Director, Clinical Contracts

Rapport Therapeutics; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 195,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Unlimited PTO

Lifestyle spending account

Commuting reimbursement

Job summary

Rapport Therapeutics in Boston, MA is seeking a Director of Clinical Contracts to turn clinical plans into action, owning CTAs, CDAs, MSAs, MTAs, SOWs, and more while partnering with Clinical Ops, Legal, Finance, and CROs to keep studies moving.

You will build a contracting process that scales globally, lead end-to-end drafting and negotiation, and design a preferred vendor program, with onsite work Monday-Wednesday in Boston as part of our hybrid model.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 10+ years of experience reviewing and negotiating clinical trial agreements and/or related vendor contracts.
• Experience with strategic level decision making for the Contracts function.
• Demonstrated executive presence with experience advising senior leadership on contracting risk and strategy.
• Experience building, leading, and developing a contracts team.
• Global contract experience, including familiarity with international site contracting and cross-border legal/privacy considerations.
• Deep familiarity with clinical trial agreement structures and FMV principles.
• Working knowledge of FDA regulations and ICH-GCP guidelines as they pertain to clinical contracting.
• Strong negotiation skills with a track record of driving agreements to execution efficiently.
• Excellent cross-functional collaboration skills across Legal, Finance, Development, CMC, Quality, Regulatory, and Clinical Operations.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail and ability to manage a high volume of contracts.

Responsibilities

• Develop, own, and maintain clinical contract lifecycle strategy to standardize contracting as the portfolio scales globally.
• Review and negotiate CTAs and CDAs.
• Develop and align contracting strategy with clinical development plans and pipeline stage.
• Lead end-to-end drafting, review, and negotiation of CDAs, MSAs, MTAs, SOWs, License, and Subscription Agreements.
• Partner with Clinical Operations, outside counsel, Finance, and CRO/vendor teams to design a preferred vendor program.
• Serve as strategic advisor to Clinical Operations on contract risk, budget exposure, and portfolio-level trade-offs.
• Track contract status, cycle times, and site activation timelines; identify bottlenecks.
• Ensure all agreements comply with FDA, ICH-GCP, GDPR, FMV, and company policies; maintain audit-ready files.
• Lead technology and process strategy for Contracts, including AI governance and system decisions.
• Develop and implement AI strategy and roadmap for contracts function.
• Support headcount planning; hire, mentor, and develop a growing contracts team.

Skills

Executive presence

Negotiation

Cross-functional collaboration

Leadership

Attention to detail

Strategic decision making

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

When our people share why they joined Rapport and love it here, it comes down to three things: the science, the mission, and the team. At Rapport, we’re driven by a passion for developing precision neuromedicines with the potential for fewer side effects, enabling patients and their families to enjoy healthier, more fulfilling lives. And we’re doing this with extraordinary science and awesome people (affectionately called Rapptors).

Our innovative scientific platform is centered on Receptor Associate Proteins (RAPs). RAPs are a component of neuronal receptor complexes, which play a crucial role in regulating receptor assembly and function. This precision approach has the potential to revolutionize the development of small molecule therapies. We are excited about the potential of our lead program, RAP-219. Our first indication targets focal epilepsy with additional clinical trials in primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures (PGTCS) and bipolar disorder.

The strength of Rapport comes from our Rapptors – who are united by our mission to improve patients lives. We bring the heart and hustle to advance our science forward, always staying true to our core values. We hope you’re as excited about this opportunity as we are!

This role is based in Boston, MA with onsite presence required Monday-Wednesday

Your impact:

As our Director of Clinical Contracts, you’ll help turn clinical plans into action. You’ll own clinical trial agreements, site budgets, and vendor contracts while partnering with Clinical Ops, Legal, Finance, and our CROs to keep studies moving. You’ll help build a contracting process that keeps pace with our growing global portfolio.

