Site Contracts Manager II (Sponsor-Dedicated/ Remote - US only)
Syneos Health
This listing was originally posted on Syneos Health's careers page. Formulate is an equal opportunity job aggregator and is not involved in the hiring process. Where salary information is estimated, it is derived from BLS industry benchmarks and may differ from actual compensation.
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Upgrade to Pro — $25/moSyneos Health® is a leading fully-integrated life sciences services organization built to accelerate customer success. We partner with innovators at every point across the drug development and commercialization continuum, helping them navigate complexity, anticipate change and accelerate progress.
Our Clinical Solutions team members act with a drug development mindset, applying their years of experience and deep expertise to truly understand customer needs and represent those in the solutions we shape.
Whether you join us in a Functional Service Provider partnership or a Full-Service environment, you’ll collaborate with passionate problem solvers, innovating as a team to help our customers achieve their goals. We are agile and driven to deliver – for one another, our customers, and, most importantly, for those in need.
Discover what your 25,000 future colleagues already know:
Why Syneos Health
• We are passionate about developing our people, through career development and progression; supportive and engaged line management; technical and therapeutic area training; peer recognition and total rewards program.
• We are committed to building an inclusive culture – where you can authentically be yourself. Central to this is our purpose – Driven to Deliver – which captures the passion of our colleagues to show up each day and shape solutions that have the ability to dramatically impact someone’s life.
• We are continuously building the company we all want to work for and our customers want to work with. Why? Because we know that when we bring together smart colleagues from across the world, we can shape the future of healthcare, driving impact for customers and defining the pace of patient progress.
Job Responsibilities
Remote – United States
Are you a clinical contracts professional who thrives on negotiation, stakeholder collaboration, and delivering results in a fast-paced environment? Do you enjoy partnering directly with investigative sites and major academic institutions to develop creative contract and budget solutions that accelerate study startup timelines?
We are seeking a Site Contracts Manager II to support a Sponsor-Dedicated program focused on Pharma and Vaccine clinical trials. This role serves as a key partner in the development, negotiation, and management of site budgets and Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs), ensuring contracts are executed efficiently while minimizing legal, operational, and financial risk.
This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced site contracts professional who enjoys balancing contract strategy, budget negotiations, relationship management, and operational execution across multiple therapeutic areas, including oncology.
As a Site Contracts Manager II, you will serve as a subject matter expert for site budgets and contracts, partnering with investigative sites, academic institutions, sponsors, and cross-functional stakeholders to ensure timely execution of agreements that support clinical trial startup and study conduct.
Site Budget Development & Negotiation
Develop, review, and negotiate site budgets from sponsor-approved templates.
Lead end-to-end budget negotiations directly with investigative sites and study teams.
Evaluate proposed budgets for alignment with sponsor expectations and Fair Market Value (FMV) principles.
Support budget strategy discussions and provide recommendations to internal stakeholders.
Manage budget-related escalations and facilitate resolution of negotiation challenges.
Perform budget due diligence activities when sites do not proceed with the initial offer.
Site Contract Development & Negotiation
Draft, review, negotiate, and finalize Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs) and associated contract documents.
Lead negotiations directly with large academic institutions, academic medical centers, and investigative sites.
Develop detailed contract specifications that support business objectives while minimizing legal, operational, and financial risk.
Review proposed contract language and determine when legal or business escalations are required.
Secure necessary approvals for contract language or budget escalations.
Support timely contract execution while ensuring compliance with sponsor requirements.
Project Leadership & Study Delivery
Independently manage multiple contracting projects simultaneously across various therapeutic areas.
Prioritize workload and drive deliverables to meet study startup timelines and business objectives.
Partner with Clinical Operations, Legal, Finance, and Study Start-Up teams throughout the contracting lifecycle.
Identify and proactively escalate risks, delays, and issues that may impact contract execution timelines.
Support studies involving complex startup activities and key milestones, including Site Initiation Visits (SIVs).
Compliance & Risk Management
Conduct due diligence reviews, including FMV assessments and site justification evaluations.
Ensure compliance with sponsor SOPs, policies, work instructions, and applicable regulations.
Maintain current knowledge of ICH-GCP guidelines, industry regulations, sponsor processes, and emerging technologies.
Apply sound risk assessment principles during contract review and negotiation activities.
Systems, Reporting & Operational Excellence
Maintain accurate and timely updates within contract management systems, databases, and departmental trackers.
