Program Manager – Contract Lifecycle Management Implementation

Eliassen Group; United States; On-site; USD 103,320 - 117,096; Full time

Job summary

Eliassen Group is seeking a Program Manager to lead a Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) implementation. The role demands expertise in managing program lifecycles across legal, finance, and technology domains, ensuring effective communication with stakeholders and driving process optimization.

Candidates should have over 10 years of experience in program management, with a strong background in CLM systems and vendor management. This position involves working across multiple teams to achieve program goals and enhance contract efficiency, visibility, compliance, and automation.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of program or project management experience in enterprise technology or business transformation.
• Proven experience in leading CLM implementations.
• Strong understanding of contract lifecycle processes.
• Experience managing external vendors in regulated environments.

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end CLM program lifecycle.
• Define and manage program milestones and deliverables.
• Drive execution across teams for on-time delivery.
• Facilitate executive-level discussions.
• Maintain detailed program plans and status reporting.

Skills

Program management

Stakeholder management

Process optimization

Communication

Risk management

Education

PMP, PgMP, or SAFe certification

Tools

CLM platforms (Ironclad, Apttus, Conga, Intelligree, DocuSign)

Job description

Our client is seeking a Program Manager to lead a Contract Lifecycle Management implementation within a broader Finance and Legal transformation. The role will own strategy, roadmap, and delivery across legal, finance, and technology stakeholders while managing risks, vendors, and change. The manager will drive process design, configuration guidance, and adoption to improve contract efficiency, visibility, compliance and automation. This program leader will ensure alignment with the digital transformation ecosystem and deliver measurable outcomes.

Rate: $75.00 to $85.00/hr. w2

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end CLM program lifecycle from discovery and assessment through design, implementation, and stabilization.
• Define and manage program milestones, deliverables, success criteria, and acceptance standards in alignment with governance models.
• Drive execution across Legal, Finance, Sales Operations, Procurement, IT, and external vendors to ensure alignment and on-time delivery.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders by translating business objectives into executable CLM outcomes.
• Facilitate executive-level discussions on trade-offs, prioritization, scope, and risk mitigation.
• Maintain detailed program plans, integrated schedules, RAID logs, and dependency tracking.
• Lead working sessions, design reviews, requirement workshops, and roadmap checkpoints.
• Oversee vendor and partner execution, including RFP support, implementation readiness, and delivery quality.
• Provide accurate status reporting with visibility into progress, risks, and mitigation strategies.
• Define contract use cases, workflows, and governance models with Legal, Finance, and Operations.
• Guide configuration and implementation decisions to align with business requirements, scalability, and automation goals.
• Identify and promote process optimization, automation, and AI-enabled enhancements across the CLM lifecycle.
• Drive organizational readiness through communications, change impact assessments, and adoption planning.
• Coordinate testing, cutover planning, and post-go-live stabilization for a successful rollout.
• Support training, documentation, and long-term operational handoff.

Experience Requirements

• 10+ years of program or project management experience within enterprise technology or business transformation initiatives.
• Proven experience leading CLM implementations or Legal/Finance systems in complex, matrixed organizations.
• Strong understanding of contract lifecycle processes including intake, authoring, approvals, execution, amendments, renewals, and reporting.
• Ability to operate strategically and tactically, from executive-level communication to detailed delivery management.
• Experience managing external vendors and system integrators in regulated or highly governed environments.
• Exceptional communication, facilitation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience with CLM platforms such as Ironclad, Apttus, Conga, Intelligree, or DocuSign (preferred).
• Background in Finance Digital Transformation, Legal Operations, or Legal Tech (preferred).
• Familiarity with large-scale SaaS implementations or similar governance models (preferred).

Education Requirements

• PMP, PgMP, or SAFe certification (preferred).