Vendor Manager

Vendor Manager — Specialty Finance (Hybrid, Fairfield County CT)

A growing specialty finance platform is building out its vendor management function and looking for a Vendor Manager to own the full third-party lifecycle. This is a newly scoped seat reporting into senior operations leadership, with high visibility across finance, compliance, and the C-suite.

What you'll own:

• End-to-end vendor lifecycle management — onboarding, due diligence, contract review, performance monitoring, renewals, and offboarding
• Third-party risk assessments across financial, operational, information security, and reputational dimensions
• Vendor segmentation and tiering based on criticality and risk exposure
• SLA tracking, KPI reporting, and quarterly business reviews with strategic vendors
• Contract negotiation support in partnership with legal and finance
• Building and maintaining the vendor inventory, documentation standards, and policy framework
• Cross-functional coordination with procurement, AP, compliance, and IT on vendor-related workflows

What we're looking for:

• 4+ years in vendor management, third-party risk management (TPRM), procurement, or a related function
• Direct experience managing vendors in financial services, fintech, lending, or another regulated environment
• Working knowledge of TPRM frameworks and due diligence standards
• Comfort reading and red-lining commercial contracts (MSAs, SOWs, DPAs)
• Strong Excel and reporting chops; ERP exposure a plus
• Clear written and verbal communicator — this role talks to vendors, executives, and auditors in the same week
• Bachelor's degree preferred

Nice to have:

• Prior exposure to consumer or commercial finance, payments, or alternative lending
• Experience standing up or maturing a vendor management program from the ground up
• Familiarity with information security questionnaires (SIG, CAIS) and SOC 2 review

Hybrid schedule, Fairfield County CT. Direct hire.