Understanding of regulatory and compliance requirements.
  • Experience with AI-driven contract management tools.
  • Knowledge of government contracting environments and processes.
  • Experience with public funding and grant programs.
  • Experience with matrixed, multi-region organizations.
  • Experience with Salesforce or similar enterprise systems.

  Benefits

  • Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance.
  • Company-paid health care concierge service.
  • 401(k) with company match.
  • Paid vacation, sick, personal and parental leave time.
  • Paid Volunteer Time.
  • Employee Recognition Program.
  • Employee Assistance Program.
  • Access to on-demand training courses.
  • Continuous learning and development opportunities.

  Pay

  Any offered salary is determined based on internal equity, internal salary ranges, market data/ranges, applicant’s skills and prior relevant experience, certain degrees and certifications (e.g. JD/technology), for example.

  Schedule

  Flexible work schedule to accommodate the needs of the role and the organization.