Legal Counsel, Procurement

The role, in a nutshell

Chainguard is growing fast, and were looking for a Procurement Attorney whos excited to own how we work with the vendors that power our business. Youll lead our vendor and procurement contracting function end to end, reviewing, structuring, and negotiating agreements. You will also build scalable, vendor-friendly processes that keep our teams moving quickly without taking on unnecessary risk. This is a high-impact builder role for someone who cares just as much about great stakeholder and vendor experiences as they do about clean, well-structured contracts.'

What youll do

• Lead vendor and procurement contracts from front to back. Review, analyze, and negotiate agreements with a customer-obsessed mindset so vendors have a smooth, transparent experience while Chainguards interests stay protected.'
• Keep deals moving instead of getting stuck in redlines. Bring intentional action to negotiations, focus on the risk that actually matters, and clear the path so our teams and vendors can get to yes without unnecessary delays.
• Be a true partner to the business. Work closely with procurement, security, finance, and business leaders to structure deals that are legally sound, practical to operate, and aligned with how Chainguard runs.
• Design and improve legal workflows from the ground up. Build and refine vendor-friendly processes for intake, review, and approval so internal teams and vendors know whats happening and whats next.
• Create the playbooks and tools others will rely on. Draft templates, playbooks, fallback positions, and guidance that scale your expertise across the company, including training materials that help non-lawyers move faster with confidence.
• Streamline onboarding and lifecycle management. Partner on smarter ways to onboard vendors and manage contracts through their full lifecycle, from initial review through renewals and offboarding.
  Serve as a pragmatic, approachable legal advisor. Show up as a collaborator who helps the business hit its goals, not a gatekeeper who slows things down, even when the issues are complex.
• Balance risk and momentum. Identify and mitigate legal, privacy, security, and regulatory risks in ways that are practical, right-sized, and actually implementable.

What were looking for

• Seasoned commercial contracts experience with 5+ years focused on commercial, procurement, or vendor agreements, ideally including both drafting and negotiating in a high-volume environment.
• In-house background at a SaaS or technology company (or comparable environment) where youve supported fast-moving teams and learned how to balance risk with speed.
• J.D. from an accredited law school and active bar admission in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
  Builder mindset for legal processes. Youve created or significantly improved legal workflows, templates, or playbooks from scratch, not just followed what was already there.
• Strong business acumen. Youre comfortable talking about tradeoffs, pricing, SLAs, and operational realities, and can right-size your advice to the stage and needs of the business.
• Excellent communicator and collaborator. You explain complex issues clearly, listen well, and build trust with stakeholders across legal, security, finance, procurement, and operations.
• Comfort with fast-paced, evolving environments. Youre energized by ambiguity, can prioritize in the face of changing inputs, and enjoy helping shape the processes that dont exist yet

Bonus points if you have:

• Experience designing vendor-friendly legal processes at a high-growth company.
• Background in supply chain, procurement operations, or vendor management.
• A track record of implementing creative legal tech or CLM solutions to streamline workflows.
• A clear perspective on what makes a company great to work with from a vendors point of view.

What youll love about this role

• Youll build something that lasts. This is a chance to design and refine our procurement legal processes from the ground up, with real ownership and clear impact.
• Youll work with people who value intentional action. We care about moving thoughtfully and efficiently, not doing things the way theyve always been done.
• Youll join a team that does serious work without taking ourselves too seriously. Were tackling complex legal and technical problems, but we keep perspective and make space to enjoy the work and the people we do it with.
• Youll operate in a culture built on trust and good intent. We assume good faith from our colleagues and our vendors, and were transparent about decisions so people can move quickly and confidently.