Vendor Negotiation & Performance Lead

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI); Chevy Chase (MD); On-site; USD 121,000 - 151,000; Full time

Job summary

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) seeks a vendor counsel/manager who can advocate for HHMI in selecting, negotiating, and managing vendor contracts. This role sits in Finance under the Director, Procurement, and oversees enterprise SaaS, benefits providers, and IT vendors.

You will ensure compliance, enforce terms, and drive issue resolution across HHMI’s vendor ecosystem. The ideal candidate has 5–7 years in vendor management or contract administration, plus a bachelor’s degree or

Qualifications

• Five to seven years of experience in vendor management, supplier relationships, or contract administration.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience required.

Responsibilities

• Help pick the vendor. Define needs, weigh proposals, and push for favorable terms.
• Hold vendors accountable for terms, SLAs, and deliverables across Institute.
• Negotiate contract terms, renewals, and amendments with input from Legal and Procurement.
• Build and run service level agreements; document SLAs and run compliance reviews.
• Take escalation to drive performance issues, errors, and delays to resolution.
• Oversee major relationships with benefits, software, and IT vendors across HHMI.
• Lead periodic vendor performance reviews and enforce corrective actions.
• Coordinate with staff handling vendor relations to represent HHMI interests.
• Report to the executive team on vendor performance, escalations, and upcoming selections.

Skills

Vendor management

Contract administration

Negotiation

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Job description

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) seeks a vendor counsel/manager who can advocate for HHMI in selecting, negotiating, and managing vendor contracts. This role sits in Finance under the Director, Procurement, and oversees enterprise SaaS, benefits providers, and IT vendors.

You will ensure compliance, enforce terms, and drive issue resolution across HHMI’s vendor ecosystem. The ideal candidate has 5–7 years in vendor management or contract administration, plus a bachelor’s degree or