Contract Administration Manager - Telecom Network Construction

Role Overview

A telecommunications leader is seeking a Contract Administration Manager to join their Custom Networks and Network Construction team. This contract role is remote within the United States and expected to last six or more months with potential for extension or transition to permanent employment. The position is individual contributor focused without direct reports. The key duties revolve around executing contract lifecycle activities including modifications, change orders, amendments, and documentation related to engineering and construction agreements.

Core Responsibilities

• Draft and analyze Descriptions and Statements of Work for engineering and construction contracts.
• Ensure contract scopes, pricing, deliverables, and accompanying requirements are complete and accurate.
• Validate bid and RFP details prior to forwarding to Strategic Sourcing.
• Oversee the intake, triage, routing, and workflow for contract modification requests from receipt to approval and closure.
• Create and manage change orders, amendments, and other contract documents using tools such as Procurement Gateway.
• Coordinate contract assembly units, pricing setup, mnemonic mapping, and system readiness.
• Maintain organized repositories and version control of contract materials, including Master Service Agreements, Annexes, Statements of Work, amendments, change orders, attachments, and compliance records.
• Monitor contractual obligations such as notice periods, expiration and renewal dates, insurance certificates, bond requirements, retainage, and compliance items.
• Analyze contract usage and pricing trends, identify discrepancies, omitted billing, and pursue cost recovery opportunities through documentation and research.
• Assist onboarding of vendors and subcontractors, ensuring documentation and contract readiness.
• Support contract escalations involving payment disputes, performance issues, and contract interpretations.
• Manage renewals, retainage releases, contract closeouts, and supplier compliance activities.
• Develop reporting on contract health, scorecards, training, workflow improvements, and administrative procedures.
• Monitor backlog, cycle times, open obligations, expirations, and recovery actions; escalate issues as needed to uphold service-level expectations.

Performance Expectations

• Respond to new change-order requests within one business day of receipt.
• Process unit additions within established turnaround timelines.
• Prepare standard amendment packages no later than three business days after receiving a complete request.
• Maintain accurate contract records, supporting documents, and obligation trackers.
• Conduct weekly reviews of backlog and escalate delayed items.
• Provide ongoing reporting related to contract activities, compliance, cost recovery, and turnaround metrics.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent relevant experience.
• 3-5+ years in contract administration, procurement, construction administration, engineering support, or related disciplines.
• Experience managing contracts related to engineering, infrastructure, utility, telecommunications, or construction environments.
• Hands-on expertise with contract modifications, amendments, change orders, and Statements of Work.
• Familiarity with contract administration processes and engineering support systems.
• Basic understanding of contract law and negotiation principles.
• Capable of evaluating pricing and conducting cost analyses for engineering or construction projects.
• Collaborative experience working with Legal, Procurement, Finance, Engineering, Operations, and suppliers.
• Excellent communication, documentation, organizational, and prioritization skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines within expected service levels.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and stakeholder engagement abilities.
• Proficient with Microsoft Excel and general business tools.

Preferred Experience

• Background in telecommunications or network construction contract management.
• Knowledge of fiber construction, Outside Plant (OSP), Inside Plant (ISP), network line extensions, engineering, equipment installation, DC power, and utility infrastructure.
• Familiarity with unit-based pricing, assembly units, unit catalogs.
• Experience using Procurement Gateway or comparable contract lifecycle and change order management platforms.
• Tracking certificates of insurance, bonds, retainages, lien periods, renewals, and various compliance matters.
• Detecting billing errors and pursuing cost recovery.
• Understanding utility accounting practices and financial controls.
• Assisting vendor onboarding and compliance processes.

Additional Information

This role does not have authority to approve unauthorized contracts or deviate commercial terms beyond granted limits. Candidates must be comfortable with detail-oriented contract administration in a deadline-driven environment. Applicants should highlight pertinent experience in contract administration for telecommunications, engineering, construction, procurement, and change order management.