Company Overview

Wherever you work and whatever role you fill, when you represent the Bridgestone name you know that you are a valued teammate who is part of our larger mission to Serve Society with Superior Quality. We start by offering each teammate more than just a salary. We provide formal training, competitive performance incentives, paid vacation and holidays, healthcare packages for full-time and part-time employees, and a 401k plan to help build your future. We believe people can only provide superior service and quality to others when they are allowed to bring their whole selves to work and know they are supported. We believe in championing all perspectives, individuals and teams because we understand the importance of seeing the world and our business through many different lenses. We are building a team as diverse as the world we serve. So, show us what you are made of. Show us the smart stuff, the tough stuff, the bold, beautiful and brave stuff. Because who you are is what we need. Bridgestone Americas, Inc. is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee and is the U.S. subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation headquartered in Japan. Bridgestone Americas and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture and market a wide range of Bridgestone, Firestone and associate brand products to address the needs of a broad range of customers and industries.

Position Summary

The Bridgestone Americas, Inc. (BSAM) Law Department’s Corporate Services group is seeking a contract management specialist to support BSAM’s corporate functions, with a focus on commercial contracts. The Corporate Services Group provides transactional legal services and legal/business advice and strategy to all of the functional units of BSAM, including Procurement, IT, Manufacturing, Finance, Treasury, Tax, Credit, Shared Services, Human Resources, Marketing, Communications, and Logistics and Supply Chain Management.

Responsibilities

• Work closely with a talented and collaborative team of legal professionals, with the oversight of an experienced attorney.
• Hone the skills necessary to draft, review and negotiate a variety of commercial contracts, including nondisclosure agreements, purchase agreements, services agreements, etc.
• Work as a strategic business partner to client groups, helping to identify creative solutions to assist them in meeting their goals;
• Contribute to strategic initiatives and projects within BSAM’s Law Department;
• Be empowered to establish processes to efficiently handle day-to-day agreements and tasks.
• Serving as a first point of contact for select client groups, helping to resolve and/or escalate legal issues to an attorney as needed.
• Preparing and negotiating standard company agreements, including nondisclosure agreements, staffing services agreements, purchase terms and conditions; maintenance agreements, professional services agreements, etc.

• With the oversight of an attorney as needed, drafting, reviewing and negotiating a variety of non-standardized vendor-facing contracts.
• Interpreting contract terms and conditions, and advising client as to contract obligations, remedies and options.
• Evaluating the needs and goals of clients with respect to a variety of issues, helping to identify risks, balancing clients’ needs and goals against risk, and devising a business-practical, creative solution for achieving clients’ goals while minimizing risk.
• Independently handling and keeping track of a large and fluctuating number of matters/projects. Must have experience handling projects on a time sensitive basis.

Competencies and Characteristics:

The Corporate Services Group interacts with almost every department and functional group of BSAM and, therefore, we believe that “how” we accomplish our work is as important as “what” we accomplish. Accordingly, the ideal candidate will exhibit the following competencies and characteristics:

• Humility, patience and diplomacy: Excellent interpersonal skills, commitment to client service, and the ability to build relationships with stakeholders, including teammates and business team members across the company as well as with outside vendors and consultants.
• An ability to deal confidently with internal clients at all organizational levels, as well as external parties.
• Basic understanding of the vendor contracting process, including knowledge of key contract terms and their implications and proficiency at redlining contracts.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; strong negotiation skills.
• An appropriate balance of independence and collaboration: the ability to work independently but recognizing the need to consult others and escalate issues when appropriate.
• A resourceful self-starter: an ability to quickly learn new areas and develop new skills in an independent manner; willingness to figure things out, an eagerness to learn about BSAM.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to multi-task on a large number of complex issues; the ability to effectively manage client expectations and prioritize demands.
• Sound legal and business judgment.
• Creative problem solving: the ability to tailor strategies and contract terms to meet the needs of the clients and to address the risks at issue; a desire to be flexible and creative in addressing issues.
• Team player: exhibiting trust in members of the team, communicating and working well with members of the team, sharing in responsibilities of the team, an innate sense of responsibility to those on the team, and commitment to the overall success of the group and BSAM.
• Business acumen and the ability to measure legal risk, balance risks with business needs, and apply practical legal solutions.

• Typically requires a minimum of 5 working years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 3 years and a Master’s degree; or a PhD without experience; or equivalent work experience.
• Paralegal certificate or equivalent preferred
• At least five years of experience as a paralegal or contract management specialist in a law firm or in-house setting preferred

Our job descriptions reflect the skills, qualifications and experiences we have identified as ideal for this role. However, we recognize that a candidate who meets some of the characteristics listed here and is eager to learn can succeed in this position. If you have some of these key experiences and qualifications and are willing to learn, we encourage you to apply.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (“DE&I”)

Bridgestone Americas promotes a culture of diversity and inclusion through a variety of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), which bring teammates and allies together based on shared characteristics, life experiences and interests. You can find information on our ERGs athttps://www.bebridgestone.com/en_us/working-at-bridgestone/employee-resource-groups. Our most recent DE&I Annual Report can be found at https://www.bridgestoneamericas.com/en/corporate-social-responsibility/our-commitments/dei.

The Bridgestone Americas CLO Group (which is comprised of the Law Department, Government and Regulatory Affairs, and Corporate Security) has several diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives that complement the company-wide DE&I efforts. Currently, the CLO Group members participate in three DE&I-related committees focused on recruiting, internship programs, and inclusion. Additionally, the Law Department achieved Mansfield Certification in 2023, is a member of Diversity Lab’s Diversity Dividend initiative, and is a member of the National Association of Women and Minority Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF)’s Inclusion Initiative Program.

Ethics & Compliance

Each member of the CLO Group plays a key role in operationalizing the global and regional ethics and compliance program. This will include, among other things, engaging leadership in the client groups you support; identifying and managing risks facing your client groups (including third party risks); ensuring policies, standards and controls are effective and in place; conducting trainings and finding other ways to ensure your client groups understand what they are expected and required to do; and conducting investigations relating to your client groups.