Contract Negotiator - Finance at Edward D. Jones in St. Louis, Missouri

Job Description:

Join a financial services firm where your contributions are valued.  Edward Jones is a Fortune 500¹ company where people come first. With over 8 million clients and 19,000 financial advisors across the U.S. and Canada, we’re proud to be privately-owned, placing the focus on our clients rather than shareholder returns.

Behind everything we do is our purpose: We partner for positive impact to improve the lives of our clients and colleagues, and together, better our communities and society. We are an innovative, flexible, and inclusive organization that attracts, develops, and inspires performance excellence and a sense of belonging. 

People are at the center of our partnership. Edward Jones associates are seen, heard, respected, and supported. This is what we believe makes us the best place to start or build your career. 

View our Purpose, Inclusion and Citizenship Report.

¹Fortune 500, published June 2023, data as of December 2022. Compensation provided for using, not obtaining, the rating.

Role Overview:

Do you have experience negotiating contracts and pricing? Do you have strong communication skills and enjoy working with leaders at all levels of an organization? Do you have a strong desire to learn, grow, and develop your existing skills in this work?

The Contract Negotiator/Sourcing Specialist is responsible for negotiating supplier contracts on behalf of business units, with a primary focus on low-to-medium value and moderately complex sourcing initiatives. Negotiations include contract terms (e.g. Indemnification, Limitation on Liability, Confidentiality provisions, etc.) and pricing. This role is responsible for partnering with business units to develop an understanding of their needs for supplier engagement and support projects which require supplier relationships. This role requires the Sourcing Specialist to coordinate with various business units to understand requirements for new projects, as well as firm-wide impacts associated with initiatives. The Sourcing Specialist must possess an emerging level of systems thinking and analytical capabilities.  These skills will be employed to identify, communicate, and implement supply-base opportunities to achieve the best solution for the firm through a mix of cost savings, cost avoidance, and risk mitigation strategies. This role requires an ability to build relationships within cross-functional teams, communicate effectively, and develop plans to drive progress across sourcing initiatives.

What You Will Do:

In this role, the Contract Negotiator (Sourcing Specialist) must:

• Lead multiple, concurrent sourcing initiatives in a cross-functional team environment that will include strategy, supplier selection, market intelligence, supplier and product viability and contract execution.


• Lead the negotiation of commercial and contractual terms with executives and legal representatives.


• Direct Senior Leaders towards the best purchasing decision by balancing solution cost with business requirements. 


• Execute on defined objectives aligned to Sourcing Strategies through the development and distribution of RFx's (RFI, RFQ, RFP), supplier communication, development of supplier selection criteria, and collaboration with cross-functional teams including business owners and legal.


• Maintain accurate records and data within the contract management system and other related sourcing tools


• Use procurement tools and systems to create operational efficiency and visibility across the enterprise


• Identify and pursue ad hoc opportunities to reduce product/service costs and support the implementation of operational improvement initiatives

Applicants must possess a passion for continuous learning and ability to build on foundational skills to progress into future roles. Experience/Skills You Need:

• Bachelor's degree required (or equivalent work experience)


• Requires a minimum of 4 years related work experience, preferably involving negotiation and contract redlining


• Experience with pricing negotiations and ability to put together a financial analysis of third-party costs 


• Understanding of Supply Chain management concepts and procedures


• Understanding of legal and contracting environments


• Understanding of operating environments of areas such as Finance, HR, Marketing, Information Systems


• Ability to identify and avoid potential conflict of interest to ensure ethical business standards and practices are followed    


• Ability to communicate cost models, risk, and business concepts at the executive levels throughout the firm and with any given supplier


• People and project management / organizational development skills required


• Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and communicate upward and across divisions are required


• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel)

What Could Set You Apart:

• Experience using Coupa spend management platform


• Experience in business process improvement initiatives

Please note: Candidates that live within a commutable distance from our Tempe, AZ and St. Louis, MO home office locations are expected to work in the office three days per week, with preference for Tuesday through Thursday.

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