Director, Major Purchases & Contracts

Department: Fiscal Services

Classification: Administrative Faculty

Job Category: Administrative or Professional Faculty

Job Type: Full-Time

Work Schedule: Full-time (1.0 FTE, 40 hrs/wk)

Location: Fairfax, VA

Workplace Type: Hybrid Eligible

Salary: Salary commensurate with education and experience

Criminal Background Check: Yes

Financial Background Check: Yes

About the Department:

The Purchasing and Accounts Payable Department at George Mason University plays a vital role in supporting the university's mission by ensuring efficient and accurate management of financial transactions. As a key subset of the Fiscal Services Department, the Purchasing and Accounts Payable team is responsible for overseeing the complete procure-to-pay and strategic sourcing cycle, to include the procurement of goods and services, contract negotiation, processing invoices, and ensuring timely payments to vendors. Our department is dedicated to best practices in procurement, maintaining compliance with all local, state, federal, and university policies, providing excellent customer service, and fostering transparency and accountability in all financial operations. We are committed to supporting the university community by delivering streamlined and effective purchasing and payment solutions that align with the institution's goals and values.

About the Position:

The Director of Major Purchases & Contracts is a key leadership role within the Purchasing and Accounts Payable Department at George Mason University. This position is responsible for overseeing high-value procurements, managing complex contracts, and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and institutional procurement regulations. The Director will serve as the university’s principal negotiator for multi-million-dollar contracts and play a strategic role in advancing procurement policies, supplier engagement, and cost-saving initiatives.

As a key member of the procurement leadership team, the Director will work closely with departmental leadership, academic units, administrative departments, and external stakeholders to design and implement procurement strategies that align with the university’s financial and operational goals. This role requires deep expertise in public procurement, contract negotiation, strategic sourcing, and supplier relationship management.

The Director of Major Purchases & Contracts will also provide high-level mentorship and oversight to procurement personnel, ensuring best practices in competitive negotiation, and contract execution. The successful candidate will be a proven leader with a strong understanding of higher education procurement, public sector purchasing laws, and large-scale acquisition strategies.

Responsibilities:

• Provide executive leadership in the formulation, execution, and governance of high-value procurement activities through the RFP process. Serve as the university’s principal negotiator for complex, multi-million-dollar contracts, orchestrating strategic supplier engagement, mitigating procurement risks, and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and institutional procurement policies. Develop solicitation frameworks, construct rigorous evaluation methodologies, and drive stakeholder collaboration to establish procurement strategies that maximize institutional value while balancing cost efficiency, service excellence, quality assurance, and supplier diversity.
• Provide executive leadership in the formulation, execution, and governance of high-value procurement activities through the cooperative procurement and sole source process. Serve as the university’s principal negotiator for complex, multi-million-dollar contracts, orchestrating strategic supplier engagement, mitigating procurement risks, and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and institutional procurement policies.
• Architect and implement university-wide procurement policies that align with long-term strategic goals. Establish robust supplier relationship management frameworks, leveraging data analytics to optimize vendor performance, drive cost efficiencies, and enhance procurement outcomes. Develop and apply key procurement performance metrics—such as cost savings realization, contract adherence, procurement cycle efficiencies, and supplier performance indices—to inform data-driven decision-making and ensure continuous procurement innovation.
• Provide high-level mentorship and strategic oversight to the Assistant Direc