Director Analyst, Sourcing, Contracts and Negotiations – Software Licensing/Salesforce (Remote US)

Gartner; Stamford (CT); On-site; USD 148,000 - 175,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO

401(k) match up to $7,200 per year

Stock purchase plan

Job summary

Gartner Stamford-based Director will lead sourcing, contracts, and negotiations for enterprise software and SaaS licensing, with emphasis on Salesforce ecosystem. You will produce pragmatic insights, engage clients via meetings and Gartner conferences, and mentor junior team members.

This role requires deep Salesforce licensing expertise, executive presence, and ability to drive contract strategy. Travel up to 25% may be required in a hybrid work setting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience; Graduate degree preferred.
• 10+ years of relevant field or industry experience.
• 8+ years work experience in SaaS/software contract negotiations, technology procurement, vendor management or software asset management within a buying organization, outsourcer, consulting firm, or reseller.
• 5+ years hands-on experience negotiating Salesforce renewals with exposure to Sales/Service Cloud, Gen AI licensing and related components.
• Subject matter expertise in Salesforce licensing with focus on commercial aspects, software and cloud services market trends.
• Experience with software license compliance risk assessment/mitigation in a software audit context, particularly with Salesforce.
• Experience negotiating with and managing major vendors (AWS, Google, SAP, Microsoft, Oracle, ServiceNow).
• Executive presence; able to establish credibility with executives and stakeholders.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and writing ability.
• Strong communication and presentation skills; engage clients and respond to questions.

Responsibilities

• Create innovative, thought provoking ‘must‑have insights’ content.
• Develop new insights and ideas through thought leadership to meet client needs.
• Analyze root causes to drive strategy forward.
• Establish insights positions across a team of analysts.
• Deliver independent insights to Gartner leaders to influence research agendas.
• Research and predict market trends to provide actionable insights.
• Provide actionable sourcing, contract structure, negotiation planning, licensing optimization advice.
• Create and deliver high value presentation materials for Gartner events and client briefings.
• Support BTI and Sales as the voice of market to drive client engagement.
• Peer-review content for quality and credibility.
• Build credibility as Gartner insights and methodology spokesperson.
• Collaborate with a diverse global team and mentor junior members.
• Identify process improvements for BTI service delivery.
• Travel up to 25%.

Skills

Executive presence

Written communication

Verbal communication

Analytical skills

Presentation skills

Independent working

Cross-team collaboration

Learning agility

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Graduate degree preferred

Tools

Salesforce

AWS

Google

Microsoft

SAP

Oracle

ServiceNow

Job description

About the role

Gartner Analysts are industry thought leaders who create must‑have insights, market predictions and best practices for a broad range of world‑leading organizations. This Director role is focused on sourcing, contracts and negotiations for enterprise software and SaaS licensing, with deep emphasis on the Salesforce ecosystem. A Director serves as a leader within Gartner’s Business and Technology Insights (BTI) group. Utilizing research and analytical skills, a Director plays a significant role in producing pragmatic and provocative insights which Gartner clients consume and apply to propel their business toward key objectives. They are a trusted source of advice for clients, reinforcing Gartner’s value every day by engaging them via in‑person meetings, virtual meetings, sales‑support visits and Gartner conferences to discuss complex client challenges and offer appropriate recommendations.

