What are the responsibilities and job description for the Director of Vendor Management position at Optomi?
Director of Vendor Management
Optomi, in partnership with a leading organization, is seeking a Director of Vendor Management to build and lead a newly established vendor management function within the IT organization. This is a high-impact leadership opportunity for someone who thrives in greenfield environments and enjoys creating structure, governance, and measurable value from the ground up.
The ideal candidate will bring strong expertise in vendor strategy, spend optimization, sourcing, contract negotiations, and stakeholder management. This leader will help centralize and mature vendor operations, driving better discipline, efficiency, and accountability across third-party partnerships.
Location: Hybrid in Charlotte, NC (2–3 days onsite weekly)
Type: Permanent, Full-Time
Required Qualifications
- 8 years of experience in vendor management, sourcing, procurement, or related leadership roles
- Proven success building vendor management programs or functions from the ground up
- Strong understanding of vendor spend analysis, rate cards, contracts, and commercial terms
- Experience leading vendor consolidation and strategic sourcing initiatives
- Strong financial acumen and data-driven decision-making ability
- Excellent negotiation, communication, and stakeholder management skills
- Experience implementing governance frameworks and standardized operating models
- Ability to operate independently with high ownership and accountability
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience managing labor, time & materials, and headcount-based vendors
- Background in insurance, financial services, or other regulated industries
- Experience with vendor management systems or tools (ex: Vendly)
- Workday experience
- Advanced reporting/dashboard expertise
Key Responsibilities
- Establish and lead a centralized vendor management office supporting IT operations
- Develop governance frameworks, policies, standards, and vendor management best practices
- Analyze vendor spend, rate cards, contracts, and resource utilization to identify optimization opportunities
- Drive strategic sourcing and vendor consolidation initiatives
- Lead contract structuring, negotiations, renewals, and vendor performance management
- Build KPI dashboards, scorecards, reporting, and metrics tied to vendor outcomes
- Partner closely with Procurement, Finance, Legal, HR, and Technology leadership
- Deliver recommendations backed by data, financial analysis, and business impact
- Manage escalations, accountability discussions, and difficult vendor conversations professionally and effectively
- Influence stakeholders and drive organizational change in a matrixed environment