Senior Legal Contract Manager

Who we are
We’re a global, midsize CRO that pushes boundaries, innovates and invents because the path to a cure for the world’s most persistent diseases is not paved by those who play it safe. It is built by those who take pioneering, creative approaches and implement them with quality and excellence.
We are Worldwide Clinical Trials, and we are a global team of over 3,500+ experts, bright thinkers, dreamers and doers and, together, we are changing the way the world experiences CROs – in the best possible way.
Our mission is to work with passion and purpose every day to improve lives and we are looking for others who value this same pursuit.
Why Worldwide
We believe everyone plays an important role in making a world of difference for patients and their caregivers. From our hands-on, accessible leaders, to our cohesive and supportive teams, we are committed to enabling professionals from all backgrounds and experiences to succeed. We prioritize cultivating a diverse and inclusive environment that continues to promote collaboration and creativity. We are proud to be a workplace where people thrive by being themselves and are inspired to do their best work every day. Join us!
The Senior Legal Contract Manager is responsible for independently reviewing, redlining, negotiating, and managing sponsor-facing legal and commercial contracts. This role primarily supports Master Services Agreements (MSAs), including sponsor-provided templates, Confidential Disclosure Agreements (CDAs), MSA amendments, ad hoc sponsor contracts, contract notices, and related documentation. The position requires the ability to apply internal guidance documents, playbooks, approved fallback positions, and standard clauses; identify, resolve, and appropriately escalate legal, operational, financial, regulatory, and business issues; propose practical contract language; and manage contract matters from intake through execution. The role involves frequent interaction with sponsors, Finance, Business Development, Operations, Therapeutic Leaders, Legal Counsel, and senior stakeholders, including participation in and management of sponsor/client negotiation calls. The Senior Legal Contract Manager is expected to prioritize contract matters based on business urgency, deal impact, revenue considerations, and operational need while representing the company professionally in sponsor negotiations.
What you will do
Review, redline, comment on, and negotiate MSAs, including sponsor-provided templates and amendments to existing MSAs.
Review, draft, revise, and negotiate CDAs, MSA amendments, contract notices, ad hoc sponsor agreements, and other sponsor-facing contract documents.
Apply internal contract guidance documents, playbooks, approved fallback positions, and Worldwide standard clauses when reviewing and revising sponsor templates and proposed contract language.
Identify contract terms that create legal, operational, financial, regulatory, or business risk; independently resolve routine issues; and escalate material, non-standard, or higher-risk issues to Legal, Finance, Operations, Business Development, Therapeutic Leaders, senior management, and other stakeholders as appropriate.
Draft and propose alternative contract language that supports business objectives while protecting Worldwide’s legal and commercial interests.
Evaluate the commercial and operational impact of contract terms, including implications for revenue, payment terms, scope, timelines, deliverables, and operational execution.
Manage assigned contracts from intake through review, negotiation, internal approval, finalization, execution, and recordkeeping, prioritizing matters based on deal urgency, revenue impact, sponsor needs, and business priorities.
Lead and participate in sponsor/client calls to discuss contract terms, resolve open issues, explain Worldwide positions, and align on next steps while representing the company professionally and constructively.
Collaborate with and influence internal stakeholders to ensure contract terms accurately reflect the agreed scope of work, budget, payment terms, operational commitments, and sponsor requirements.
Coordinate with Legal Counsel and internal approvers to obtain guidance, approvals, and alignment on non-standard or higher-risk contract language.
Ensure negotiated changes are accurately incorporated into final agreements, amendments, exhibits, schedules, and related contract materials, and that final contract packages are complete, internally approved, and execution-ready.
Maintain accurate contract records, status updates, and reporting in Salesforce, Worldwide’s finance system, contract trackers, and other applicable systems.
Attend internal project handover, escalation, and alignment meetings as needed to support contract development, negotiation, and finalization.
Recommend improvements to templates, playbooks, workflows, escalation processes, and contracting standards to support consistency, efficiency, and quality across sponsor contracts.
The duties and responsibilities listed above are representative of the nature and level of work assigned and are not necessarily all-inclusive.
What you will bring to the role
Contract review, redlining, and negotiation of MSAs, CDAs, amendments, sponsor templates, and ad hoc sponsor agreements.
Ability to apply guidance documents, playbooks, standard clauses, and approved fallback positions with sound judgment and consistency.
Strong legal and commercial issue-spotting skills, including the ability to identify risk, assess business impact, independently resolve routine issues, and escalate appropriately.
Clear, precise drafting skills, including the ability to propose practical, balanced, and commercially reasonable contract language.
Strong stakeholder-management and influencing skills, including the ability to coordinate input, drive alignment, and resolve issues with Legal, Finance, Business Development, Operations, Therapeutic Leaders, and senior management.
Client-facing communication and negotiation skills, including the ability to lead or support sponsor/client calls, explain contract positions, and resolve open issues professionally.
Strong contract lifecycle management skills, including intake, prioritization, negotiation tracking, internal approval coordination, finalization, execution, and recordkeeping.
Commercial awareness, including an understanding of how contract terms may affect revenue, payment, scope, timelines, deliverables, and operational delivery.
Ability to manage multiple contract matters simultaneously, prioritize competing deadlines, and work independently with appropriate urgency.
Attention to detail and accuracy in incorporating negotiated changes into final agreements, amendments, exhibits, schedules, and related documents.
Professional judgment and discretion, including the ability to determine when issues require internal alignment, escalation, or Legal Counsel input.
Your experience
Bachelor’s degree in business, legal studies, contracts management, healthcare administration, life sciences, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience required; JD preferred but not required.
Minimum 5 years of experience reviewing, redlining, negotiating, and managing commercial contracts, with at least 3 years of experience in CRO, clinical research, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, life sciences, or sponsor-facing contracting preferred.
Demonstrated experience independently managing sponsor-facing contract matters, including MSAs, sponsor-provided templates, CDAs, MSA amendments, contract notices, and other commercial agreements.
Experience applying contract guidance documents, playbooks, standard clauses, and approved fallback positions with sound judgment and appropriate escalation.
Experience working directly with internal stakeholders and sponsors to resolve contract issues, support negotiations, and move contract matters to completion.
Familiarity with contract management systems, CRM platforms, Salesforce.com, Microsoft Word redlining, Excel trackers, and document-management processes preferred.
Other Requirements
Strong working knowledge of legal and commercial contracting principles.
Ability to perform at a senior individual-contributor level with limited supervision, including independent contract ownership, sound judgment, proactive issue management, and appropriate escalation.
Ability to prioritize work based on business urgency, deal impact, revenue considerations, sponsor needs, and operational timelines.
Ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders and drive alignment on practical contract positions and issue resolution.
Ability to represent the company professionally in sponsor/client negotiations.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Word redlining, Excel, and PowerPoint.
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