IT Cost & Vendor Management Manager

Job Summary: Reporting to the Director of IT Operations, the role is being established to help manage the cost and budget of Technology and Innovation. The role provides operational support for supplier relationships, contract administration, and cost monitoring to ensure compliance, efficiency, and value for money. This role assists in maintaining accurate supplier and contract records, tracking performance against agreed terms, and supporting cost analysis activities. Working under guidance, the analyst contributes to supplier onboarding, contract lifecycle management, and routine financial reporting, helping the organization achieve its procurement and cost-control objectives. He or she owns and must understand contractual, commercial, and operational working relationships with vendors to ensure that contractual commitments are delivered across IT.

Your Responsibilities as an IT Cost & Vendor Management Manager:

Responsibility includes the alignment of Apex's supplier performance objectives and activities with sourcing strategies and plans, balancing costs, efficiencies and service quality. The establishment of working relationships based on collaboration, trust, and open communication in order to encourage co-innovation and service improvement with suppliers. The proactive engagement of suppliers is for mutual benefit to resolve operational incidents, problems, poor performance and other sources of conflict. The use of clear escalation paths for discussing and resolving issues.

Strategy & Planning

• Supports the organization with the management of the budgets for Technology and Innovation.
• Creates an environment in which the organization and its suppliers collaborate to their mutual benefit, ensuring positive and effective working relationships are developed and maintained across the supply chain. Participating in or in some cases leading the supplier performance reviews.
• Ensures that resources and tools are in place to conduct benchmarking. Reviews supplier analysis and assesses effectiveness across the supply chain.
• Follows procurement strategies, standards, methods, processes, and good practices that ensure compliance with legislation, regulation, and third-party information security.
• Work with peers to ensure alignment and delivery, specifically focused on the leaders for Applications, Infrastructure, Service Management, Program Management, and Cybersecurity.

Operational Management

• Tracking costs against budget to ensure the efficient use of resources.
• Ensure that orders or contracts are placed in a timely manner to support smooth delivery of services.
• Help track compliance by ensuring that Apex Companies, LLC, is appropriately licensed for all software and services used.
• Understand licensing implications for renewal, growth projections, and M&A activities.
• Work with the Technology Business Partners to capture, understand, and assess the business requirements for technology services, solutions, and licensing.
• Collect and collate data to support collaboration and help negotiate terms and conditions to reflect the scale of requirements and encourage good performance.
• Evaluate proposals based on specification and evaluation criteria, prepare acceptance documentation, and advise on contracts and service level agreements.
• Actively supports and engages with experts and stakeholders to ensure continuous improvements are identified through review and benchmarking processes.
• Analyze and process invoices to process with accounts payable.

Knowledge & Experience

• Strong understanding of terms and conditions used in the contracting of technology services and licensing.
• Excellent understanding of the organization's goals and objectives.
• Able to determine contractual and financial exposure and assist in negotiating contracts.
• Able to participate in the development of the asset management mission, goals, and objectives.
• Knowledge of contracting trends, licensing models, traditional and emerging contract and vendor performance models.

Personal Attributes

• Exceptional financial acumen, with a keen attention to detail. Borderline OCD is a plus!
• Strong commercial awareness in a technical environment.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Ability to conduct and direct research into IT issues and products as required.
• Ability to present ideas in business-friendly and user-friendly language.
• Proven experience developing business cases and departmental budgets.
• Good business judgment. Able to distinguish what is required versus what is "nice to have."
• Highly self-motivated and self-directed.
• Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a dynamic environment.
• Experience working in a team-oriented, collaborative environment.
  
  

What we're looking for:

• Bachelor's Degree and 4-6 years of relevant experience.
• Experience performing GL accounting and financial reporting
• Highly organized and strong attention to detail-Independent thinker/self-motivated
• High degree of professionalism.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Proficient with MS Office/Excel (PowerPoint is a plus)
• Familiarity with one or more accounting operating systems. Deltek Vision experience is highly desired.

Formal Education & Certification

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, Finance, Supply Chain Management, or related field, or equivalent experience.
• Professional certifications (e.g., CIPS Level 2-3, PMP fundamentals) are a plus!

Why you'll love working for us:

• Company-subsidized medical and dental.
• Company-paid life, short, and long-term disability.
• 401k match, tuition assistance, and more.
• Cross-training and the ability to work on a variety of projects.
• Performance-based bonuses or other incentives.
• Working with the best and brightest in the industry.
• 1,800+ employee national firm with 50+ locations across the US.

Apex Title: IT Cost & Vendor Management Manager

Req ID: 10951