Contract Manager

Nitto Americas; Carlsbad (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Kinovate Life Sciences, a Nitto Denko Corporation company, is seeking an experienced Contracts Manager to lead the contract lifecycle and optimize processes. You will partner with Sales, Procurement, Finance, Operations, and Legal to drive compliant, scalable contracting practices and administer the CLM platform.

In this role you will develop clause libraries, templates, and workflows while monitoring obligations, renewals, and compliance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field.
• CCCM or CFCM or equivalent certification.
• 5–7+ years in contract management or related roles.
• Experience administering DocuSign CLM or similar platforms.
• Experience with complex commercial agreements in regulated industries.

Responsibilities

• Oversee full contract lifecycle management (drafting, negotiation, approval, execution, storage, renewal, reporting).
• Support customer, supplier, service, lease, licensing, and NDA agreements.
• Drive process improvements, automation, and CLM workflow optimization.
• Administer and enhance the CLM platform and templates.
• Develop and maintain clause libraries and approval workflows.
• Monitor obligations, milestones, renewals, and compliance.
• Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure timely contract execution.
• Provide business-focused guidance on contracts and risk.

Skills

Contract management

Negotiation

Cross-functional collaboration

Process automation

Clause review

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration / Legal Studies / Contract Management

Tools

DocuSign CLM

Icertis

Agiloft

Ironclad

Conga

Job description

About Kinovate Life Sciences & the Opportunity:

Kinovate Life Sciences, a Nitto Denko Corporation company, is seeking an experienced Contracts Manager to lead and optimize contract lifecycle management processes across the organization. Headquartered in Carlsbad, California, Kinovate is a recognized leader in advanced materials for life science applications, combining Nitto's global materials science expertise with specialized capabilities supporting the biotechnology and life sciences industries.

This is an exciting opportunity to play a strategic role in a growing and innovative organization by partnering with Sales, Procurement, Finance, Operations, and Legal teams to drive efficient, compliant, and scalable contracting practices. In 2026, Kinovate expanded into a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, further supporting its continued growth and commitment to quality, innovation, reliable supply, and exceptional customer service.

What You'll Do

As Contracts Manager, you will serve as a key business partner responsible for overseeing the full contract lifecycle, including:

Responsibilities:

• Managing the intake, drafting, negotiation, approval, execution, storage, renewal, and reporting of contracts.
• Supporting a wide variety of commercial agreements, including customer, supplier, service, lease, licensing, and non-disclosure agreements.
• Driving contract process improvements, automation initiatives, and workflow optimization.
• Administering and enhancing the organization's Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platform.
• Developing and maintaining clause libraries, templates, approval workflows, and contracting best practices.
• Monitoring contract obligations, milestones, renewals, and compliance requirements.
• Collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure timely and effective contract execution.
• Providing contract-related guidance and business-focused solutions that support organizational goals.

What We're Looking For:

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Legal Studies, Contract Management, or a related field.
• Certified Commercial Contracts Manager (CCCM), Certified Federal Contracts Manager (CFCM), or equivalent professional certification.
• 5-7+ years of progressive experience in contract management, contract administration, legal operations, procurement, or a related field.
• Proven experience administering DocuSign CLM or similar platforms such as Icertis, Agiloft, Ironclad, or Conga.
• Demonstrated success managing complex commercial agreements across multiple contract types.
• Strong understanding of commercial contract terms, legal principles, and risk allocation.
• Experience designing and implementing contract workflows, approval processes, and automation solutions.
• Experience within biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, healthcare, or regulated manufacturing environments.
• Knowledge of ISO 13485 Quality Management Systems.
• Experience leveraging advanced CLM capabilities, including AI-powered clause review, obligation management, analytics, and reporting.
• Track record of driving measurable process improvements and operational efficiencies.
• Ability to communicate complex contractual matters to both legal and non-legal stakeholders.

Why Join Kinovate Life Science? This is an opportunity to join a growing organization where your expertise will directly influence business operations, risk management, and organizational efficiency. You'll work with talented professionals across multiple disciplines, support strategic initiatives, and help build scalable contracting processes that enable future growth.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Kinovate Life Sciences is committed to diversity and inclusivity.