Sr. Manager, Government Contracts & Compliance Counsel

Ansys; Exton (PA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Ansys Government Initiatives, LLC (AGI) seeks a Sr. Manager, Government Contracts & Compliance Counsel to lead U.S. government contracting, compliance, and complex aerospace/defense programs.

This role reports to AGI General Counsel and collaborates with the Contracts team to guide proposals, execution, disputes, and closeout. You will provide practical legal guidance across the full program lifecycle—from capture and proposal development through contract formation, performance, and

Qualifications

• U.S. citizenship and eligibility to obtain/maintain a security clearance.
• JD from an accredited U.S. law school; bar admission.
• Active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar.
• 7+ years of total experience in government contracting or related practice.
• Demonstrated expertise with FAR/DFARS and federal contracting compliance.
• Ability to independently own matters and manage competing priorities.
• Ability to collaborate across technical, operational, and leadership teams.
• Willingness to travel as needed.

Responsibilities

• Advise on contract interpretation, performance obligations, schedule and cost issues, changes, claims, and dispute-avoidance strategies.
• Draft, review, and negotiate U.S. government contracts, FAR/DFARS-based agreements, and related docs.
• Review subcontracts, teaming agreements, SLAs, NDAs, and other agreements for the department.
• Provide guidance on clause applicability, data rights, IP allocation, warranty, risk, and remedies.
• Support Business Development, Program Management, Supply Chain, and Finance during pursuits and negotiations.
• Counsel on procurement integrity, cost accounting, audits, and cybersecurity compliance (including CUI).
• Lead internal investigations, mandatory disclosures, and regulatory compliance efforts.

Skills

FAR/DFARS

Contract negotiation

Compliance risk mgmt

Cross-functional collaboration

Travel willing

Security clearance eligible

Education

J.D. from US law school

State bar admission

Job description

We Are

Synopsys is the leader in engineering solutions from silicon to systems, enabling customers to rapidly innovate AI-powered products. We deliver industry-leading silicon design, IP, simulation and analysis solutions, and design services. We partner closely with our customers across a wide range of industries to maximize their R&D capability and productivity, powering innovation today that ignites the ingenuity of tomorrow.

The Ansys Government Initiatives, LLC (AGI) Sr. Manager, Government Contracts & Compliance Counsel will report to the AGI General Counsel with dotted line reporting to the AGI Sr. Director, Contracts, and serve as a subject-matter expert across U.S. government contracting, compliance, and complex aerospace and defense programs. This high-impact role provides strategic, practical legal guidance across the full program lifecycle-from capture and proposal development through contract formation, execution, disputes, and closeout.

What You'll Be Doing

Government Contracts & Negotiation

• Advise on contract interpretation, performance obligations, schedule and cost issues, changes, claims, and dispute-avoidance strategies.
• Draft, review, and negotiate U.S. government contracts, FAR/DFARS-based agreements, DFAR Supplement agreements, software licensing agreements, commercial contracts, and international customer agreements.
• Review, draft, and negotiate subcontracts, teaming agreements, SLAs, NDAs, and other agreements as needed by the Contracts department.
• Provide guidance on clause applicability, flow-down requirements, data-rights regimes, intellectual property allocation, warranty, risk, and remedies.
• Support Business Development, Program Management, Supply Chain, and Finance during pursuits, proposals, negotiations, and execution stages.

Compliance, Regulatory, and Risk Management

• Advise on FAR, DFARS, DFAR Supplement, procurement integrity, cost accounting, audits, cybersecurity (including government and CUI requirements), and other compliance topics.
• Counsel stakeholders on contract administration, flow-down management, OCI issues, IP/data rights, and regulatory compliance obligations.
• Partner with AGI Security and Export Compliance on matters involving classified information, CUI, export controls (ITAR/EAR), cybersecurity, and cross-border program activities.
• Support government inquiries, audits, business-system reviews, internal investigations, mandatory-disclosure analyses, and disputes.
• Develop scalable compliance processes, templates, policies, and training to support growing government-contracting operations.

Minimum Qualifications

• U.S. citizenship and eligibility to obtain/maintain a security clearance.
• JD from an accredited U.S. law school.
• Active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar.
• 7+ years of total experience in government contracting; in-house, law firm, or government legal practice; or a mixed setting.
• Demonstrated expertise with FAR/DFARS, government procurement principles, and federal contracting compliance.
• Experience reviewing, drafting, and negotiating complex prime contracts and subcontracts.
• Ability to independently own matters, exercise strong business judgment, and manage competing priorities.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across technical, operational, and leadership teams.
• Willingness to travel as needed.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting aerospace, defense, or advanced-technology programs in both contracts and legal counsel roles.
• Experience supporting aerospace and defense, or advanced-technology programs in a Proxy environment with DCSA.
• Experience with commercial and government prime contracts, subcontracts, and program execution.
• Knowledge of government IP and data rights, including software and technical-data licenses.
• Experience with export controls, cybersecurity requirements, CUI, or international transactions.
• Experience with internal investigations, government audits, ethics and compliance, or contract disputes.
• Familiarity with classified or export-controlled programs.
• A builder mindset for designing and improving legal, contracts, and compliance infrastructure in a growth environ.