Associate Director, Vendor Management
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
Full Time
1 week ago
$168,000 - $198,500 USD
Key skills
GCPLeadershipCommunication
About this role
Who is BlueRock?
BlueRock Therapeutics LP is a clinical stage cell therapy harnessing the power of cell therapy to create a pipeline of new medicines for people suffering from neurological and ophthalmic diseases. Two of our novel investigational cell therapies, bemdaneprocel (BRT-DA01) for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease and OpCT-001 for the treatment of primary photoreceptor diseases are clinical stage programs. BlueRock was founded in 2016 as a joint venture of Versant Ventures and Leaps by Bayer. Our culture is defined by the courage to persist regardless of the challenge, the urgency to transform medicine and deliver hope, integrity guided by mission, and community-mindedness with the understanding that we are all part of something bigger than ourselves.
What Are We Doing?
Our foundational science harnesses the ability to create and then direct the differentiation of universal pluripotent stem cells into authentic, functional cells that can be used as allogeneic cellular therapies to treat a broad array of diseases. We can also further engineer these cells, enabling them to produce enzymes, antibodies, and other proteins for additional therapeutic benefit. We are passionate about delivering on the promise of cellular and gene therapy, shaping the future of cellular medicine, and delivering new therapies to millions of patients with treatment options. We are seeking individuals who are collaborative, thrive in a fun and dynamic culture, and are steadfast in the commitment to advance cutting-edge cellular therapies to impact patients’ lives.
The Associate Director, Vendor Management is responsible for overseeing and optimizing BlueRock’s critical Development vendor relationships that are essential to the successful execution of priority clinical programs. This role serves as the primary owner of vendor performance, governance, and relationship health across key outsourced services (e.g., CROs, central labs, imaging, recruitment vendors).
Sitting across strategic leadership and day-to-day execution, the Associate Director partners closely with Clinical Operations, Finance, Procurement, and functional leaders to ensure vendors deliver on contracted commitments, remain aligned to evolving program needs, and support BlueRock’s development strategy. The role plays a central role in building scalable, data-driven vendor governance across Development.
The successful candidate is an energetic, proactive problem-solver who anticipates changes rather than reacting to them.
Critical core competencies include:
A Deep understanding of the clinical vendor landscape, including common operational risk patternsExcellent communication skills, allowing balance between accountability and vendor execution with vendor diplomacyA collaborative partner who can build trust across Clinical Operations, Translational Medicine, Finance, Procurement, other development functions, and external vendors
BlueRock Therapeutics Company Culture HighlightsWinner of Boston Business Journal's Best Places to Work (Mid-size Company) 2023Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Diversity 2022Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Women 2022Winner of Comparably's Award for Best CEO 2022BlueRock Therapeutics is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably.Engineering Department is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably.
Check us out on Comparably: https://www.comparably.com/companies/bluerock-therapeuticsFollow us on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bluerocktx/
Equal Opportunity Workplace: At BlueRock, we welcome and support differences and diversity and we are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. Please let us know if you require disability-related accommodation or other grounds protected by human rights legislation during the recruitment process so that we can work with you to meet your needs.
BlueRock Therapeutics LP is a clinical stage cell therapy harnessing the power of cell therapy to create a pipeline of new medicines for people suffering from neurological and ophthalmic diseases. Two of our novel investigational cell therapies, bemdaneprocel (BRT-DA01) for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease and OpCT-001 for the treatment of primary photoreceptor diseases are clinical stage programs. BlueRock was founded in 2016 as a joint venture of Versant Ventures and Leaps by Bayer. Our culture is defined by the courage to persist regardless of the challenge, the urgency to transform medicine and deliver hope, integrity guided by mission, and community-mindedness with the understanding that we are all part of something bigger than ourselves.
What Are We Doing?
Our foundational science harnesses the ability to create and then direct the differentiation of universal pluripotent stem cells into authentic, functional cells that can be used as allogeneic cellular therapies to treat a broad array of diseases. We can also further engineer these cells, enabling them to produce enzymes, antibodies, and other proteins for additional therapeutic benefit. We are passionate about delivering on the promise of cellular and gene therapy, shaping the future of cellular medicine, and delivering new therapies to millions of patients with treatment options. We are seeking individuals who are collaborative, thrive in a fun and dynamic culture, and are steadfast in the commitment to advance cutting-edge cellular therapies to impact patients’ lives.
