Strategic Contract Analyst/Specialist

_{The following description is not intended as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Management retains the discretion of adding or changing the duties of the position at any time.}

Key Responsibilities:

- Draft, review, and negotiate complex customer facing commercial agreements (MSAs, purchase agreements, SOWs, amendments, and government contracts), with a focus on enabling revenue while protecting the company’s long-term interests.

- Provide expert redline review of commercial terms, benchmarking against industry standards and customer expectations to support competitive positioning.

- Lead commercial contract strategy from early pursuit through execution, including support of bids, RFPs, and strategic customer programs across public- and private-sector accounts.

- Release commercial guides by setting up pricing models, payment structures, delivery and acceptance frameworks, and risk-adjusted deal structures.

- Support development and negotiation of cost and price proposals, ensuring consistency between commercial assumptions, contractual commitments, and financial models.

- Partner cross-functionally with Sales, Finance, Legal, Engineering, and Operations to align contractual terms with program execution, cost structure, and delivery commitments.

- Evaluate contractual and commercial risks, recommend mitigation strategies, and clearly communicate trade-offs and escalation options to supervisors.

- Own commercial change management, including negotiation of change orders and amendments that protect margin and schedule as program scope evolves.

- Act as a trusted advisor to leadership and internal stakeholders on complex contractual, commercial, and customer-specific issues.

- Build and maintain effective relationships with customer contracting representatives to facilitate negotiations and advance strategic partnerships.

- Contribute to the development of commercial guidelines, negotiation frameworks, and deal-desk best practices that scale revenue growth.

Qualifications:

- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Legal Studies, Engineering, or a related field.

- 7 years of experience in commercial contracting, deal desk, contract strategy, or commercial operations within an OEM, manufacturing, infrastructure, transportation, or technology environment.

- Demonstrated experience supporting sales-side contracts and complex, non-standard deals with material revenue and risk exposure.

- Strong understanding of commercial terms impacting revenue and margin, including pricing structures, payment milestones, delivery and acceptance, warranties, liquidated damages, and liability.

- Proven ability to assess contractual and commercial risk, develop mitigation strategies, and communicate trade-offs clearly to senior leadership.

- Experience partnering cross-functionally with Sales, Finance, Legal, Engineering, and Operations to influence deal outcomes.

- Excellent negotiation, analytical, and written communication skills.

Preferred:

- Experience with government, public-sector, or regulated-industry contracts (e.g., transit agencies, state or federal customers).

- Familiarity with cost and price proposal development, RFPs, and competitive bid processes.

- Experience in EV, automotive, advanced manufacturing, or capital equipment OEMs.

- Knowledge of contract lifecycle management (CLM), ERP, or CRM systems.

- Ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, growth-oriented environment with executive-level stakeholders.

Pay Range:  $90,000-$120,000

Location:  Pasadena, CA

RIDE is an Equal Opportunity Employer that does not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition, religious creed, physical disability, mental disability, age, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Our management team is dedicated to this policy with respect to recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, transfer, training, compensation, benefits, employee activities, and general treatment during employment.