Spec, Contract Optimization

Who We Are:

Welcome to Vale. Our purpose is to improve life and transform the future. Together. We value our workforce and strive to offer continuous training and career development opportunities for our people.

Vale Base Metals is one of the world's largest producers of high-quality nickel and an important producer of copper and responsibly sourced cobalt. With headquarters in Toronto, Canada, and operations in Newfoundland & Labrador, Ontario, Manitoba, UK, Indonesia, and Brazil, we are delivering the critical building blocks for a cleaner, greener future.

Applying the latest technologies to sustainably mine the critical minerals that power electric vehicles, build renewable energy solutions, and help develop life-saving medical equipment is at the heart of what we do.

We invite you to be part of our evolution.

The Opportunity

We are currently seeking a Contract Optimization Specialist to join our North Atlantic Contract Management Office in Sudbury. This is a permanent position.

The successful candidate will report directly to the Contract Management Supervisor for the North Atlantic Contract Management Office, under the umbrella of the North Atlantic Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) group.

The North Atlantic - Contract Optimization Specialist plays a pivotal role in identifying and minimizing risks associated with the availability, measurability and/or performance of critical goods and services contracts. The position leads strategic improvement projects to restore or enhance control of critical contracts, safeguard vendor relations, and support ongoing Contract Lifecycle demand planning and continuous improvement efforts. This position works closely with Regional Contract Management and Procurement/Warehousing resources and Vendors to investigate critical contract problems and opportunities and effectively manage changes to critical contracts across North Atlantic Operations sites.

Accountabilities:

Contract Screening and Context Formalization:

• Maintain a register of "Critical Goods and Services" that pose significant risk to the operations based on the potential and/or impact of "loss of control".
• Review Contract terms and conditions to define operational context, technical requirements, role assignments, logistical and system/data monitoring constraints, and risks/failure modes associated with North Atlantic contracts earmarked as "critical."
• Continuously monitor performance of identified critical goods and service contracts, re-assess criticality/risks following changes contract management strategy.
• Regularly screen new contracts against critical goods/services criteria and update the critical contracts register as appropriate.

Contract Lifecycle Management:

• Cultivate strong relationships with all members of the daily operation chain to ensure there are no gaps in formalizing critical contract demand or scope.
• Collaborate with regional contract management and procurement groups to investigate historical demand, constraints and performance issues related to critical contracts.
• Leverage input from stakeholders to develop consolidated demand plans for critical multi-plant/multi-region contracts, explore scope synergies and identify opportunities to optimize sourcing strategies.
• Monitor critical contract lifecycles and engage regional contract management and procurement stakeholders to prepare for key milestones.
• Perform technical reviews and leverage results of vendor performance evaluations (safety, productivity, schedule, quality, deliverables) in business cases that support decisions to re-tender or extend critical contracts.

Strategic Projects and Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Lead strategic projects to optimize performance, improve measurement systems and minimize costs and risks related to critical bulk goods and services across North Atlantic Operations.
• Formalize project scope and establish a work breakdown structure outlining activities, deliverables and milestones related to support contract optimization projects.
• Collaborate with team members, cross-regional, and cross-departmental stakeholders to drive systemic improvements that impact multi-region/plant contract performance.
• Lead management of change activities related to contract optimization initiatives, monitor impact of contract changes, and highlight best practices.
• Multitask, prioritize and produce quality deliverables within established timeframes.

Governance and Data Quality:

• Conduct audits of critical contracts to ensure consistent application of Contract Management governance standards and provide feedback to regional operational leaders on how to improve compliance and performance within their groups.
• Verify that contract structure and measurement systems for critical contracts are sufficient to ensure the quality of data being collected for demand and performance measures across NA Regional Operations.
• Highlight best practices to continuously improve governance strategy to refine management of critical goods/services and further minimize risks to operations.

Contract Execution and Claims Mitigation:

• Provide interim contract management support for critical contracts where ownership is unclear or undefined in order to preserve Vendor relationships and ensure continuity of contract goods & services while long-term solutions are developed.
• Act as a central point of contact for Vendors of critical contracts to escalate multi-regional contract governance, performance or payment issues.
• Take swift action to engage relevant stakeholders and address immediate and systemic issues that cause critical contracts to veer out of control/compliance.
• Develop and implement systemic solutions to Vendor claims, offering training and support to regional Contract Management resources as needed to prevent reoccurrences.

Qualifications and Specific Skills:

Education/Certification: Bachelor's Degree in Business, Legal, Commerce or Engineering is preferred. Project Management Professional (PMP) certification or equivalent is desirable.

Related Employment Experience: 5 - 7 years progressive experience in related Vale contract management, project management, and/or contract administration/procurement roles is required.

Computer Skills: Proficiency with Microsoft Office products including Word, Outlook and Project; advanced knowledge of Excel is required. Working knowledge of SAP is required. Experience with Power BI is considered an asset. Knowledge of other ERP systems is considered an asset.

Must possess expert knowledge of entire contract management / administration / procurement cycles. This includes reviewing scopes of work and change orders, administering or resolving contract management claims and conducting audits relating to Safety, Schedule, Scope, Quality or Cost. Must possess knowledge of project management methodology and tools, continuous improvement cycle and management of change process.

Technical Knowledge – Comprehensive Understanding of Vale Business systems - Supply Chain / Contract Lifecycle, Inventory Management process, Project Management Methodology, Continuous Improvement Cycle, Management of Change, Finance, HSE, Operations and Maintenance

System Knowledge - Comprehensive Understanding of SAP System

Numeric Logic - Proficient use of spreadsheets, analysis and interpretation of statistical data. Understanding and application of mathematical concepts.

What we offer you:

• Competitive salary
• Attractive pension and benefits (company paid core coverage, flex health and dental coverage, flex accounts, disability plans and optional insurances)
• Leave for all of life's reasons (vacation, flex, sick, parental)
• Work culture dedicated to safety, diversity & inclusion, and career growth.
• Grow your career in a large and global company, and mining industry leader.
• Employee Family Assistance Program
• Online training and career development opportunities

Include to Transform

At Vale, we are committed to ensuring an inclusive work environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. Vale encourages everyone to express their ideas and opinions and values the plurality of individual profiles. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are critical to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, or any other personal consideration that makes us different.

Vale is an equal opportunity employer seeking to increase diversity across our operations and improve equal opportunity at Vale and in the mining industry.

In accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, accommodation is available throughout our recruitment process for applicants with disabilities.

Paygrade: J

Apply By: May 22, 2024

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