Vendor Management Leader

Founded in 1898, Mutual of Enumclaw is a people-first insurer rooted in community, recognized as Washington’s Best Company to Work For for the 14th consecutive year, and proudly serving individuals, families, farms, and businesses through local independent agents across the West.

The Vendor Management Leader owns how Mutual of Enumclaw chooses, contracts with, and gets value from its third-party partners. Since 1898, MOE has protected the lives and livelihoods of Northwest homeowners, families, farmers, and business owners. The vendors behind our claims, technology, and member services are part of that promise, and this role makes sure they keep it.

You will lead the full vendor lifecycle: strategic sourcing, RFPs, contract negotiation, performance management, and third-party risk. You will partner with leaders across the company and bring clear, data-backed recommendations to the table.

You will own MOE's vendor portfolio from onboarding to renewal or exit, keeping partners accountable to the service our members expect:

• →Relationship Management – Build and maintain strong, collaborative relationships with key vendors. Serve as the primary escalation point, run regular business reviews, and align vendor roadmaps with MOE priorities.
• →Strategic Goals – Have a pulse on the landscape of procurement purchases across the organization and evaluate opportunities to consolidate, collaborate and streamline purchases across the organization.
• →Contract Negotiation – Lead negotiation of new agreements, renewals, and amendments. Secure favorable pricing, service levels, terms, and protections while preserving long-term partnerships. Track the contracts and the current spend to business strategic goals. 
• →Performance and Compliance Monitoring – Track vendor delivery against service level agreements and contract terms. Confirm vendors meet regulatory, data privacy, and insurance industry requirements, and drive corrective action plans when they fall short.
• →Risk Management – Identify, assess, and mitigate third-party risks, including financial, operational, cybersecurity, concentration, and reputational risk. Maintain vendor risk ratings, due diligence records, and business continuity and exit plans for critical vendors.

You will make sure every sourcing decision is informed, competitive, and aligned with MOE's business goals:

• Market Research – Analyze supplier markets, pricing trends, and emerging providers to find opportunities for cost savings, innovation, and better service.
• Vendor Selection – Define evaluation criteria with business stakeholders, score proposals objectively, and recommend the vendors that offer the best overall value, not just the lowest price.
• RFP-to-Contract Process – Manage the full sourcing cycle from start to signed agreement:
• Gather requirements with business owners and define scope.
• Draft and issue RFIs and RFPs.
• Manage vendor questions, demos, and due diligence.
• Evaluate and score responses with a cross-functional team.
• Negotiate final terms and pricing.
• Coordinate legal, IT security, and finance review, then execute the contract.
• Hand off to onboarding with clear owners and success measures.

You will turn vendor data into clear insight leaders can act on:

• Vendor Performance KPIs – Define and track key performance indicators for each critical vendor, such as SLA attainment, quality and error rates, responsiveness, cost savings and cost avoidance, member and agent impact, and contract compliance.
• Reporting – Produce regular scorecards, dashboards, and executive summaries on vendor performance, spend, and risk. Present findings to senior leadership and business owners with clear recommendations.
• Process Improvement – Use performance trends and stakeholder feedback to improve vendor management processes, tools, and policies. Standardize templates, streamline workflows, and raise the maturity of MOE's vendor management program over time.

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer, including video conferencing.

• Expertise in reviewing and synthesizing business proposals and contracts, distilling complex terms, pricing, and risks into clear recommendations for decision makers.
• Strong negotiation skills, with a record of securing favorable terms while protecting key relationships.
• Sound judgment in assessing third-party risk and regulatory compliance.
• Analytical skill in building KPIs, scorecards, and spend analysis.
• Clear written and verbal communication with executives, business partners, and vendors.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and manage several sourcing efforts at once.

• Bachelor's degree in business, supply chain, finance, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of experience in vendor management, procurement, or strategic sourcing, including 3+ years in a leadership role.
• Experience in insurance or financial services preferred.
• Familiarity with third-party risk management frameworks and vendor management or contract lifecycle systems.
• Professional certification such as CPSM, CPM, or CTPRP is a plus.