Learning And Development Manager

Job Title: Learning and Development Manager

Job Description

The Learning and Development Manager will lead the enterprise strategy and operations for external talent and learning vendors, ensuring that solutions deliver measurable value, align with organizational priorities, and operate within clear commercial and governance frameworks. This fully remote role focuses on vendor strategy, selection, commercial management, performance tracking, and risk oversight, while partnering closely with procurement, finance, legal, and talent and learning leaders across the business. The position is a four-month assignment providing coverage for an employee on leave, with standard weekday hours and some flexibility.

Responsibilities

• Execute the enterprise vendor strategy for talent and learning solutions, shaping recommendations and delivery plans that support organizational capability priorities.
• Establish clear principles for when to build, buy, scale, or exit vendors, and apply these principles consistently across segments and functions.
• Reduce duplication and fragmentation of learning and talent vendors across the organization to create a more coherent, efficient vendor landscape.
• Ensure all vendor choices align with enterprise standards, platforms, and capability priorities, and support long-term strategic goals.
• Lead vendor selection, onboarding, rationalization, and exit processes in partnership with Group Procurement and enterprise Talent and Learning leadership.
• Maintain a clear, enterprise-wide view of the approved vendor landscape, including strategic partners and tactical providers.
• Drive vendor consolidation where appropriate to improve value, consistency, and leverage across contracts and services.
• Ensure each vendor is positioned appropriately as a strategic partner or tactical provider, and manage relationships accordingly.
• Partner with Group Procurement on master service agreements, service level agreements, renewals, negotiations, and commercial terms, providing insight, analysis, and recommendations.
• Ensure all contracts support scalability, flexibility, data protection, and performance accountability, and reflect best commercial practices.
• Balance commercial efficiency with service quality and innovation, ensuring that cost savings do not compromise outcomes.
• Proactively manage contract renewals to avoid reactive, last-minute contracting decisions and to secure favorable terms.
• Define and track vendor performance metrics that are aligned to outcomes rather than just activity, focusing on impact and value.
• Establish clear expectations for delivery, quality, innovation, and responsiveness with all talent and learning vendors.
• Drive cost efficiency, value for money, and return on investment across the vendor portfolio, using data and analysis to inform decisions.
• Hold vendors accountable for results and continuous improvement through structured performance reviews and feedback.
• Provide leaders with clear insight into learning and talent spend, value, and risk across the enterprise.
• Create transparency around enterprise and segment-level investments, highlighting where spend is concentrated and how it performs.
• Identify cost pressures, duplication, and underperforming investments early, and recommend corrective actions or changes.
• Ensure vendor risk, including financial, operational, data, and compliance risk, is visible, monitored, and appropriately managed.
• Work closely with Talent, Learning, Shared Services Centres, and segments to align vendor usage to enterprise priorities and guardrails.
• Enable segments and business units to access high-quality partners quickly within agreed governance frameworks.
• Act as a trusted advisor to stakeholders, balancing the need for enterprise discipline with business flexibility and speed.
• Build and maintain strong partnerships with Group Procurement, enterprise Talent and Learning leaders, segment Talent and Learning leaders, Finance, Shared Services Centres, and Legal, Risk, and Compliance partners.
• Collaborate with strategic talent and learning vendors to drive innovation and continuous improvement in learning solutions.
• Bring clarity and structure to complex spend categories, helping stakeholders understand options, trade-offs, and recommendations.
  
  

Essential Skills

• At least 3 years of proven experience in procurement, vendor management, or commercial leadership, ideally within learning, talent, or professional services.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex vendor portfolios in a global organization.
• Strong commercial acumen, including experience with contracting, negotiations, and performance management.
• Proven experience working in partnership with central procurement functions.
• Commercial, analytical, and outcome-focused approach to decision-making and vendor management.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to work effectively with senior leaders and cross-functional teams.
• Ability to balance enterprise discipline with business flexibility, adapting to different stakeholder needs while maintaining standards.
• Credibility and confidence when engaging with senior leaders on strategic and commercial topics.
• Pragmatic and decisive mindset, with the ability to avoid unnecessary complexity and focus on practical solutions.
• Strong sense of commercial judgment and the ability to act as a trusted advisor.
• Ability to bring clarity and structure to complex spend areas and vendor landscapes.
  
  

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Background or exposure to learning and development, human resources, training development, or business development.
• Experience working with strategic talent and learning vendors and understanding their service offerings.
• Comfort operating within an enterprise-wide direction while helping to modernize legacy arrangements and contracts.
• Ability to interpret and apply enterprise standards, platforms, and capability priorities in vendor-related decisions.
• Strong analytical skills for assessing vendor performance, spend patterns, and return on investment.
• Ability to communicate complex commercial and risk insights in a clear and concise manner to non-specialist stakeholders.
  
  

Work Environment

This is a fully remote role with standard hours of approximately 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, with some flexibility. The position operates within a global, enterprise environment and involves frequent collaboration with procurement, talent and learning teams, finance, legal, risk, compliance, and shared services centers. Work is primarily conducted through virtual collaboration tools and standard office technology, with a strong emphasis on data analysis, contract review, and stakeholder meetings. The role focuses on professional, knowledge-based work in a structured yet flexible setting, with no specific dress code requirements beyond typical professional standards for virtual meetings.

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract position based out of Chicago, IL.

Pay And Benefits

The pay range for this position is $40.00 - $42.00/hr.

Requirements

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following:

• Medical, dental & vision
• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital
• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available
• Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)
• Short and long-term disability
• Health Spending Account (HSA)
• Transportation benefits
• Employee Assistance Program
• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)
  
  

Workplace Type

This is a fully remote position.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Apr 30, 2026.

About Aston Carter

Aston Carter provides world-class corporate talent solutions to thousands of clients across the globe. Specialized in accounting, finance, human resources, talent acquisition, procurement, supply chain and select administrative professions, we extend the capabilities of industry-leading companies. We draw on our deep recruiting expertise and expansive network to meet the evolving needs of our clients and talent community with agility and excellence. With offices across the U.S., Canada, Asia Pacific and Europe, Aston Carter serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® double diamond winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email astoncarteraccommodation@astoncarter.com for other accommodation options.