Technology Supplier & Contract Manager
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The Role
We are seeking a Technology Supplier & Contract Manager to assume responsibility for the operational management, governance, and commercial oversight of our key technology suppliers.
Reporting to the Project Portfolio Management Director within our Product & Technology organisation, you will make sure technology partners consistently meet contractual duties, service benchmarks, and business aims. You will lead the operational management of strategic suppliers once contracts are awarded, promoting supplier performance, governance, and value maximisation during the supplier lifecycle.
You will collaborate extensively with Product & Technology, Procurement, Finance, Legal, and supplier delivery teams. The goal is to develop supplier relationships, boost commercial outcomes, and uphold governance across software, SaaS, cloud, infrastructure, and managed service providers.
Key Responsibilities
Manage the day-to-day operations of strategic technology vendors and service providers.
Develop and maintain supplier governance frameworks, performance scorecards and regular service review cadences.
Build strong supplier relationships while holding vendors accountable for contractual commitments, targets and SLAs.
Drive continuous improvement through performance reviews, service improvement plans and effective blocking issue management.
Identify and mitigate supplier risks relating to operational delivery, security, compliance and financial performance.
Own the operational lifecycle of technology contracts, including onboarding, renewals, extensions, service reviews and supplier exits.
Maintain visibility of contract renewal dates, commercial obligations and termination windows.
Partner with Procurement and Legal to support contract renewals, renegotiations and new supplier engagements.
Find opportunities to optimise supplier spend, licensing models and commercial value across technology services.
Support budgeting, forecasting and financial governance for third-party technology expenditure.
Produce reporting on supplier performance, contract status, risks, renewals and financial exposure.
Establish governance forums with internal collaborators and strategic suppliers.
Assist with audit, regulatory, and third-party risk management activities.
Strengthen supplier management procedures, controls, reporting, and governance standards within Product & Technology.
Champion collaborative working, delivery excellence and continuous improvement.
Required Skills and Experience
Proven experience managing IT suppliers, vendor relationships, technology contracts or technology service management within a complex organisation.
Strong understanding of supplier relationship management (SRM) principles and post-contract supplier governance.
Experience working across enterprise technology environments, including SaaS, cloud platforms, infrastructure, software licensing, managed services and support agreements.
Strong knowledge of contract governance, SLAs, benchmarks, service credits, supplier performance frameworks and operational governance.
Ability to interpret contractual obligations and translate them into effective supplier management practices.
Commercially aware, with experience directing supplier cost management, contract renewals, and value improvement projects.
Excellent ability to manage collaborators, with the capability to build trusted relationships across Product & Technology, Procurement, Finance, Legal, Security and business teams.
Strong communication, influencing and negotiation skills, with confidence challenging suppliers constructively.
Excellent analytical and organisational skills, including experience producing governance reports, managing risks and maintaining contract documentation.
Experience identifying and mitigating supplier-related operational, financial, compliance and service risks.
Ability to manage multiple suppliers, competing priorities and complex service environments.
Experience developing governance forums and advancing supplier performance by means of formal review processes.
Desirable
Experience working within an organisation centered around digital products or services.
Knowledge of IT procurement and contract governance processes.
Experience with third-party risk oversight and technology governance frameworks.
Experience supporting commercial assessments and arguments for technology investments.
Knowledge of software licensing frameworks and vendor commercial approaches.
What's in it for You?
Our benefits differ depending on location, but we are dedicated to offering top-tier perks at every office. These include generous annual leave, medical coverage, inclusive parental leave packages, discounted gym memberships, and chances to contribute to the community. Full details of our benefits are available here: https://aboutus.ft.com/careers/benefits.
We follow a 50% hybrid working model, with employees onsite two to three days per week. This approach builds trust and supports remote adaptability. It also encourages in-person camaraderie and peer learning. We are open to flexible working pattern requests for all roles when possible.
Accessibility
We are a disability confident employer and Valuable 500 signatory.
Please inform us if you need any reasonable adjustments or personalization during the application process or to assist you in attending an interview. If you wish to talk about your needs or have any inquiries, email talent@ft.com and someone from our team will gladly assist you.
Further Information
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