Contract Specialist III

Strong candidates should be able to demonstrate hands-on experience with all of the following: Complex IT software contract negotiation and redlining Software and cloud agreements Licensing and renewals Due diligence and contractual issue spotting RFP/RFI management Independent ownership of contracts from initiation through execution. The strongest candidates will be able to speak specifically about contracts they personally negotiated and redlined, the types of IT/software agreements they handled, the contractual or commercial issues they identified, and how they drove agreements through execution.

Job Title: Contract Specialist III IT Software Contracts
Location: Bartlesville, OK 74003 / Houston, TX 77042 - 100% onsite
Duration: 12 months contract with potential for extension

Position Overview:
We are seeking an experienced Contract Specialist III to support Information Technology software contracting and procurement activities.
This is a hands-on role for an experienced IT software contract negotiator who can independently manage complex agreements throughout the contract lifecycle.
The successful candidate will have extensive experience reviewing, redlining, and negotiating software, SaaS, cloud, licensing, and other technology-related agreements.
This position requires strong negotiation, organizational, and stakeholder-management skills, along with the ability to independently manage multiple contracts and priorities.

Responsibilities:
Lead IT software agreements through the full contract lifecycle, including requirements gathering, contract review, redlining, negotiation, execution, renewals, and post-execution activities.
Review and negotiate a variety of technology agreements, including:
Master Agreements
Software and cloud agreements
Statements of Work (SOWs)
Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
Proof of Concept (POC) agreements
Renewals and licensing agreements
Perform contract due diligence, issue spotting, confidentiality reviews, and license validation.
Partner with Legal, Data Privacy, Cybersecurity, Finance, IT, and Software Asset Management stakeholders to address business requirements, licensing considerations, compliance requirements, usage needs, and commercial terms.
Lead and manage RFP and RFI activities.
Independently manage assigned software contracts while maintaining strong stakeholder engagement.
Identify and mitigate procurement and contractual risks while seeking opportunities to reduce total cost of ownership and maintain business value.
Support invoice and contract-related issue resolution.
Maintain accurate contract documentation in accordance with applicable document retention requirements.
Collaborate with Legal and other stakeholders to ensure contractual and compliance requirements are addressed.

Required Qualifications:
Bachelor s degree.
Minimum of 8 years of experience negotiating and redlining IT software contracts, including Master Agreements, SOWs, NDAs, POCs, and similar technology agreements.
Significant hands-on experience leading complex contract negotiations.
Strong knowledge of software licensing and technology contracting.
Ability to independently manage multiple contracts, renewals, RFPs/RFIs, and competing priorities.
Excellent organizational and analytical skills.
Strong written, verbal, interpersonal, and negotiation skills.
Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders and influence critical commercial and contractual decisions.

Preferred Qualifications:
Procurement experience within the energy industry.
Experience with SAP and Icertis.
Advanced understanding of IT software purchasing channels, including OEMs and resellers.
Experience negotiating software, SaaS, cloud, licensing, and other technology agreements.

Ideal Candidate:
The ideal candidate is an experienced IT software contract negotiator who is comfortable taking direct ownership of complex agreements.
This role is especially well suited for someone who enjoys hands-on contract negotiation, redlining, problem solving, and managing agreements from initiation through execution.
Candidates with primarily contract administration or coordination experience, without significant hands-on IT software negotiation and redlining experience, may not be the best fit for this position.

In Take Notes:
Candidates who are experienced contract negotiators, not candidates whose backgrounds are primarily focused on contract administration.
Strong candidates should be able to demonstrate hands-on experience with all of the following: Complex IT software contract negotiation and redlining Software and cloud agreements Licensing and renewals Due diligence and contractual issue spotting RFP/RFI management Independent ownership of contracts from initiation through execution.
This position requires someone who can own the work directly, rather than primarily coordinate work performed by other teams.

What Will Differentiate a Strong Candidate?
The strongest candidates will be able to speak specifically about contracts they personally negotiated and redlined, the types of IT/software agreements they handled, the contractual or commercial issues they identified, and how they drove agreements through execution.