Responsibilities

• Create innovative, thought provoking ‘must‑have insights’ content
• Develop new insights and ideas through thought leadership and offer compelling, actionable approaches to client's needs and requests that accelerate the client's ability to act
• Develop in‑depth analysis to identify the root cause of a client’s barriers or overall needs and reframe thinking to drive strategy forward
• Demonstrate thought leadership in establishing Insights positions across a team of analysts
• Bring provocative, independent insights to Gartner leaders that can evolve the course of a research agenda
• Research, analyze and predict market trends and shifts to provide clients and vendors with actionable insights
• Provide clients and prospects with actionable advice aligned to sourcing strategy, contract structure, negotiation planning, licensing optimization and software/SaaS commercial decision making via virtual or face‑to‑face interactions
• Create and deliver high value presentation materials on and off stage for Gartner events, industry and professional association conferences, and in‑person or remote client briefings
• Support BTI and Sales: Provide sales support serving as voice of the market to help Insights teams create content and to drive engagement with clients to make progress against their critical priorities to grow their business
• Provide high quality and timely content peer review
• Build credibility as an industry expert to represent Gartner insights, methodology and strategy
• Actively participate with a diverse, global team of colleagues in innovation, ideation, and research discussions and collaborate effectively with peers in the Insights community
• Identify research process improvements or develop new processes that help the team and BTI provide excellent service delivery
• Be a mentor and coach by supporting more junior team members
• Be client‑centric while actively seeking to help clients engage regularly and often with Gartner insights and interactions

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience; Graduate degree preferred
• 10+ years of relevant field or industry experience
• 8+ years work experience in SaaS/software contract negotiations, technology procurement, category management, vendor management or software asset management within a buying organization, outsourcer, consulting firm, or reseller.
• 5+ years hands‑on experience negotiating Salesforce renewals (including deals within last 12 months) with exposure ideally to such areas as Sales/Service Cloud, Gen AI licensing and negotiation (Agentforce, Einstein), Tableau CRM, Success Plans and industry clouds (e.g. Financial Services Cloud, Education Cloud, Marketing Clouds).
• Subject matter expertise in Salesforce licensing with particular focus on commercial aspects, software and cloud services market trends.
• Experience with software license compliance risk assessment, management, and/or mitigation in a software audit context, particularly with Salesforce, is desired.
• Experience negotiating with and managing other major vendors (e.g., AWS, Google, SAP, Microsoft, Oracle, or ServiceNow) is desired.
• Executive presence; able to immediately establish credibility with executives and additional stakeholders
• Strong organizational skills; ability to work under tight deadlines and produce high quality deliverables
• Demonstrable excellence in research and writing ability
• Strong written and verbal proficiency, analytical and presentation skills; ability to engage clients and respond effectively to questions
• Proficient in analyzing and synthesizing data; can effectively apply patterns and frameworks while drawing and defending conclusions to client challenges
• Strong communication skills - able to explain complex concepts concisely and simply
• Subject matter expertise; comfortable presenting at large and small‑scale speaking engagements
• Strong business and financial acumen
• Deep knowledge of the global and competitive landscape within subject area as well as the interplay in that market
• Ability to work independently, while also being intrinsically motivated to collaborate across teams and support the workflow of others, in a multicultural global team
• Learning agile and adept with navigating highly matrixed environments
• Ability to represent Gartner's research methodology and strategies effectively at all levels
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 25% (where applicable)

Compensation and Benefits

Gartner offers world‑class benefits, highly competitive compensation and disproportionate rewards for top performers. In our hybrid work environment, we provide the flexibility and support for you to thrive — working virtually when it's productive to do so and getting together with colleagues in a vibrant community that is purposeful, engaging and inspiring. Gartner believes in fair and equitable pay. A reasonable estimate of the base salary range for this role is 148,000 USD – 175,500 USD. Please note that actual salaries may vary within the range, or be above or below the range, based on factors including, but not limited to, education, training, experience, professional achievement, business need, and location. In addition to base salary, employees will participate in either an annual bonus plan based on company and individual performance, or a role‑based, uncapped sales incentive plan. Our talent acquisition team will provide the specific opportunity on our bonus or incentive programs to eligible candidates. We also offer market‑leading benefit programs including generous PTO, a 401(k) match up to $7,200 per year, the opportunity to purchase company stock at a discount, and more.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The policy of Gartner is to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, citizenship status, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status and to seek to advance the principles of equal employment opportunity. Gartner is committed to being an Equal Opportunity Employer and offers opportunities to all job seekers, including job seekers with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability or a disabled veteran, you may request a reasonable accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access the Company’s career webpage as a result of your disability. You may request reasonable accommodations by calling Human Resources at [phone] or by sending an email to [e-mail].