Commercial Counsel (Technology & Procurement)

iManage; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 145,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health/Vision/Dental/Life Insurance

401(k) with company match

HealthJoy access

Enhanced leave & flexible time off

Wellness days

Job summary

iManage is seeking a Commercial Counsel (Technology & Procurement) in Chicago to own the legal workstream for technology and vendor contracts. You will partner with procurement, finance, and product teams to negotiate agreements and implement scalable playbooks, enabling efficient technology acquisition while managing privacy, security, and data risks.

The ideal candidate has 3–5 years of tech procurement experience, strong negotiation skills from the buyer’s perspective, and a JD with active

Qualifications

• J.D. required and active bar membership.
• 3–5 years in commercial legal work with tech procurement focus.
• Experience negotiating AI, SaaS, cloud, data and professional services contracts.
• Ability to manage a diverse vendor-contract pipeline independently.
• Knowledge of data protection/privacy provisions in vendor agreements.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration with finance, procurement, security.

Responsibilities

• Own technology and vendor contracting lifecycle from engagement to renewals.
• Negotiate agreements applying company risk positions and playbooks.
• Partner with procurement on governance, with legal owning positions.
• Manage a diverse contract portfolio prioritizing risk and strategic value.

Skills

Commercial negotiation

Vendor contracting

Tech procurement

Buy-side perspective

Contract risk assessment

Education

J.D. degree

Tools

Ironclad

Coupa

Job description

We offer a flexible working policy that supports a healthy balance between personal and professional well-being. This role requires in-office presence on Tuesdays & Thursdays to collaborate, connect, and learn from peers - while also maintaining the flexibility for meaningful work-life balance.

Being a Commercial Counsel (Technology & Procurement) at iManage Means…

You will be iManage’s dedicated legal resource for technology and procurement transactions, owning the legal workstream for agreements through which iManage acquires software, cloud infrastructure, AI tooling, data, professional services, and other technology. This is a broad, high-impact buy-side role requiring strong commercial judgment, practical execution, and the ability to manage a diverse contracting pipeline independently.

Reporting to the Associate General Counsel, you will partner closely with procurement, finance, engineering, security, product, and privacy to negotiate vendor agreements, apply iManage’s established risk positions, and build scalable legal playbooks and self-service resources. The goal is not simply to review contracts, but to create a disciplined legal framework that allows iManage to buy technology efficiently while managing material legal, privacy, security, and data risks.

The ideal candidate has hands-on experience with technology procurement and vendor contracting and understands how enterprise software companies buy and deploy technology. You are commercially minded, comfortable negotiating from the buyer side, and able to distinguish issues that can be resolved pragmatically from those that require escalation.

iM Responsible For…

Technology and Vendor Contracting

• Owning the full lifecycle of vendor and technology agreements, from initial engagement through master agreement, statements of work, and renewals, across AI, SaaS, cloud infrastructure, professional services, consulting, and data agreements.
• Reviewing, negotiating, and closing technology vendor agreements, applying iManage's established risk positions and playbooks while exercising sound judgment on deviations that require escalation.
• Partnering with the procurement team on vendor governance and contract administration, with legal owning substantive positions and Procurement handling workflow and tracking.
• Managing a diverse pipeline of vendor agreements concurrently, prioritizing based on business urgency, risk profile, and strategic importance.

Procurement Legal Framework

• Building and maintaining iManage's procurement legal playbook, including standard positions, approved templates, fallback language, and escalation triggers for all major vendor and technology contract categories.
• Developing self-service resources for procurement and finance that enable routine vendor agreements to be handled efficiently without requiring legal involvement on every transaction.
• Identifying recurring vendor-contract risk themes and opportunities to improve iManage’s procurement legal framework.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Building trusted relationships with finance, procurement, engineering, security, product, and people ops as a practical, business-enabling legal partner on all technology and procurement matters.
• Advising internal stakeholders on vendor contract risk in clear, business-accessible language, enabling informed decision-making rather than simply flagging issues.
• Coordinating with the privacy and security teams on vendor contracts with data protection or security implications, ensuring appropriate review and approvals before execution.

