Contracts Manager – Aerospace & Manufacturing

Location: Mentor, OH – Onsite
Salary: $120,000–$122,000
Target Bonus: 12.5%
Travel: Approximately 10% domestic travel

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Contracts Manager to lead customer-facing contract activities within a complex manufacturing environment.

Based onsite in Mentor, Ohio, this position supports operations in both Mentor, OH and Moncks Corner, SC and will be heavily involved with new contract awards, New Product Introduction (NPI), contract negotiations, terms and conditions, NDAs, product agreements, and contractual risk management.

This opportunity is a strong fit for a contracts professional with experience in aerospace, defense, military or commercial programs, electronics manufacturing, or another product-based manufacturing environment.

What You'll Do

• Manage the development, negotiation, administration, and execution of customer contracts
• Serve as a key customer-facing contact for contractual matters
• Lead contract negotiations involving terms and conditions, new awards, NDAs, product-specific agreements, and related commercial agreements
• Support New Product Introduction (NPI) and new program activity
• Review contracts to identify business, financial, legal, and performance risks
• Develop recommendations and negotiation strategies for complex contractual issues
• Manage contract changes and ensure requirements are communicated across internal teams
• Partner with program management, operations, finance, leadership, customers, and suppliers
• Ensure contractual and regulatory compliance throughout contract performance
• Support applicable export compliance requirements
• Lead and mentor members of the contracts team
• Support contract-management process improvements, training, and best practices
• Travel domestically approximately 10% as needed

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration or a related field
• 7+ years of contracts management or related experience
• At least 2 years of project lead or leadership experience
• Experience managing multiple contracts of varying complexity and scope
• Contract experience within a manufacturing or product-based environment
• Strong experience with contract negotiation, contract administration, terms and conditions, and risk management
• Experience supporting new contract awards, new programs, or NPI activities
• Strong understanding of contract-management processes and contract types
• Knowledge of legal and regulatory requirements related to contracts
• Ability to identify and address high-risk contractual terms
• Understanding of contractual flow-down requirements
• Basic understanding of export compliance principles
• Strong negotiation, communication, and customer relationship skills
• Contract management certification
• Ability to work onsite in Mentor, OH
• Ability to travel domestically approximately 10%

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in aerospace or defense manufacturing
• Experience supporting military or commercial aerospace programs
• Experience within electronics manufacturing
• Advanced degree such as an MBA, MS, or JD
• Additional export compliance or program management knowledge or certification

Ideal Background

Candidates with experience as a Contracts Manager, Contract Administrator, Senior Contracts Specialist, Commercial Contracts Manager, Aerospace Contracts Manager, Defense Contracts Manager, or Manufacturing Contracts Manager may be a strong fit for this opportunity.

The ideal candidate will bring a combination of contract negotiation expertise, manufacturing industry experience, commercial judgment, customer-facing communication skills, and the ability to manage complex agreements from award through execution.