Senior Procurement & Vendor Management Specialist

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced Senior Procurement & Vendor Management Specialist to lead and manage the sole-source procurement process for a cloud-hosted licensing and enforcement system. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in IT procurement, supplier relationship management, contract negotiations, cloud solutions, and requirements gathering.

This role will work closely with VBOA stakeholders, VITA Cloud Solutions, the Project Management Office (PMO), and the selected vendor to ensure compliance with applicable procurement regulations, effective supplier negotiations, risk mitigation, and successful contract execution.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the end-to-end VITA sole-source procurement process for a cloud-hosted licensing and enforcement system.
• Coordinate procurement activities with VBOA stakeholders, VITA Cloud Solutions, the PMO, legal teams, and vendors.
• Prepare, review, and maintain all required procurement documentation, forms, justifications, and approval packages for sole-source procurement.
• Gather, analyze, validate, and document business, functional, technical, security, and procurement requirements.
• Evaluate vendor proposals, pricing models, service offerings, contractual terms, and proposed deliverables.
• Develop and implement supplier negotiation strategies to achieve cost-effective pricing and favorable contractual terms.
• Lead vendor negotiations covering pricing, service-level agreements (SLAs), deliverables, performance expectations, support services, and contract conditions.
• Identify and assess procurement, contractual, supplier, financial, and cloud-related risks; develop and implement mitigation plans.
• Support contract development, review, negotiation, and execution to protect customer interests and ensure alignment with business objectives.
• Ensure procurement activities align with applicable Virginia public procurement laws, policies, and VITA requirements.
• Collaborate with technical and cloud teams to address cloud-hosted solution requirements, security standards, compliance obligations, and service expectations.
• Monitor procurement milestones, deliverables, approvals, and project dependencies to ensure timely execution.
• Communicate procurement status, risks, decisions, and key milestones to stakeholders through clear and consistent reporting.
• Facilitate stakeholder meetings, vendor discussions, issue resolution, and procurement decision-making.
• Conduct post-procurement reviews, document lessons learned, support knowledge transfer, and identify opportunities for process improvement.
• Work independently while providing leadership, coordination, and accountability throughout the procurement lifecycle.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of experience in IT procurement, sourcing, and supplier management, including cloud-based solutions.
• Minimum 8 years of experience in contract management, vendor negotiations, and supplier relationship management.
• Minimum 8 years of experience in technical writing, business requirements gathering, and procurement documentation.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex procurement initiatives from requirements definition through negotiation and contract execution.
• Experience evaluating vendor proposals, pricing structures, service offerings, contractual deliverables, and commercial terms.
• Strong knowledge of procurement lifecycle management, contract administration, supplier performance, and risk assessment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, stakeholder management, analytical, and negotiation skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, work independently, and coordinate cross-functional teams.

Desired Qualifications

• Knowledge of Virginia public procurement laws, regulations, policies, and sole-source procurement procedures.
• Familiarity with Virginia Information Technologies Agency (VITA) procurement processes and cloud services.
• Knowledge of VITA cloud-hosted security protocols, standards, policies, and compliance requirements.
• Experience working with state government agencies or public-sector procurement organizations.
• Understanding of cloud service agreements, service-level agreements (SLAs), data protection requirements, and vendor risk management.
• Experience supporting government IT contracts, procurement approvals, and vendor performance management.