Senior Legal & Contracts Manager

Job description

**Wanna join the adventure?** The Senior Contracts Manager will lead and manage all contractual activities at Orbitworks, with a focus on complex, high-value procurements and customer agreements. This role will serve as the primary owner of contract strategy across the business, defining commercial standards, templates, negotiation frameworks, and risk positions for both suppliers and customers. This position requires strong contractual expertise, commercial judgment, and the ability to operate in a technically driven environment within the space industry. About This Role: **Contract Lifecycle Management** ● Own the full lifecycle of contracts, including drafting, negotiation, execution, and amendments ● Develop and standardize contract templates, playbooks, and baseline commercial positions ● Ensure alignment with company objectives, compliance requirements, and risk tolerance **Supplier & Procurement Contracts** ● Lead negotiations for complex, high-value procurements (e.g., satellite buses, subsystems, payloads, launch services, ground station services) ● Partner with Engineering to ensure technical scope and specifications are clearly defined ● Work closely with Supply Chain and Program teams to align contract terms with schedule, cost, and risk objectives **Customer Contracts** ● Structure and negotiate customer agreements for hardware and services ● Support Sales and leadership in shaping commercially sound deal structures ● Ensure customer contracts protect company IP, liability positions, and delivery risk **Risk & Commercial Strategy** ● Identify contractual risks and define mitigation strategies ● Manage liability allocation, warranties, termination clauses, export control considerations, and flow-down requirements ● Develop negotiation frameworks that support long-term scalability **Cross-Functional Collaboration** ● Partner with Finance, Engineering, Legal, Supply Chain, and Program Management ● Translate contractual terms into operationally enforceable outcomes ● Ensure contract obligations are clearly understood across teams **Market & Industry Awareness** ● Stay informed on industry trends, regulatory requirements, and evolving space market dynamics ● Provide commercial insights and recommendations to leadership ### Must Haves: - 10+ years of experience in contract management within the space industry or similarly complex, technical industries - Proven experience negotiating large, custom, multi-million dollar procurements and customer contracts - Strong understanding of satellite systems or related space technologies - Demonstrated ability to collaborate with engineering teams on technical scope - Solid working knowledge of contract law principles - Experience working with international suppliers and customers (U.S. and Europe preferred) - Experience negotiating with large organizations - Strong communication and negotiation skills ### Nice to Haves: - Experience in space, aerospace, or deep-tech industries - Background supporting Supply Chain in complex procurement environments - Experience in start-up or scaling environments - Strong commercial judgment - Comfortable navigating ambiguity in a growing company - Confident negotiator able to balance risk and speed