Senior Site Contracts Lead

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Senior Site Contracts Lead based in India.

As a Senior Site Contracts Lead, you will oversee and drive the contracting lifecycle for clinical trials, ensuring agreements are negotiated, executed, and managed efficiently. You will play a critical role in supporting trial timelines, budgets, quality, and compliance while partnering with global stakeholders. The position combines contract strategy, project leadership, negotiation, risk management, and operational oversight. You will guide project-specific contracting teams and help establish scalable processes and best practices. Success in this role requires strong judgment, diplomacy, and the ability to navigate complex contractual and budgetary considerations. You will work in a collaborative, multicultural, and highly distributed environment with opportunities to influence clinical research delivery at scale.

Accountabilities:

• Lead and oversee the end-to-end site contracting process for clinical trials, ensuring contracts are negotiated and executed efficiently and within agreed timelines.
• Monitor and report key site contracting metrics, including cycle times, contract aging, quality, compliance, and overall performance throughout the trial lifecycle.
• Develop project setup documentation, including Clinical Trial Agreement templates, fallback language, site contract plans, and other contracting materials.
• Advise on investigator grant budgets and contracting parameters in collaboration with global grant strategy and investigator payment teams.
• Ensure contractual terms and conditions are clear, appropriate, and aligned with project objectives, timelines, and applicable requirements.
• Participate in project kick-off meetings and provide guidance on effective contracting strategies, negotiation approaches, and risk mitigation tactics.
• Provide leadership, guidance, and project-specific training to Site Contracts team members while supporting resource planning and performance.
• Establish and implement best practices, processes, procedures, and tools to improve site contract management and operational efficiency.
• Monitor site contracting budgets, ensuring costs are accurately tracked, managed, forecasted, and communicated to relevant stakeholders.
• Identify and mitigate risks related to contracting timelines, costs, quality, strategy, and execution, collaborating with stakeholders to resolve issues promptly.
• Maintain clear and proactive communication with sponsors, internal teams, vendors, collaborative CROs, investigators, and other stakeholders involved in the contracting process.
• Build strong relationships across internal and external teams to facilitate alignment and accelerate contract execution.
• Support cross-functional groups including study start-up, global clinical operations, investigator payments, business development, and feasibility teams.
• Provide regular status updates, reports, and insights to clients, senior leadership, and other stakeholders.
• Maintain accurate and complete contracting data and documentation while supporting compliance and audit readiness.
• Support project leadership with forecasting of Site Contracts team hours, resource requirements, and budget needs throughout the trial lifecycle.
• Contribute to shared knowledge initiatives, issue resolution, and the continuous improvement of contracting operations.

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in site contracting, clinical research, or a closely related field within the Contract Research Organization (CRO) industry.
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline such as law, economics, business, social sciences, or equivalent industry experience and training.
• Strong understanding of site contracting processes, clinical trial agreements, contract language, budgets, and relevant legal and regulatory frameworks.
• Demonstrated experience negotiating and managing complex clinical research contracts and resolving contractual issues independently.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret contractual language, evaluate budgets, identify risks, and develop practical solutions.
• Proven leadership and influencing skills, with the ability to motivate individuals, coordinate teams, and align internal and external resources toward shared objectives.
• Excellent written, verbal, interpersonal, and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders at different levels.
• Strong project management capabilities, including the ability to manage multiple priorities and projects simultaneously while maintaining attention to detail.
• Ability to work effectively in a virtual, multicultural, and globally distributed environment across multiple time zones.
• Strong decision-making skills and the ability to remain composed, professional, and solution-oriented under pressure.
• Demonstrated ability to understand desired outcomes quickly, take ownership, and execute effectively with limited supervision.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Familiarity with eTMF platforms, contract management systems, and other technologies used to support site contracting operations.
• Strong relationship-building, negotiation, diplomacy, and stakeholder management skills.
• A continuous-improvement mindset with the ability to demonstrate thought leadership and identify innovative approaches to contracting operations.

Benefits

• Opportunity to contribute to clinical research programs that support the development of therapies and improved patient outcomes.
• Remote working opportunity based in India.
• Exposure to global clinical trials and collaboration with multicultural teams across different regions and time zones.
• Opportunity to work closely with sponsors, clinical operations, legal, financial, and other cross-functional stakeholders.
• Leadership and development opportunities within a global clinical research environment.
• Exposure to complex international site contracting strategies, negotiations, and clinical trial operations.
• Opportunity to contribute to process improvements, operational best practices, and strategic contracting initiatives.
• Collaborative environment focused on professional growth, innovation, and meaningful impact.

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