Sr. Director, Vendor & Relationship Management

The role

The Sr. Director, Vendor & Relationship Management provides strategic and operational leadership for vendor governance, sourcing strategy, and relationship management. This person will define sourcing strategies and ensure CROs and clinical vendors meet performance, quality, and cost targets.

What you will do

• Define and implement sourcing strategies and operating models for clinical trial execution.
• Assess portfolio resource demand and sourcing options.
• Lead the vendor governance model across the clinical portfolio.
• Oversee Joint Operations Committees and Executive Steering Committees.
• Serve as senior point of contact for strategic vendor issues and escalations.
• Develop vendor segmentation and oversight models.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards.
• Own vendor accountability for performance, quality, and cost targets.
• Develop vendor performance scorecards and dashboards.
• Identify and onboard new vendors.

Required qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, life sciences, healthcare administration, or a related field
• Minimum of 12 years of relevant experience in vendor management, operational leadership, procurement, or related roles within the biopharmaceutical industry
• Experience overseeing CROs and other clinical vendors
• Proven track record of building and managing relationships with external partners and vendors
• Strong negotiation and honest-brokering skills
• Experience defining and implementing sourcing strategies and operating models
• Experience building and leading vendor governance frameworks, performance scorecards, and relationship management programs in a biotechnology or pharmaceutical environment
• Knowledge of regulatory requirements and industry standards related to vendor management and outsourcing in the pharmaceutical industry
• Thorough understanding of the drug development process
• Experience managing vendor relationships across the clinical trial lifecycle
• Experience supporting global clinical trials and cross-functional development teams
• Late-stage clinical development experience is required

Nice to have

• Advanced degree such as MBA or MS
• Advanced degree with 10+ years of relevant experience may be considered
• Strategic partnership or alliance management experience preferred

About the company

Kardigan is a heart health company working to make cardiovascular disease preventable, curable and no longer the leading cause of death in the world. The company is building a development model grounded in deep cardiovascular expertise, data, technology, and operational excellence.