The Associate Director, Vendor Management is responsible for overseeing and optimizing BlueRock’s critical Development vendor relationships that are essential to the successful execution of priority clinical programs. This role serves as the primary owner of vendor performance, governance, and relationship health across key outsourced services (e.g., CROs, central labs, imaging, recruitment vendors).
Sitting across strategic leadership and day-to-day execution, the Associate Director partners closely with Clinical Operations, Finance, Procurement, and functional leaders to ensure vendors deliver on contracted commitments, remain aligned to evolving program needs, and support BlueRock’s development strategy. The role plays a central role in building scalable, data-driven vendor governance across Development.
The successful candidate is an energetic, proactive problem-solver who anticipates changes rather than reacting to them.
Critical core competencies include:
A Deep understanding of the clinical vendor landscape, including common operational risk patternsExcellent communication skills, allowing balance between accountability and vendor execution with vendor diplomacyA collaborative partner who can build trust across Clinical Operations, Translational Medicine, Finance, Procurement, other development functions, and external vendors
Responsibilities:
- Drive Development Vendor Relationship & Performance Management:
- Own relationship management of assigned Development vendors, ensuring delivery against contracted scopes of work, timelines, and quality
- Monitor vendor performance against SOWs and project milestones; proactively identify risks related to protocol changes, enrollment fluctuations, or operational shifts
- Develop, implement, and track KPIs (e.g., service quality, responsiveness, cycle times, milestone adherence) and translate data into actionable insights
- Lead Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) and structured performance discussions to drive accountability, continuous improvement, and alignment with BlueRock priorities
- Own Governance, Escalation & Issue Resolution:
- Establish and maintain clear vendor governance structures, escalation pathways, and stakeholder engagement models to support effective issue resolution
- Act as a firm but fair representative of BlueRock, leveraging contractual language while maintaining productive, long-term partnerships
- Anticipate and mitigate common vendor risk areas (e.g., scope creep, change order inflation) and partner with Legal, Procurement, and subject-matter experts as required.
- Provide Oversight & Cross-Functional Partnership:
- Partner with FP&A and Development cost center owners to support monthly accruals, budget reconciliation, and invoice review
- Support strategic contract amendments, change orders, and scope adjustments as program needs evolve
- Collaborate closely with Procurement and Legal, while maintaining clear accountability for Development-facing vendor performance and relationship health
- Contribute to the development and continuous improvement of vendor management processes, templates, dashboards, and best practices across Development
- Serve as a trusted internal partner to development functional leads, building credibility through expertise, data, and follow-through
Minimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in life sciences, business, or a related discipline; advanced degree (e.g., MBA) preferred
- 8+ years of experience in clinical development vendor management, outsourcing, or related roles within biotech, pharma, or CRO environments (5+ years minimum in direct vendor management)
- Demonstrated experience managing clinical vendors and navigating complex contractual and performance discussions
- Proven ability to analyze vendor performance data, budgets, and metrics to identify inefficiencies and drive improvement
- Strong working knowledge of GCP, ICH guidelines, and regulatory expectations related to outsourced clinical activities
- Target Base Salary: $168,000 - $198,500
BlueRock Therapeutics Company Culture HighlightsWinner of Boston Business Journal's Best Places to Work (Mid-size Company) 2023Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Diversity 2022Winner of Comparably's Award for Best Company for Women 2022Winner of Comparably's Award for Best CEO 2022BlueRock Therapeutics is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably.Engineering Department is ranked in the top 5% of companies for Overall Culture on Comparably.
Check us out on Comparably: https://www.comparably.com/companies/bluerock-therapeuticsFollow us on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bluerocktx/
Equal Opportunity Workplace: At BlueRock, we welcome and support differences and diversity and we are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. Please let us know if you require disability-related accommodation or other grounds protected by human rights legislation during the recruitment process so that we can work with you to meet your needs.