Job Details

A well-funded, clinical-stage biotechnology company is looking for a sharp, execution-oriented contracts leader to own and elevate its contracting function. This is a high-impact individual contributor role with broad cross-functional visibility, sitting at the intersection of legal, operations, finance, and R&D. The right candidate will bring deep life sciences contracting expertise and a builder's mindset; someone equally comfortable drafting a complex in-license agreement as they are standing up a CLM platform from scratch. Title and compensation will be calibrated to the candidate's background.

What You'll Own

• Drive end-to-end contract lifecycle management across a diverse portfolio of agreements—including NDAs, MTAs, research collaborations, consulting engagements, and vendor/service contracts—from initial draft through execution and amendment.
• Act as the internal authority on contract matters, providing guidance that balances legal risk, business pragmatism, and company policy.
• Lead the evaluation, selection, and implementation of a contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform, including workflow configuration, template development, and performance reporting.
• Build and continuously improve contracting infrastructure—playbooks, approval workflows, escalation frameworks—that can scale with the business.
• Serve as a trusted cross-functional partner to Legal, Finance, R&D, and Business Development, aligning contract processes with organizational priorities.
• Develop and maintain a metrics dashboard to track contract volume, cycle times, and risk exposure, enabling data-driven operational decisions.
• Ensure all agreements reflect current standards around contract law, IP, data privacy, and applicable biotech/pharma regulatory requirements.

What You Bring

Required

• Bachelor's degree required; JD or advanced degree strongly preferred.
• 7–10+ years of contract management experience, with at least 5 years in biotech/pharma or a life sciences-focused law firm.
• Demonstrated expertise drafting and negotiating NDAs, research collaboration agreements, MTAs, consulting agreements, and other IP-centric life sciences contracts.
• Fluency in intellectual property and confidentiality provisions specific to the life sciences context.
• Proven ability to operate independently, prioritize across competing demands, and drive projects to completion without heavy oversight.
• Strong working knowledge of contract law, pharma/biotech compliance, and vendor/supplier negotiation.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex contract language for non-legal stakeholders.
• Track record of leading process improvement initiatives with measurable outcomes.

Preferred

• Hands-on CLM platform experience (selection, configuration, rollout, and reporting).
• Experience managing large-scale systems implementations or enterprise-wide contract standardization efforts.
• Professional certification from NCMA (CPCM), IACCM, or equivalent body.
• Familiarity with equity, financing, or M&A-related agreements in a life sciences setting.