Your day-to-day:

• Develop, own, and maintain clinical contract lifecycle strategy (templates, fallback language, and negotiation playbooks) to standardize contracting process as the portfolio scales globally.
• Review and negotiate site Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs) and CDAs
• Develop and align contracting strategy with clinical development plan, shaping negotiation strategy and risk tolerances in line with the pipeline stage (e.g., trial scale-up, new geographies).
• Lead end-to-end drafting, review, and negotiation of Confidentiality Disclosure Agreements (CDAs), Master Service Agreements (MSAs), Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs), Statements of Work (SOWs), License Agreements, Subscription Agreements
• Partner closely with Clinical Operations, outside counsel, Finance, and CRO/vendor teams to design a preferred vendor program and align contract terms with study timelines and budget parameters.
• Serve as strategic advisor to Clinical Operations surfacing contract risk, budget exposure, and portfolio-level trade-offs to inform program decisions.
• Track contract status, cycle times, and site activation timelines; proactively identify and resolve bottlenecks.
• Ensure all agreements comply with applicable regulations (FDA, ICH-GCP, GDPR and other privacy regulations), Fair Market Value (FMV) standards, and company policies.
• Maintain accurate, audit-ready contract files and documentation in support of inspection readiness.
• Lead technology and process strategy for the Contracts function, including selection, rollout, integration, use of AI and governance of systems and tools, including buy vs. build decisions.
• Develop and implement AI strategy and roadmap for the contracts function
• Support department headcount plan and structure; hire, mentor and develop a growing team of contract professionals.

Must-Haves:

• Bachelor’s degree required
• 10+ years of experience reviewing and negotiating clinical trial agreements, and/or related vendor contracts within a biotech, pharmaceutical, or clinical CRO environment.
• Experience with strategic level decision making for the Contracts function.
• Demonstrated executive presence, with experience advising senior leadership on contracting risk and strategy
• Experience building, leading, and developing a contracts team.
• Global contract experience, including familiarity with international site contracting and cross-border legal/privacy considerations.
• Deep familiarity with clinical trial agreement structures, and FMV principles.
• Working knowledge of FDA regulations and ICH-GCP guidelines as they pertain to clinical contracting.
• Strong negotiation skills with a track record of driving agreements to execution efficiently.
• Excellent cross-functional collaboration skills, with experience partnering across Legal, Finance, Development, CMC, Quality, Biometrics, Bioanalytics, Regulatory, and Clinical Operations.
• Highly organized, with strong attention to detail and the ability to manage a high volume of contracts simultaneously.

What makes Rapport special:

• Every role has meaning. We’re determined to discover a better way for patients, and you’ll feel the passion from the start.
• We are driven to innovate. Exciting science that pushes boundaries and opens new possibilities.
• Your perspective matters. Stick your neck out, share your ideas – we work as a team.
• We have FUN. We hire smart, dedicated, down-to-earth people that you’ll enjoy spending time with.
• Leadership that CARES – about you, your growth + development.
• We’re bicoastal. Whether you’re in the lab full-time in San Diego or taking advantage of a more hybrid work schedule in Boston – we make the most of our time together.
• Competitive benefits. Including unlimited PTO, a lifestyle spending account, commuting reimbursement, and much more!
• You get to be YOU! Show up as you are and make every day count.

Your Compensation:

We get it. Compensation is an important part of your offer. You shouldn’t be surprised at the end of the recruiting process, and you should know that your offer is fair and equitable. How do we do this? We tell you about our hiring range now - we expect the hiring range for the role to be $195,000 to $215,000 for the Director level. Our actual offer will reflect a lot of factors including your relevant skills, experience, location, salary market data, and internal equity. In addition to a competitive salary, we also offer a pretty great benefits package. We don’t stop here - if you join Rapport, we go to the next level. We share our full salary ranges for every level across our company.

Hybrid Work Environment:

We prioritize in person connection with our fellow Rapptors! Our team members come together onsite at our Boston office Monday-Wednesday to create more opportunities for innovation, collaboration, and connection.

Rapport Therapeutics is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any classification protected by federal, state, or local law.

CCPA disclosure notice can be found here.