Cognizant is a large IT Consulting Firm that leverages modern technologies to transform a variety of business operations. We are seeking an experienced Contract Management Program Manager to oversee and optimize our end-to-end contract lifecycle and procurement support processes. In this role, you will serve as the strategic bridge between internal stakeholders, vendor partners, and cross-functional teams such as Legal, Finance, and Risk. You will be responsible for reviewing contract terms, managing renewals and amendments, ensuring strict compliance, and administering agreements from initial request through termination or expiration. The ideal candidate possesses deep expertise in procurement workflows, strong commercial acumen, and exceptional stakeholder management skills.
Please note that this is a hybrid role in San Jose, CA. Only local candidates will be considered.
Key Responsibilities
Contract Lifecycle Administration & Oversight
- Manage and administer contracts through all stages of their lifecycle (intake, drafting review, execution, performance monitoring, renewal, and closure).
- Review contract terms, scope of work (SOWs), amendments, and addendums to ensure alignment with business objectives and operational standards.
- Proactively track critical contract milestones, expiration dates, renewal deadlines, and key deliverables.
Stakeholder & Vendor Coordination
- Serve as the primary point of contact for internal business owners and external vendors regarding contractual rights, obligations, and deliverables.
- Partner closely with Legal to align on risk mitigation, standard terms, and non-standard clause approvals.
- Collaborate with Finance and Procurement teams to ensure contract terms align with budget allocations, invoicing terms, and purchase orders.
Procurement Support & Process Management
- Support end-to-end procurement workflows, including intake documentation, vendor evaluation, and internal approval routing.
- Maintain a centralized, audit-ready contract repository, ensuring accurate data entry, proper metadata tagging, and record completeness.
- Monitor vendor compliance against contractual obligations, Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and regulatory guidelines.
- Drive process improvements across the contract intake and procurement pipelines to increase efficiency and reduce cycle times.
Qualifications & Key Requirements
- Experience: 5+ years of dedicated experience in contract management, procurement administration, or commercial operations.
- Core Skills:
- In-depth understanding of standard contract structure, commercial terms, vendor agreements, and compliance frameworks.
- Proven track record of managing cross-functional workflows involving Legal, Finance, Tax, and Executive teams.
- Strong familiarity with modern Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platforms, procurement tools, and ERP systems (e.g., Ironclad, SAP Ariba, Coupa, DocuSign).
- Soft Skills: Exceptional organizational habits, high attention to detail, strong negotiation support skills, and excellent written and verbal communication.
Preferred Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain Management, Legal Studies, or a related field. At least a High School Diploma is required.
- Professional certifications in contract management (e.g., CCMP, CPCM, or IACCM/WorldCC certification) are a plus.
Salary and Other Compensation:
The annual salary for this position is between $110,000 - $134,500 depending on experience and other qualifications of the successful candidate.
This position is also eligible for Cognizant’s discretionary annual incentive program, based on performance and subject to the terms of Cognizant’s applicable plans.
Benefits: Cognizant offers the following benefits for this position, subject to applicable eligibility requirements:
- Medical/Dental/Vision/Life Insurance
- Paid holidays plus Paid Time Off
- 401(k) plan and contributions
- Long-term/Short-term Disability
- Paid Parental Leave
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Disclaimer: The salary, other compensation, and benefits information is accurate as of the date of this posting. Cognizant reserves the right to modify this information at any time, subject to applicable law.
LA County (only): Qualified applicants with arrest and/or conviction records will be considered for employment.
Cognizant will only consider applicants for this position who are legally authorized to work in the United States without requiring company sponsorship now or at any time in the future.
À savoir avant de postuler
- Autorisation de travail: Cognizant ne prendra en considération que les candidats à ce poste qui sont légalement autorisés à travailler au Canada sans avoir besoin d'un parrainage de l'employeur, aujourd'hui ou à l'avenir.
- Mesures d’adaptation: Si vous avez un handicap qui nécessite des mesures d’adaptation raisonnable pour effectuer une recherche d’emploi ou poser une candidature, veuillez envoyer un courriel à [email protected] avec votre demande et vos coordonnées.
- L’IA dans notre processus de recrutement: Nous utilisons des outils d'intelligence artificielle (IA) pour trier et évaluer les candidatures efficacement. Notre équipe examine ensuite les candidatures et décide qui passe à l’étape suivante.
- Poste à pourvoir: Sauf indication contraire, ce poste est actuellement vacant et nous cherchons à le pourvoir.
- Exigences linguistiques: Nous demandons à tous les candidats de posséder une connaissance de base de l’anglais afin de faciliter les communications internes. Pour les postes au Québec, la capacité à communiquer efficacement en anglais est requise car vous fournirez des services à et collaborerez avec des parties prenantes anglophones situées hors de la province.
- Inclusion: Cognizant est un employeur souscrivant au principe de l’égalité d’accès à l’emploi. Votre candidature et votre dossier ne seront pas examinés en fonction de la race, de la couleur, du sexe, de la religion, des croyances, de l'orientation sexuelle, de l'identité de genre, de l'origine nationale, du handicap, des renseignements génétiques, de la grossesse, du statut d'ancien combattant ou de toute autre caractéristique protégée par les lois fédérales, provinciales ou locales.
À propos de Cognizant
Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) est un AI Builder et une entreprise de services numériques (ESN) élaborant des solutions complètes d’IA maximisant les investissements pour des résultats concrets. Sa profonde expertise des métiers, des processus et des technologies lui permet d’intégrer dans les systèmes technologiques le contexte unique de chaque organisation de l’ingénierie à la production à l’échelle. Son objectif: améliorer l’efficacité des équipes, créer de la valeur et permettre aux grandes entreprises de rester performantes dans un monde qui évolue rapidement. Pour en savoir plus: cognizant.ai ou @cognizant.
