About this opportunity
The Contract Specialist reports to the Chief Financial Officer and plays a critical role in supporting the preparation, negotiation, coordination and execution of a variety of research project funding grants, contracts and other operational agreements. As an intermediate Contract Specialist, you will have the dynamic opportunity to work on many types of agreements between TFRI and its external research grant recipients, partners and vendors, both public and private sector, located across all Canadian provinces. These agreements are a critical and foundational pillar to achieve the scientific and cancer treatment outcomes our research funding is intended to achieve. Scope will include creating the draft agreements or templates, working with third-parties on the agreement terms, resolving issues, tracking progress, managing electronic execution, analyzing risks and offering creative risk mitigation options and finally agreement closure and reconciliation.
This position is located in Vancouver.
About the Terry Fox Research Institute
The Terry Fox Research Institute (TFRI), named for Canadian icon Terry Fox, is built on Terry's dream to end cancer through research. Established in 2007, TFRI is a registered charity and invests its funds in cutting-edge Canadian cancer research through highly collaborative, world class research teams and specialized national-scale research networks. Together with its many research and funding partners, TFRI provides research project funding that empowers Canada’s brightest researchers to seek out new transformational and precision medicine discoveries to accelerate our understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer with the goal of bridging the gap between laboratory discoveries and patient bedside care to save the lives of cancer patients.
Key responsibilities
- Serve as a liaison with Canadian research institutions (Universities, hospitals) and private sector companies, including their legal, finance and research administration teams as it relates to project grant and agreement management.
- Proactively coordinate the drafting and preparation of research grants and other operational contracts and agreements often using established templates.
- Compile agreements including work plans, financial budgets and payment schedules to ensure alignment with the agreement’s objectives.
- Manage the negotiation progress, resolve issues and ensure timely execution of agreements, including preparing subsequent amendments as needed.
- Review, analyze and respond to requested changes to TFRI standard template terms and ensure compliance with all legal, regulatory and organizational requirements.
- Proactively identify areas of potential risk in agreements and propose practical alternatives to mitigate those risks while ensuring adherence to organizational policies and timelines.
- Establish Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) tracking mechanisms and maintaining accurate records of correspondence, changes, and executed documents.
- Manage the electronic signing process for agreements with external parties.
- Meet with internal and external stakeholders to discuss agreement terms, templates, project requirements and resolve other issues;
- Liaises with the project and finance teams to coordinate the processing of payments and to obtain information required to respond to stakeholder inquires.
- Perform a variety of research or other analyses to support agreement preparation and execution.
- Other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in law, business, or a related discipline is required.
- 3-5 years of demonstrated experience, education and interest in contract law and/or research agreements is required.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Excellent understanding of basic contract terms, legal concepts and language, including an ability to analyze and assess the financial and operational implications of proposed changes to template agreement language.
- Very proactive and organized self-starter.
- High capacity to work in a fast-paced environment, negotiating, managing and tracking numerous concurrent agreements and priorities to deliver on established target timelines.
- Exceptional collaboration and relationship building skills with TFRI institutional partners and stakeholders.
- Demonstrated ingenuity, judgment and creativity to perform all job responsibilities with excellent planning and organizational skills.
- Demonstrated ability to understand and work with workplans, financial budgets, payment schedules and other ancillary attachments to agreements.
- Highly proficient with Microsoft Office suite (WORD, EXCEL SharePoint) and with the compiling of PDF documents. Experience with electronic signature software such as Docusign.
- Meticulous attention to detail and accuracy.
- Keen ability to function effectively alone and in a team.
- Fluency in French would be an asset but not required.
Benefits of working with us
- Flexible schedule
- Paid vacation
- Paid sick days
- Extended medical and dental coverage
- A work culture that values excellence, creativity, teamwork, learning, fairness and integrity
- A passionate group of high-performing teammates across Canada
Salary Range: $75,000 - $90,000
How to Apply: If you are passionate about making a difference in cancer research, we invite you to submit your application. This position is open to candidates residing in Canada. Please include a cover letter, resume, and any relevant supporting documents. Applications can be submitted through Indeed or emailed to hr@tfri.ca.
Application Deadline: job requisition will be open until filled.
We appreciate all applications, but only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.
We recognize the importance of diversity and equity in our workforce and encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including Indigenous persons, women, persons with disabilities, minorities and other underrepresented communities.