Staples is business to business. You’re what binds us together.

While you may know Staples as the world’s leading office supply company, Staples Promotional Products – a division of Staples – is a national leader in the promotional products industry. At Staples Promotional Products, we help customers build love for their brands with customized merchandise solutions. Whatever story they want to tell, connection they want to make, or goal they need to deliver, Staples Promo makes it easy to design promo experiences that create lasting impact. Join our winning team!

What you’ll be doing:

Staples seeks a Contract Specialist to support the Legal Team that serves our promotional products business, primarily ecommerce, marketing and sales businesses. This associate is expected, with attorney supervision when required, to manage and perform a number of legal support functions, including: reviewing, negotiating and drafting services, licensing, merchandising, and other agreements; meeting directly with internal clients and third parties; solving problems and responding to questions about Staples’ contract policies, use of form contracts, interpretation of contract terms, and other issues, under the supervision of Staples attorneys; reviewing, analyzing and synthesizing laws and regulations; and assuming a project management role, as needed.

• Review, draft and negotiate contracts, including meeting with internal clients and negotiating with third parties.
• Advise clients with respect to Staples’ contract policies, use of form contracts, interpretation of contract terms, and other issues.
• Enter contract information in Staples’ contract management systems.
• Assist with drafting new contract templates.
• Assist lawyers with training internal clients on contract and legal issues.
• Review existing (and proposed) laws and regulations and understand how they may affect internal clients, synthesize such laws and regulations for attorneys, and help advise internal clients on such laws and regulations.
• Assist with project management tasks.

What you bring to the table:

• Contract Drafting Skills: A solid understanding of legal terms and contract formulation principles is required.
• Negotiation/Communication Skills: Associate must have experience in working directly with third parties in both cooperative and potentially adversarial scenarios. Associate must demonstrate intercultural awareness and sensitivity. Associate must have excellent written and verbal communication skills and be able to write in a clear and concise manner.
• Project/Process Management Skills: Associate must have demonstrated ability managing projects/ processes, with a focus on proven success achieving project goals despite competing viewpoints and interests.
• Legal Research Skills: Associate must have ability to conduct legal research and review and understand legislation as well as understand and communicate the implications of legislation to the in-house clients and supervising attorneys.
• Detail and Result Oriented: Associate must be highly focused on details and the desired outcome for each work task. This includes being able to understand the business objective and use problem solving skills to overcome obstacles to achieving such objective.
• Computer Skills: Associate must have highly refined computer skills, including proficiency in Word, Powerpoint and Excel. Associate must be computer and internet literate and have the ability to work in various databases, both internal and external.
• Confidentiality: Ability to maintain confidentiality requirements is key for all positions in the Legal Department.

What’s needed- Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience
• 2-6 years’ experience in commercial contracts

What’s needed- Preferred Qualifications:

• Paralegal certification
• Foreign language skills
• Contracts: Experience drafting and negotiating vendor, manufacturing, services and licensing agreements.
• Judgment: Associate must possess excellent judgment on business and legal matters, including knowing when to escalate issues to the attorney level or a senior business team member.
• Knowledge Transfer Skills: Associate must comfortably and easily be able to transfer prior legal and business learning to new variable factual situations.
• Decision Making Skills: Associate must be comfortable with, and highly proficient at making, significant decisions within defined parameters.
• Business Understanding: Associate must be capable of understanding the business details of each internal client and must be willing to self-educate and self-start in terms of keeping up with his/her respective clients’ businesses.

We Offer:

• Inclusive culture with associate-led Business Resource Groups 
• Flexible PTO (22 days) and Holiday Schedule (7 observed paid holidays) 
• Online and Retail Discounts, Company Match 401(k), Physical and Mental Health Wellness programs, and more! 

At Staples, “inclusion” is an action word. It represents what we do to ensure that all employees feel valued and supported to contribute to their fullest potential. When we operate inclusively, diversity naturally follows. This is why we work hard to foster an inclusive culture, as we seek employees with unique and varied perspectives and areas of expertise. The result is a better workplace and innovative thinking that helps us exceed our customers’ expectations -- through the power of the people behind our iconic brand.

Staples is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law.

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.