Vendor Management Lead

Centific Global Solutions; George Town; On-site; MYR 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading AI data solutions firm in Penang is seeking a Vendor Management Lead to manage and expand a network of service providers for Language and AI services. This role involves vendor recruitment, qualification management, and contract negotiations. The ideal candidate has experience in vendor management and a strong understanding of language services. This position requires working US time zone hours, offering a dynamic opportunity to contribute to a growing company.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in vendor management, preferably within language services.
• Experience managing freelance and agency vendors on a global scale.
• Strong understanding of Language and AI services.

Responsibilities

• Build and expand a global pool of freelance and agency vendors.
• Manage the end-to-end vendor recruitment lifecycle.
• Lead vendor contract and rate negotiations.

Skills

Vendor management

Talent acquisition

Relationship building

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Job description

Working hours :Mon - Fri, 8.00am - 5.00pm

About the Position

The Vendor Management Lead is responsible for building, managing, and expanding a global network of service providers to support Language and AI services. This role drives vendor recruitment initiatives, runs talent attraction campaigns, and oversees vendor qualification to ensure the right resources are matched to the right projects. The role requires hands‑on vendor management experience and the ability to work US time zone hours.

Key Responsibilities

Build, maintain, and continuously expand a global pool of freelance and agency vendors for Language and AI services.

Source and engage suitable collaborators across services including translation, editing, proofreading, MTPE, language quality assessment, data labeling, annotation, and LLM authoring.

Manage the end‑to‑end vendor recruitment lifecycle, including sourcing, screening, evaluation, negotiation, and onboarding.

Design and execute creative talent attraction campaigns, leveraging multiple channels with a strong focus on social media.

Review and process vendor information, assessing suitability based on project requirements and account needs.

Coordinate and manage translation and qualification tests for potential vendors.

Lead vendor contract and rate negotiations, ensuring alignment with company policies and project‑specific requirements.

Process, manage, and archive NDAs, MSAs, and other vendor agreements in compliance with internal policies.

Maintain accurate records of approved vendors in the vendor/resource database.

Support delivery and project teams by coordinating vendor availability, communication, and response follow‑ups.

Build and scale language teams for new projects, languages, and accounts.

Negotiate additional rates, revisions, and discounts when required.

Develop and maintain strong, long‑term relationships with vendors to ensure engagement and commitment.

Act as a point of escalation for vendor‑related issues, conflicts, or performance concerns.

Continuously identify opportunities to improve tools, processes, and technologies related to vendor management.

Perform additional duties as required to support business needs.

Key Requirements

Proven experience in vendor management, vendor recruitment, or talent acquisition, preferably within language services, localization, or AI/data‑related industries.

Experience managing freelance and agency vendors on a global scale.

Strong understanding of Language and AI services (e.g. translation, MTPE, LQA, data annotation, AI training data).

Hands‑on experience managing contracts, rate cards, and vendor negotiations.

Strong communication, relationship‑building, and stakeholder management skills.

Highly organized with strong attention to detail and documentation management.

Comfortable handling confidential information and PII in compliance with data protection standards.

Ability to work independently in a fast‑paced, global environment.

Willingness and flexibility to work US time zone hours.

Some management or leadership experience is preferred.

About Centific

Centific is a frontier AI data foundry that curates diverse, high‑quality data, using our purpose‑built technology platforms to empower the Magnificent Seven and our enterprise clients with safe, scalable AI deployment. Our team includes more than 150 PhDs and data scientists, along with more than 4,000 AI practitioners and engineers. We harness the power of an integrated solution ecosystem—comprising industry‑leading partnerships and 1.8 million vertical domain experts in more than 230 markets—to create contextual, multilingual, pre‑trained datasets; fine‑tuned, industry‑specific LLMs; and RAG pipelines supported by vector databases. Our zero‑distance innovation™ solutions for GenAI can reduce GenAI costs by up to 80% and bring solutions to market 50% faster.

Our mission is to bridge the gap between AI creators and industry leaders by bringing best practices in GenAI to unicorn innovators and enterprise customers. We aim to help these organizations unlock significant business value by deploying GenAI at scale, helping to ensure they stay at the forefront of technological advancement and maintain a competitive edge in their respective markets.

Your Authentic Self at Centific

Centific is an equal‑opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, mental or physical disability, medical condition, gender (including pregnancy), gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.

Your application will include the following questions:

• Which of the following statements best describes your right to work in Malaysia?
• What's your expected monthly basic salary?
• Which of the following types of qualifications do you have?
• How many years' experience do you have as a Vendor Management Leader?
• How much notice are you required to give your current employer?
• Have you worked in a role where you were responsible for vendor management?
• How many years' experience do you have as a Head of Recruitment?