Vice President, Contracting Innovation Lead

About this role

Team Overview

BlackRock SMA Solutions helps clients customize portfolios for unique tax, values-alignment, or investment exposures across direct indexing, fixed income, active equity, and multi-asset. We deliver world-class service to all of our clients, from wealth advisors to family offices to endowments and foundations.

About this Role

 We are seeking a highly motivated professional to join our SMA & Models Contracting team and drive operational scale, process improvement, and innovation across our contracting function through automation, workflow optimization, and AI-enabled solutions. While the role will initially focus on driving innovation within the contracting space, it sits within the COO organization and offers opportunity to apply learnings more broadly across SMA Solutions and work cross-functionally to support the development and execution of an AI strategy framework for the SMA business to amplify innovation across the ecosystem.

This role will focus on enhancing the end-to-end contract lifecycle by identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce manual effort, streamline stakeholder interactions, and support business growth. Working closely with Sales, Operations, Legal & Compliance, and other key stakeholder teams across BlackRock, the successful candidate will lead initiatives that improve how contractual work is managed, tracked, and delivered.

This is a unique opportunity to help shape the future operating model of a growing contracting organization process design, technology enablement, AI adoption, data-driven decision making, and change management.

 

Key Responsibilities:

·        Lead process improvement, automation, and innovation initiatives across the contract lifecycle.

·        Design and implement scalable workflow solutions that improve efficiency, consistency, and stakeholder experience.

·        Identify opportunities to reduce manual effort, eliminate bottlenecks, improve turnaround times, and increase operational scale.

·        Evaluate, develop, and deploy AI-enabled solutions, workflow automations, knowledge assistants, copilots, and other productivity tools that support contracting operations.

·        Leverage AI and emerging technologies to improve contract review, knowledge management, reporting, self-service support, and operational decision-making.

·        Partner with business and technology stakeholders to gather requirements, prioritize opportunities, and deliver practical, scalable solutions.

·        Develop reporting, dashboards, and metrics to monitor operational performance and measure business impact.

·        Create and maintain process documentation, playbooks, and training materials that promote consistency and adoption.

·        Support governance, change management, and user adoption efforts associated with new tools, processes, and ways of working.

·        Stay informed on trends and developments in AI, automation, contract lifecycle management, and legal operations, identifying opportunities to apply them within the contracting function.

 

Qualifications:

•  Bachelor's degree or equivalent industry experience.
• At least 6 years of experience in contract management, legal operations, business operations, process improvement, or a related function.
• Demonstrated experience leading process improvement, automation, technology implementation, or operational transformation initiatives.
• Experience supporting contract lifecycle management processes and related business workflows.
• Experience with Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platforms, preferably DocuSign CLM.
• Familiarity with workflow automation and low-code platforms such as Salesforce, Airtable, Microsoft Power Platform, or similar technologies.
• Hands-on experience leveraging AI and automation technologies to solve business problems and improve operational efficiency.
• Strong familiarity with generative AI tools and their practical application in business environments.
• Experience building, configuring, or deploying workflow automations, AI-enabled assistants, copilots, agents, knowledge management solutions, or similar productivity tools strongly preferred.
• Experience with platforms such as Microsoft Copilot, Copilot Studio, ChatGPT, Claude (Anthropic), Power Platform, Salesforce, Airtable, DocuSign CLM/IAM, or similar technologies is highly desirable.
• Strong analytical, project management, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to listen effectively and ask relevant questions.
• Ability to influence stakeholders and manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Experience within financial services, legal, compliance, or other regulated environments is preferred.

For San Francisco, CA and Sausalito, CA Only the salary range for this position is USD$150,000.00 - USD$205,000.00 . Additionally, employees are eligible for an annual discretionary bonus, and benefits including healthcare, leave benefits, and retirement benefits. BlackRock operates a pay-for-performance compensation philosophy and your total compensation may vary based on role, location, and firm, department and individual performance.

Our benefits
To help you stay energized, engaged and inspired, we offer a wide range of benefits including a strong retirement plan, tuition reimbursement, comprehensive healthcare, support for working parents and Flexible Time Off (FTO) so you can relax, recharge and be there for the people you care about.

Our hybrid work model

BlackRock’s hybrid work model is designed to enable a culture of collaboration and apprenticeship that enriches the experience of our employees, while supporting flexibility for all. Employees are currently required to work at least 4 days in the office per week, with the flexibility to work from home 1 day a week. Some business groups may require more time in the office due to their roles and responsibilities. We remain focused on increasing the impactful moments that arise when we work together in person – aligned with our commitment to performance and innovation. As a new joiner, you can count on this hybrid model to accelerate your learning and onboarding experience here at BlackRock.

Guidance on AI use for candidates

At BlackRock, AI has long been part of how we work – enhancing decision-making, improving operations, and helping us deliver better outcomes for clients. We encourage candidates to use AI thoughtfully to learn, prepare, and work more effectively; but during our interview process, we want to focus on getting to know you through your own experiences, thinking, and judgment. To support you, we’ve provided guidance on when and how to use AI during our hiring process so you can approach each step with confidence and showcase your best self.

About BlackRock

At BlackRock, we are all connected by one mission: to help more and more people experience financial well-being.  Our clients, and the people they serve, are saving for retirement, paying for their children’s educations, buying homes and starting businesses. Their investments also help to strengthen the global economy: support businesses small and large; finance infrastructure projects that connect and power cities; and facilitate innovations that drive progress.

This mission would not be possible without our smartest investment – the one we make in our employees. It’s why we’re dedicated to creating an environment where our colleagues feel welcomed, valued and supported with networks, benefits and development opportunities to help them thrive.

To learn more about BlackRock, please visit Careers.BlackRock.com. We also encourage you to get to know us on LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, X, and TikTok.

BlackRock is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity to all applicants and existing employees, and we evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, creed, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity/expression), sexual orientation, age, ancestry, physical or mental disability, marital status, political affiliation, religion, citizenship status, genetic information, veteran status, or any other basis protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. View the EEOC’s Know Your Rights poster and its supplement and the pay transparency statement.

 

BlackRock is committed to full inclusion of all qualified individuals and to providing reasonable accommodations or job modifications for individuals with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation/adjustments are needed throughout the employment process, please email [email protected]. All requests are treated in line with our privacy policy.

We recruit, hire, train, promote, pay, and administer all personnel actions without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding), sex stereotyping (including assumptions about a person’s appearance or behavior, gender roles, gender expression, or gender identity), gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, mental or physical disability, ancestry, medical condition, marital status, military or veteran status, citizenship status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable law. We interpret these protected statuses broadly to include both the actual status and also any perceptions and assumptions made regarding these statuses.BlackRock will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records in a manner consistent with the requirements of the law, including any applicable fair chance law.