Lead Vendor Contracts Specialist

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 103,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America seeks a Lead Contract Specialist, Legal Vendor Contracting, to own an enterprise portfolio of vendor agreements from intake to execution. You will draft, negotiate and close MSAs, SOWs, SaaS and outsourcing contracts while balancing risk, speed and business objectives in collaboration with sourcing, procurement and IT.

This non-attorney role uses Guardian’s standard positions and AI tools to review, draft and negotiate terms, while escalating

Qualifications

• 8+ years’ experience drafting and negotiating commercial, technology, or outsourcing contracts in a legal, contracts, or procurement function.
• Experience in financial services, insurance, or other regulated industries and in vendor contracting.
• Demonstrated ability to make sound, timely decisions within defined parameters and to elevate appropriately.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to interact with clients and management.
• Knowledge of and experience in AI initiatives.
• Familiarity with AI applications, such as Harvey and Microsoft Copilot, and interest in applying them to contract review, drafting, and negotiation.
• Experience in sourcing and procurement.

Responsibilities

• Draft, negotiate, and close significant vendor agreements, including MSAs, SOWs, SaaS, cloud and technology, outsourcing and managed services, hotel and events, and professional services, recruiting, and consulting contracts
• Collaborate with Guardian’s sourcing and procurement function to negotiate and execute vendor transactions, outsourcing arrangements, and strategic third‑party relationships, while balancing risk, speed, and business objectives
• Deliver complete first‑pass markups and issue lists within agreed turnaround times using AI‑enabled tools, and track open issues and approvals through signature and contract‑system entry
• Coordinate Privacy, Information Security, Third‑Party Risk, and Procurement reviews
• Partner with Legal Operations and IT to drive process improvements, automation, and modernization of the vendor contracting function

Skills

Contract drafting

Negotiation

Financial services

Communication

Tools

Harvey

Microsoft Copilot

Job description

Do you want to be part of a collaborative Corporate Initiatives & Transactions (CIT) team within the Guardian Law Department? Do you enjoy owning vendor agreements from intake to execution and balancing risk, speed, and business objectives? Is a culture where “People Count,” “We Do the Right Thing,” and “We Hold Ourselves to Very High Standards” important to you? If so, Guardian is seeking a Lead Contract Specialist, Legal Vendor Contracting, to draft, negotiate, and close enterprise vendor agreements, including Master Services Agreements (MSAs), Statements of Work (SOWs), and Software as a Service (SaaS), technology, outsourcing, and professional services agreements, within Law Department guidelines and approved positions. This is a non‑attorney position and does not provide legal advice. You are a proactive, resourceful contracts professional who can own an assigned portfolio of vendor agreements from start to finish. You independently apply Guardian’s standard positions and pre‑approved fallbacks, including standard liability, indemnity, and commercial terms, and you make sound, timely decisions within defined parameters. You recognize novel, high‑risk, or out‑of‑policy issues and elevate them to the Senior Counsel or Assistant General Counsel with a recommended position. You thrive in a fast‑paced environment with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities, handle confidential information with sensitivity and integrity, and are eager to apply artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as Harvey and Microsoft Copilot, to contract review, drafting, and negotiation.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years’ experience drafting and negotiating commercial, technology, or outsourcing contracts in a legal, contracts, or procurement function
• Experience in financial services, insurance, or other regulated industries and in vendor contracting
• Demonstrated ability to make sound, timely decisions within defined parameters and to elevate appropriately
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to interact with clients and management

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of and experience in AI initiatives
• Familiarity with AI applications, such as Harvey and Microsoft Copilot, and interest in applying them to contract review, drafting, and negotiation
• Experience in sourcing and procurement

Responsibilities

• Draft, negotiate, and close significant vendor agreements, including MSAs, SOWs, SaaS, cloud and technology, outsourcing and managed services, hotel and events, and professional services, recruiting, and consulting contracts
• Collaborate with Guardian’s sourcing and procurement function to negotiate and execute vendor transactions, outsourcing arrangements, and strategic third‑party relationships, while balancing risk, speed, and business objectives
• Deliver complete first‑pass markups and issue lists within agreed turnaround times using AI‑enabled tools, and track open issues and approvals through signature and contract‑system entry
• Coordinate Privacy, Information Security, Third‑Party Risk, and Procurement reviews
• Partner with Legal Operations and IT to drive process improvements, automation, and modernization of the vendor contracting function

Location: Hybrid - 3 days in the HudsonYards, NYC office, 2 days WFH. We will consider remote candidates if experience is aligned.

Salary Range: $103,450.00 - $169,960.00. The salary range reflected above is a good faith estimate of base pay for the primary location of the position. The salary for this position ultimately will be determined based on the education, experience, knowledge, and abilities of the successful candidate. In addition to salary, this role may also be eligible for annual, sales, or other incentive compensation.

Benefits and Opportunities

Our Promise At Guardian, you’ll have the support and flexibility to achieve your professional and personal goals. Through skill‑building, leadership development and philanthropic opportunities, we provide opportunities to build communities and grow your career, surrounded by diverse colleagues with high ethical standards.

Inspire Well‑Being As part of Guardian’s Purpose – to inspire well‑being – we are committed to offering contemporary, supportive, flexible, and inclusive benefits and resources to our colleagues. Explore our company benefits at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits. Benefits apply to full‑time eligible employees. Interns are not eligible for most Company benefits.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Guardian is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, creed, religion, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, marital status, disability, military or veteran status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.

Accommodations

Guardian is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. Guardian also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified job applicants (and employees) to accommodate the individual's known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless doing so would create an undue hardship. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact [e-mail]. Please note: this resource is for accommodation requests only. For all other inquires related to your application and careers at Guardian, refer to the Guardian Careers site.

Visa Sponsorship

Guardian Life is not currently or in the foreseeable future sponsoring employment‑based visas (e.g., such as an H‑1B). In order to be a successful applicant, you must be legally authorized to work in the United States, without the need for employer sponsorship/support now or at any time in the future.

Artificial Intelligence in Recruitment

As part of Guardian’s job application process, Guardian may use artificial intelligence tools ("AI Tools") to automate the sorting and filtering of information provided by applicants as part of its preliminary screening. This preliminary screening may be used to help identify applicant materials and resumes relative to their indication that the applicant meets the requirements for the specific job for which they are applying, as specified in the listing posted on Guardian’s jobs website (Careers at Guardian at https://www.guardianlife.com/careers). At Guardian, we do not use AI Tools to substantially assist or replace human judgment or discretionary decision making in our hiring process. All hiring decisions will be made by Guardian colleagues. Please be aware that if you apply for a specific position with Guardian, you will have the choice of opting out of Guardian’s use of AI Tools during the job application process. If you would like to request an alternative process that does not utilize AI Tools or would like to request a reasonable accommodation, within ten business days of your position application, you must email your request to [e-mail], making sure to provide your name and job requisition identification number. Guardian will retain your applicant materials and resume and all information therefrom in accordance with Guardian’s document retention policy, a copy of which you may request via [e-mail]. Additionally, at applicable times, Guardian will make public the most recent bias audit results for such AI tools, which may be found here.

About Guardian

Every day, Guardian helps our 29 million customers realize their dreams through a range of insurance and financial products and services. Our Purpose, to inspire well‑being, guides our dedication to the colleagues, consumers, and communities we serve. We know that people count, and we go above and beyond to prepare them for the life they want to live, focusing on their overall well‑being — mind, body, and wallet. As one of the largest mutual insurance companies, we put our customers first. Behind every bright future is a GuardianTM. Learn more about Guardian at guardianlife.com.