Utilize Excel and clinical trial management tools to manage workflow, reporting, and study metrics.
Ensure documentation remains complete, accurate, and audit-ready.
Participate in process improvement initiatives designed to enhance efficiency, productivity, and overall quality.
Contribute ideas and solutions that simplify contracting workflows and reduce operational waste.
Collaboration & Team Support
Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
Demonstrate excellent written and verbal communication skills while incorporating feedback into deliverables.
Support training, onboarding, and mentoring activities as needed.
Foster a culture of trust, transparency, accountability, and collaboration.
Lead and support special projects, initiatives, and ad hoc requests as assigned.
Required Qualifications
Minimum of 2 years of direct experience negotiating clinical trial budgets and contracts.
Direct experience negotiating with large academic institutions, academic medical centers, and investigative sites
Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
Minimum of 2 years of experience in a fast-paced, high-volume clinical research, pharmaceutical, CRO, or investigative site environment.
Experience developing and negotiating Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs) and site budgets.
Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities, lead projects, and deliver results within challenging timelines.
Strong understanding of:
Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs)
Site budget development and negotiation
Fair Market Value (FMV) principles
Clinical trial startup processes
Clinical study protocols and timelines
Site-related milestones, including SIV readiness
ICH-GCP guidelines and clinical research regulations
Strong negotiation, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel and clinical trial management systems.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience in the oncology therapeutic area.
Experience supporting Pharma and/or Vaccine studies.
Experience working within a pharmaceutical company, CRO, or investigative site setting.
Experience supporting studies across multiple therapeutic areas.
Strong project management and cross-functional leadership skills.
Experience leveraging AI tools within the clinical contracting and budgeting environment.
Experience supporting process improvement and operational excellence initiatives.
Support a dedicated pharmaceutical sponsor partnership.
Lead complex contract and budget negotiations with major academic institutions and research sites.
Manage high-visibility clinical trial startup activities across diverse therapeutic areas.
Collaborate with Clinical Operations, Legal, Finance, and Study Start-Up stakeholders.
Develop expertise across Pharma and Vaccine clinical development programs.
Enjoy the flexibility of a fully remote, US-based position.
Join a collaborative team committed to innovation, operational excellence, and continuous improvement.
If you are an experienced clinical contracts professional with a passion for negotiation, project leadership, and stakeholder collaboration, we encourage you to apply and make an immediate impact on critical clinical development programs.
At Syneos Health, we believe in providing an environment and culture in which Our People can thrive, develop and advance. We reward and recognize our people by providing valuable benefits and a quality-of-life balance. The benefits for this position may include a company car or car allowance, Health benefits to include Medical, Dental and Vision, Company match 401k, eligibility to participate in Employee Stock Purchase Plan, Eligibility to earn commissions/bonus based on company and individual performance, and flexible paid time off (PTO) and sick time. Because certain states and municipalities have regulated paid sick time requirements, eligibility for paid sick time may vary depending on where you work. Syneos complies with all applicable federal, state, and municipal paid sick time requirements.
Salary Range:
$47,000.00 - $95,900.00The base salary range represents the anticipated low and high of the Syneos Health range for this position. Actual salary will vary based on various factors such as the candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies, and proficiency for the role.
Get to know Syneos Health
Over the past 5 years, we have worked with 94% of all Novel FDA Approved Drugs, 95% of EMA Authorized Products and over 200 Studies across 73,000 Sites and 675,000+ Trial patients.
No matter what your role is, you’ll take the initiative and challenge the status quo with us in a highly competitive and ever-changing environment. Learn more about Syneos Health.
Additional Information
Tasks, duties, and responsibilities as listed in this job description are not exhaustive. The Company, at its sole discretion and with no prior notice, may assign other tasks, duties, and job responsibilities. Equivalent experience, skills, and/or education will also be considered so qualifications of incumbents may differ from those listed in the Job Description. The Company, at its sole discretion, will determine what constitutes as equivalent to the qualifications described above. Further, nothing contained herein should be construed to create an employment contract. Occasionally, required skills/experiences for jobs are expressed in brief terms. Any language contained herein is intended to fully comply with all obligations imposed by the legislation of each country in which it operates, including the implementation of the EU Equality Directive, in relation to the recruitment and employment of its employees. The Company is committed to compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, including the provision of reasonable accommodations, when appropriate, to assist employees or applicants to perform the essential functions of the job.
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