Senior Director, Contracts

Parkhurst Talent Group; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Parkhurst Talent Group has been retained by a private equity-backed utility services company headquartered in Atlanta to lead the search for a Senior Director, Contracts. This is a confidential search on behalf of our client.

The Senior Director, Contracts is the enterprise leader responsible for contract strategy, governance, and execution. This role owns the full lifecycle of proposals and contracts, including the risk screen process, and ensures clarity, compliance, and commercial strength

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Legal Studies, Communications, or related field; JD or Master’s preferred.
• 10+ years in contract administration, legal, or commercial ops with leadership.
• Proven success leading teams and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Strong expertise in proposal development, contract negotiations, and risk management.
• Ability to manage competing priorities across cross-functional teams.
• Exceptional communication and relationship-building skills.
• Familiarity with proposal or contract software is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a team of thirteen contract professionals.
• Set strategic direction for the contracts organization.
• Own the full lifecycle of proposals and contracts.
• Negotiate high-stakes deals while protecting company interests.
• Partner with Legal, Finance, Pricing, Sales, and Operations.
• Drive templates, playbooks, and standards improvements.
• Measure performance and drive continuous improvement.

Skills

Contract leadership

Team leadership

Cross-functional influence

Contract negotiations

Process improvement

Stakeholder management

Proposal development

Contract templates

Risk management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Legal Studies, Communications, or related field

JD or Master's degree preferred

Tools

CLM systems

Loopio

PandaDoc

Rohirrim

Conveyer

ContractLogix

Job description

Parkhurst Talent Group has been retained by a private equity-backed utility services company headquartered in Atlanta to lead the search for a Senior Director, Contracts. This is a confidential search on behalf of our client.

About the Opportunity

The Senior Director, Contracts is the enterprise leader responsible for contract strategy, governance, and execution. This role owns the full lifecycle of proposals and contracts, including the risk screen process, and ensures clarity, compliance, and commercial strength across every customer engagement. The Senior Director leads a team of thirteen contract professionals, partners directly with executive stakeholders, and elevates contracting and proposal development into a strategic business function.

Leadership and Team Development

• Lead, develop, and inspire a team of thirteen contract professionals, building a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Set strategic direction for the contracts organization and align team priorities with company objectives.
• Coach and mentor staff, developing future leaders and strengthening organizational capability.
• Navigate and influence senior and strong-willed stakeholders, driving productive alignment and timely decisions.

Contract and Proposal Strategy

• Own the full proposal and contract lifecycle, from initial scoping through creation, negotiation, revision, approval, and amendment.
• Ensure all contracts are explicit, unambiguous, and aligned with commercial terms, operational capabilities, strategic goals, and risk posture.
• Lead high-stakes negotiations with customers and partners, protecting the company's interests while enabling growth.
• Direct a team of contract negotiators handling standard agreements and set risk screen language for standard negotiating positions on key terms.
• Drive continuous improvement of contract templates, playbooks, and standards.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner with Legal, Finance, Pricing, Sales, and Operations to ensure contract terms support both business goals and operational reality.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to senior leadership on contract risk, commercial terms, and deal structure.
• Manage multiple complex negotiations simultaneously in a fast-paced environment, removing obstacles to timely deal execution.
• Resolve scope, legal, and commercial issues with a pragmatic, solution-oriented approach.

Process Optimization and Technology

• Identify and champion tools, systems, and best practices that improve proposal accuracy, contract velocity, and operational efficiency.
• Lead adoption and optimization of proposal and contract platforms such as CLM systems, Loopio, Responsive, PandaDoc, Rohirrim, Conveyer, and ContractLogix.
• Establish metrics and reporting to track performance, surface bottlenecks, and drive continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Legal Studies, Communications, or a related field. A JD or Master's degree is preferred.
• Ten or more years of experience in contract administration, legal, or commercial operations, including significant leadership experience.
• Proven success leading teams and influencing senior stakeholders in a dynamic, high-growth environment.
• Strong expertise in proposal development, contract negotiation, and commercial risk management.
• Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities across cross-functional teams.
• Exceptional communication, leadership, and relationship-building skills.
• Familiarity with proposal or contract software is a plus.

Location and Travel

• Based on-site in Atlanta, Georgia, five days per week.
• Approximately 20 percent travel