Senior Manager, Sourcing and Subcontracts

AIR’s Contracts, Grants & Procurement (CGP) team is seeking a talented Senior Manager, Sourcing and Subcontracts
, to join it’s forward-thinking and supportive team. This role will lead enterprise-wide strategic sourcing initiatives and provide functional leadership and oversight for subcontract administration throughout the entire project lifecycle, from proposal development through project execution and closeout.

This role will serve as a key advisor on complex procurement and subcontracting matters, leading a high-performing team while driving sourcing strategies, supporting negotiations, ensuring regulatory and contractual compliance, and delivering reporting and insights that align with organizational objectives and client requirements. The position plays a critical role in strengthening procurement and subcontract management practices, mitigating risk, and fostering effective partnerships with internal and external stakeholders.

Reporting to the Senior Director, Subcontracts & Procurement, this position is focused on strategic procurement leadership, subcontract administration, and sourcing excellence. It is distinct from transactional purchasing functions and emphasizes strategy, governance, compliance, and operational impact at an organizational level.

This position has the flexibility to work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of our U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories. O ccasional travel required for meetings, training sessions, and conferences.

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to address some of the most pressing challenges in the United States and globally. We generate evidence and apply data-driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.

Key Responsibilities:

The key responsibilities for the position include, but are not limited to, the following:

Strategic Sourcing & Procurement Leadership

• Lead strategic sourcing initiatives and complex competitive procurements (RFPs, RFIs, RFQs) that support both client-driven and enterprise-wide business needs.
• Develop sourcing strategies, lead negotiations, and proactively manage procurement risks to optimize cost, quality, compliance, and business outcomes.

Subcontract Oversight

• Provide functional oversight and guidance to Subcontract Administrators across pre-award and post-award activities.
• Participate in proposal and project kickoffs to determine subcontracting strategies and subcontract administrator engagement requirements.
• Serve as the escalation point for complex subcontract administration issues, risks, and negotiations.
• Support subcontract negotiations, contract formation, modifications, and issue resolution.
• Develop and maintain subcontracting templates, tools, and standard operating procedures to drive consistency and effectiveness.
• Ensure compliance with procurement policies, subcontract requirements, and applicable regulations while supporting audits and maintaining audit-ready documentation.
• Monitor and escalation procurement and subcontract risks, and provide management reporting on operational activity, compliance metrics, key issues, resolutions, performance trends, and process improvement opportunities.
• Lead, coach, and develop a talented team, promoting engagement, accountability, and professional growth.
• Set performance expectations, provide ongoing feedback, and support talent development, and knowledge sharing across the team.
• Foster a collaborative, customer-focused team culture that drives innovation,…