Tech Vendor Relations Architect

Starbucks Corp.; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Tuition coverage (Starbucks College)**

401(k) with employer match

Paid vacation

Paid holidays

Educational opportunities

Job summary

Starbucks Coffee Company is seeking a technology vendor relationship manager to identify and develop relationships with multiple vendors across technology verticals. You will lead quarterly reviews, executive briefings, and vendor scorecards, while aligning vendor performance with business goals.

The role requires strong negotiation and contract management skills, plus the ability to drive continuous improvement in vendor strategies.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field.
• Technology Vendor Management – multiple tech vendors, interpersonal relationship and dispute resolution, technology market landscape, presentation, project management, contract management, negotiation and ability to conduct analysis.
• 5+ years of experience in specific field or utilizing designated skills.
• Vendor Relationship Management of multiple technology vendors.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, high commitment to quality, self-starter, problem solver and decisive.
• Proven diplomacy and problem-solving skills.
• Strong critical thinking skills, curious mindset and strategic agility.
• Ability to work in a high energy, fast paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Identify, develop and formalize relationships with multiple vendors.
• Maintain knowledge about their assigned Technology vertical to enable continued alignment with strategic technology and/or business priorities.
• Develop and lead key relationship meetings: Quarterly Business Reviews, Monthly Performance Reviews, Executive Briefings, Annual CTO Vendor Forum.
• Manage and measure performance of the overall relationship between internal technology teams and the vendor.
• Provide coaching, direction and leadership to drive proper alignment on business and operational topics.
• Assess internal technology and business satisfaction levels through the execution of a vendor scorecard.
• Set goals for the relationship, and advocates for ongoing continuous improvement.
• Lead by example, to all internal teams, a model of how to work together with the vendor.
• Facilitate and maintain relationships between managed vendors, executive sponsors, and technology teams.
• Manage escalation and arbitration of relationship and operational issues if other avenues fail.
• Launch and manage vendor ‘Get Well’ programs until performance stability is achieved.
• Guide effective communication between the organization and managed vendors.
• Partner with global counterparts to manage global vendor relationships, and support global expansion of technologies from these vendors.
• Contribute to ongoing continuous improvement of Vendor Management practices and standards.
• Influence vendor strategy based on a strong understanding of the vendor, their competitors, market trends and pricing models.
• Extract maximum value from the relationship that allows for a mutually beneficial exchange: promote optimization, innovation and relationships with the vendor’s top thought leaders.
• Participate as a key stakeholder in, evaluating and selecting via Request for Proposal (RFP) events, and contractual terms that speak to vendor performance and resiliency.
• Draw a clear line-of-sight from business objectives to vendor performance management metrics.
• Perform contract oversight and hold managed vendor’s accountable to their contractual obligations.
• Execute analysis, and provides key vendor reports and dashboards

Skills

Vendor management

Negotiation

Contract management

Project management

Dispute resolution

Presentation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in general business, economics, psychology, science, technology, engineering, or mathematics

Job description

Starbucks Coffee Company is seeking a technology vendor relationship manager to identify and develop relationships with multiple vendors across technology verticals. You will lead quarterly reviews, executive briefings, and vendor scorecards, while aligning vendor performance with business goals.

The role requires strong negotiation and contract management skills, plus the ability to drive continuous improvement in vendor strategies.