Vendor Management Specialist for Strategic Cloud

The Role

The Vendor Management Office (VMO) is currently seeking an individual who will manage our participation in the Strategic Cloud Initiative Program, which involves an expansive portfolio of contractual reviews, maintenance and subscription renewals, software purchases and renewal transactions, business-impacting decisions, with adherence to best practices and to ensure cohesive relationships with cross-functional teams.  Work assignments will include many vendor products including major IT industry vendors. 

In addition to analytical skills, primary consideration will be given to candidates with experience in:

- Multiple major Cloud platforms, their marketplace software offerings, and management of software contracts.
- Project Management, preferably with PMP/PMI certifications.

Collaborate with Strategic Transformation, Engineering, Planning and Network (STEPN) teams, the IT Transformation Program Management Office (PMO), and Procurement in Strategic Cloud Initiative Programs, supporting goals like schedule, cost, and quality. This position will ensure members prioritize work to review Lumen's software licensing contracts and relationships; keep track of license renewal billing under the Special Projects budget; manage associated risks. Align plans with business needs, aim for optimal terms, and adapt to vendor actions. The position serves as an internal consultant for VMO members, supplementing the team’s understanding of Lumen’s cloud transformation initiatives, emerging cloud offerings, and marketplace operations from Lumen’s strategic cloud partners.  Act as a project manager for vendor transactions, ensuring timely decisions. Analyze financial impacts of transactions and provide recommendations on renewals of software maintenance and subscriptions based on cost, value, and risks. Follow internal processes to measure and document team performance.

The Main Responsibilities

- Represent the SAM/VMO team on the various Transformation Workstream meetings and engage additional SVMs or SAMs (Software Asset Managers), as needed 

- Create and update tracking mechanisms for SAM/VMO related action items, costs, ownership and status to other organizations; partner with VMO management team to ensure that tracking and reporting supports program objectives. 

- Facilitate and lead discussions on behalf of the SAM/VMO Team with workstreams, procurement, Transformation PMO, FinOps, security, legal, finance, and technical teams, etc. as assigned 

- Create metrics for and prepare executive presentations on SAM/VMO Transformation activities 

- Supplement SAM/VMO capacity to review contracts and published licensing terms; understand technical roadmaps; assess software license position (entitlement vs. usage); propose contractual risk mitigations. 

What We Look For in a Candidate

- Strong analytical and project management skills: contract analysis, data analysis, financial analysis (budget and forecasts, accounting concepts, evaluation of alternatives), process analysis.  Understand necessary information; discern relevant facts for decisions. Maintain focus on details, while keeping the big picture in mind. Communicate complex concepts and actionable recommendations to leadership.  

- Ability to determine root cause of operational and financial challenges and offer options for risk-based mitigation.  

- Ability to lead and work in a team, be self-directed (requires minimal supervision to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously), creative problem solver, quality - focused; applies independent judgment to accomplish objectives. 

- Demonstrates strong and positive interpersonal talents; able to interact with and influence people from all disciplines; able to balance persuasiveness and assertiveness to build relations while meeting objectives. 

- Approaches situations with curiosity; assumes positive intent; expresses appreciation; manages mood elevators; seeks and provides feedback. 

Preferred:

- Complex software contracts and licensing for a variety of suppliers, both major industry vendors (e.g., Microsoft, Google, Oracle, AWS) and others less well known. Contractual, financial, and project management support for implementation of IT cloud strategy, including displacement of legacy software products, implementation of new cloud technologies, purchasing via marketplaces, enabling FinOps.  Representing and addressing IT’s considerations and interests (from development to infrastructure operations), while conducting vendor-related activities. Financial transactions and purchasing tools.  

- 6 – 8 years of related experience. 

Education 

- Bachelor’s degree with an emphasis in business (e.g., finance, operations, statistics, economics), MIS, Information Technology, Computer Science or comparable years of work experience. Master’s degree is a plus.

Compensation