iM Qualified Because I Have…

• A Juris Doctor (J.D.) and active membership in at least one state bar.
• 3-5 years of commercial legal experience with a meaningful focus on technology procurement, vendor contracting, or buy-side commercial transactions.
• Solid experience negotiating AI and SaaS agreements, cloud and infrastructure contracts, professional services agreements, and data agreements from the buyer's perspective.
• An ability to manage a diverse and concurrent vendor contract pipeline independently, prioritizing effectively and maintaining quality across a high volume of agreements.
• Working knowledge of data protection and privacy provisions in vendor contracts, including DPAs, security schedules, and AI data provisions, sufficient to coordinate effectively with the privacy and security teams.
• Strong relationship-building and communication skills; able to partner effectively with finance, procurement, engineering, and security stakeholders and translate legal requirements into practical business guidance.
• A self-starter attitude with the ability to build reusable legal positions and playbooks where they do not yet exist, and to improve workflows continuously as the function scales.

Note: In-house experience in a SaaS or technology company is strongly preferred. Law firm experience with technology transactions or vendor contracting focus will also be considered.

Bonus Points If I Have...

• Experience with AI-related vendor contracts, including AI tooling agreements, data licensing, model API terms, and AI governance provisions.
• Familiarity with privacy-related vendor requirements under GDPR, UK GDPR, or CCPA, including DPA negotiation and vendor privacy assessments.
• Experience building or scaling a procurement legal playbook or vendor contract program.
• Prior experience using contract lifecycle management tools (Ironclad, Coupa, or similar) and comfortable designing legal workflows within procurement systems.

Don't meet every qualification listed above? Studies show that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet all qualifications. At iManage, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment and encourage everyone to show up as their full authentic selves. We welcome those that come with a growth mindset and a hunger for learning; so, if you are excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification, we encourage you to apply anyways!

iM Getting To…

• Join a supportive, experienced team with an inclusive, encouraging, and vibrant culture.
• Have flexible work hours that allow me to balance my ‘me time’ with my work commitments.
• Collaborate in a modern open plan workspace, with a gaming area, free snacks, drinks and regular social events.
• Focus on impactful work, solving complex, real challenges utilizing the latest technologies and protocols.
• Own my career path with our internal development framework. Ask us more about this!
• Learn new skills and earn certifications with access to unlimited courses in LinkedIn Learning.
• Join an innovative, industry leading SaaS company that is continuing to grow & scale!

iManage Is Supporting Me By...

• Creating an inclusive environment where I can help shape the culture not just by fitting in, but by adding to it.
• Providing a market competitive salary that is applied through a consistent process, equitable for all our employees, and regularly reviewed based on industry data.
• Rewarding me with an annual performance-based bonus.
• Offering comprehensive Health/Vision/Dental/Life Insurance, and a 401k Retirement Savings Plan with a company match up to 4%.
• Giving access to HealthJoy, a healthcare concierge service, to help me maximize my health benefits.
• Granting enhanced leave for expecting parents; 20 weeks 100% paid for primary leave, and 10 weeks 100% paid for secondary leave.
• Providing me with a flexible time off policy to take the time off that I need. Be it for vacation, volunteering, celebrating holidays, spending time with family, or simply taking time to recharge and reset.
• Caring for my mental health and well‑being with multiple company wellness days and free access to the Healthy Minds app for mindfulness, meditation and more.

The overall US annual base salary range for this position is $120,000–$145,000. Individual compensation for each candidate depends on factors such as qualifications, experience, and candidate location. This range does not include additional forms of compensation, such as bonuses, commission, or benefits. Your recruiter will provide further details about the offer range, incentives, and overall compensation during the hiring process.

About iManage…

At iManage, we are dedicated to Making Knowledge Work™. Our intelligent, cloud-enabled, and secure platform is trusted by 4,100+ customers and 430,000 users worldwide, managing over 11 billion documents and 11 petabytes of data. We empower professionals across 65+ countries to unlock the full potential of their business content and communications.

We are continuously innovating to solve the most complex professional challenges and enable better business outcomes; Our work is not always easy but it is ambitious and rewarding.

Sowe’relooking for people who embracechallenges. People who thrive on solving problems, pushing boundaries, and collaborating with the industry’s best and brightest.That’sthe iManage way.It’show we turn the impossible into reality, empower our employees to grow, unlock their potential, and create a meaningful impact on everything we do.

Whoever you are, whatever you do, however you work. Make it mean something at iManage.

iManage provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

Learn more at: www.imanage.com

Please seeour recruitment privacy statement for more information on how we handle your personal data.