The Vice President, Vendor Management & Strategic Partnerships is an executive leader responsible for overseeing the performance, governance, strategic alignment, and financial management of the health plan's vendor ecosystem. This role ensures that all delegated entities, technology partners, operational service providers, and business process outsourcing partners deliver high-quality, compliant, cost-effective services that support the organization's Medicare Advantage growth, operational excellence, member experience, and regulatory obligations.

The Vice President serves as the enterprise owner for vendor strategy, relationship management, contract governance, performance management, and operational oversight. This leader partners across Operations, Clinical Services, Compliance, Finance, Information Technology, Risk Adjustment, Quality, Legal, and Procurement to maximize vendor value while mitigating operational, financial, regulatory, and reputational risk.

The ideal candidate is an operationally focused executive who understands how to hold vendors accountable for business outcomes, not simply contractual obligations.

Enterprise Vendor Strategy

• Develop and execute the organization's enterprise vendor management strategy.

• Establish governance frameworks to manage strategic suppliers and delegated entities.

• Create a vendor operating model that aligns with organizational goals and performance expectations.

• Identify opportunities to leverage strategic partnerships to improve operational capabilities, scalability, and member outcomes.

• Consolidate vendor relationships where appropriate to drive efficiency and reduce administrative complexity.

Vendor Performance Management

• Establish enterprise vendor performance standards and accountability frameworks.

• Oversee ongoing monitoring of vendor operational, financial, compliance, service-level, and quality performance.

• Develop executive-level scorecards and dashboards measuring vendor effectiveness.

• Lead quarterly business reviews and performance accountability sessions with strategic partners.

• Ensure vendors consistently achieve contractual commitments and service-level agreements.

Financial Management & Cost Optimization

• Identify opportunities to improve vendor performance while reducing costs.

• Lead vendor budgeting, forecasting, and expense management activities.

• Develop business cases supporting vendor investments and contract decisions.

• Continuously evaluate vendor ROI and value realization.

• Drive cost savings initiatives through vendor negotiations and operational efficiencies.

Contract Governance & Negotiation

• Partner with Legal and Procurement to negotiate and manage strategic vendor agreements.

• Ensure contracts include measurable performance expectations and accountability mechanisms.

• Establish governance processes for contract renewals, amendments, and terminations.

• Lead executive-level negotiations with strategic vendors.

• Ensure contracts support organizational objectives while appropriately mitigating risk.

Vendor Risk Management

• Develop and oversee enterprise vendor risk management programs.

• Evaluate operational, financial, cybersecurity, compliance, and business continuity risks.

• Establish risk assessment methodologies and mitigation strategies.

• Monitor critical vendor dependencies and concentration risks.

• Ensure vendor business continuity and disaster recovery capabilities meet organizational requirements.

Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across the vendor portfolio.

• Partner with operational leaders to identify service gaps and performance improvement opportunities.

• Establish root-cause analysis processes for vendor-related issues and service failures.

• Implement corrective action plans and performance recovery strategies.

• Create accountability mechanisms to ensure sustainable improvements.

Strategic Partnership Management

• Build and maintain executive-level relationships with critical vendors and partners.

• Act as the organization's executive liaison for strategic supplier relationships.

• Align vendor objectives with organizational growth and transformation strategies.

• Identify opportunities for innovation and service enhancement through strategic partnerships.

• Ensure vendors actively contribute to organizational performance goals.

Executive Reporting & Governance

• Develop executive dashboards that provide visibility into vendor performance, risk, and financial impact.

• Present vendor performance updates to executive leadership and Board committees.

• Provide strategic recommendations regarding vendor investments, renewals, and portfolio optimization.

• Lead enterprise vendor governance councils and steering committees.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Oversees assigned staff. Responsibilities include: recruiting, selecting, orienting, and training employees; assigning workload; planning, monitoring, and appraising job results; and coaching, counseling, and performance management.

Job Requirements:

Experience:

Required:

• 12+ years of leadership experience in healthcare operations, vendor management, outsourcing, procurement, managed care, or related functions.

• 7+ years of senior leadership experience managing large vendor portfolios.

• Extensive experience in Medicare Advantage, managed care, or health insurance operations.

• Proven track record managing complex strategic vendor relationships.

• Experience overseeing multi-million-dollar vendor portfolios and budgets.

• Strong experience with contract negotiations and performance management.

Education:

Required:

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Healthcare Administration, Finance, Supply Chain, Information Systems, or related field.

• Master's degree in Healthcare Administration, Public Health, or related field

Specialized Skills:

Required:

• Strategic thinker with strong execution discipline.

• Excellent leadership, influence, and collaboration skills across cross-functional teams.

• Strong analytical mindset and comfort interpreting clinical and financial data.

• Exceptional communication and presentation abilities.

• Demonstrated commitment to innovation, member-centric care, and continuous improvement.

Essential Physical Functions:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

1. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee regularly is required to stand, walk, sit, use hand to finger, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms.

2. The employee frequently lifts and/or moves up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.

Pay Range: $227,952.00 - $341,928.00
Pay range may be based on a number of factors including market location, education, responsibilities, experience, etc.