Service Contract Manager

Service Contract Manager

Location: Saronno / Milan / Italy

Reporting to : Service Manager Italy

Travel: Regular travel within Italy and occasional international travel

About the Role

Vanderlande is looking for a highly motivated Service Contract Manager to act as the primary customer and business partner for assigned service contracts.

This role goes beyond traditional contract administration. We are looking for a business-oriented professional capable of building strong customer relationships, ensuring contractual performance, managing financial results, identifying business opportunities, and driving continuous improvement initiatives.

The Service Contract Manager acts as the primary owner of the customer relationship and the contractual performance of assigned service agreements.

Working closely with the Service Operations Team Leader and the operational teams, this role ensures that customer expectations, contractual commitments, business objectives, and service outcomes remain aligned.

Beyond contract performance, the role plays a key part in developing long-term customer partnerships. By working closely with Vanderlande commercial, business development, and service sales teams, the Service Contract Manager identifies customer needs, promotes continuous improvement initiatives, supports investment discussions, and contributes to the sustainable growth of Vanderlande’s service business.

The successful candidate will combine commercial awareness, financial understanding, customer focus, and leadership skills to support the growth and long‑term success of Vanderlande's Service business.

Ideal Candidate Profile

We are looking for a future service leader who can successfully balance customer satisfaction, contractual performance, financial results, and business growth.

The ideal candidate understands that long-term service success comes from building trusted customer relationships, managing business risks, and continuously creating value for both the customer and Vanderlande.

Preferred Backgrounds

• Service Contract Management
• Service Management
• Service Sales
• Customer Success Management (Industrial / B2B environments)
• Industrial Business Development
• Industrial Automation, Intralogistics, Material Handling or Capital Equipment Industries
• Operations Management
• Maintenance Management
• Technical Account Management
• Aftermarket Services

Experience in customer development, service sales, contract renewals, aftermarket services or account growth activities would be considered a strong advantage.

Experience in automated material handling systems, intralogistics or industrial automation is considered an advantage, but is not a prerequisite for success in this role.

What Success Looks Like

A successful Service Contract Manager in Vanderlande Italy:

• Builds trusted relationships with customers.
• Protects and grows service contracts.
• Identifies business opportunities and improvement initiatives.
• Maintains strong financial performance.
• Coordinates operational delivery effectively.
• Creates long-term value for both the customer and Vanderlande.

Main Responsibilities

Customer Relationship Management

• Act as the primary customer, contractual and business point of contact for assigned customers.
• Build and maintain strong customer relationships at both operational and management levels.
• Manage stakeholders at different organizational levels within both the customer organization and Vanderlande, ensuring alignment on priorities, performance and business objectives.
• Lead customer review meetings and performance discussions.
• Prepare and present regular operational, contractual and financial performance reports to customers and internal stakeholders.
• Manage customer escalations, contractual issues and special customer requests, coordinating internal stakeholders as required.
• Ensure alignment between customer expectations and contractual deliverables.

Contract Management

• Own the performance of assigned service contracts and the contractual scope of services to be delivered, ensuring compliance with agreed service levels, contractual commitments and customer expectations.
• Ensure maintenance activities included within assigned service contracts are effectively planned and coordinated with the Service Operations Team Leader and operational teams, in accordance with contractual commitments, operational windows and SLA requirements.
• Monitor the progress of contractual activities, customer requests, and agreed action plans, ensuring timely follow‑up and closure.
• Monitor compliance with contractual obligations, SLAs, and performance targets.
• Identify contractual risks and drive mitigation actions.
• Coordinate contract renewals, amendments, and scope changes.
• Support the development of a qualified network of suppliers, subcontractors and service partners for assigned contracts, contributing to supplier selection, commercial negotiations and performance management to ensure sustainable and cost‑effective service delivery.
• Ensure contractual governance and reporting requirements are met.
• Coordinate service providers, subcontractors and external partners involved in the delivery of contractual services, ensuring performance, compliance and alignment with customer expectations.
• Define, monitor and continuously improve contract-related KPIs and service performance indicators.
• Utilize CMMS and other company systems to monitor contractual compliance, track customer requests, manage service performance data, and support effective contract governance.
• Monitor spare parts requirements and inventory-related risks for assigned contracts, coordinating with Operations, Supply Chain, Procurement and customers to ensure the availability of critical materials required to support contractual maintenance activities and service performance.

Financial & Commercial Management

• Monitor contract profitability, operational costs, and financial performance.
• Analyze financial and operational KPIs.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, and business planning activities.
• Develop corrective actions to address performance deviations.
• Support preparation of business cases and investment proposals.

Business Development

• Identify opportunities for contract expansion, modernization projects, lifecycle services, and additional service offerings.
• Take an active role in contract retention and renewal activities, coordinating the commercial, contractual and operational inputs required to secure long‑term customer partnerships.
• Work closely with Sales, Project Management, and Service teams to maximize customer value.
• Contribute to customer retention and long‑term business growth.
• Maintain regular face‑to‑face customer engagement through site visits, business reviews and proactive follow‑up, strengthening Vanderlande’s position as a trusted service partner.

Project & Improvement Management

• Manage small and medium‑sized service‑related projects and RMR activities, if needed.
• Coordinate stakeholders, planning, budgets, risks, and customer communication.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across assigned contracts.
• Support implementation of standardized service processes and best practices.

Health, Safety & Compliance

• Promote a strong safety culture.
• Support compliance with Vanderlande policies, customer requirements, and applicable regulations.
• Participate in site audits and improvement initiatives as required.

Works closely with:

Service Operations Team Leader, Field Service Engineers, Field Service Technicians, Supply Chain, Procurement, Sales, Project Management and other support functions.

Qualifications & Experience

Required Experience

• Experience in Service Management, Contract Management, Maintenance Management, Operations Management, or similar customer‑facing environments.
• Experience in customer‑facing roles within service, contract management, operations, technical services, facility management, industrial services, account management or similar B2B environments.
• Experience in intralogistics, airport systems, industrial automation or material handling is considered an advantage but not mandatory.
• Experience working with subcontractors and external service providers.

Business & Technical Skills

• Good understanding of service delivery, customer operations, and business environments.
• Financial and commercial awareness.
• Ability to analyze operational and financial KPIs.
• Strong project and stakeholder management skills.
• Contract management experience is highly desirable.

Personal Competencies

• Excellent communication and relationship‑building skills.
• Strong customer focus.
• Business‑oriented mindset.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to recognize opportunities, challenge the status quo, and drive business growth.
• Leadership through influence.
• Structured and analytical thinker.
• Strong problem‑solving capabilities.
• Continuous improvement mentality.
• Ability to operate effectively in a dynamic and multidisciplinary environment.

Languages

• Fluent in Italian.
• Professional English.

Mobility & Customer Presence

• Willingness to travel regularly throughout Italy.
• Proactive approach to customer visits and face‑to‑face relationship development.
• Comfortable working independently across different customer locations.
• Availability for occasional international travel and collaboration with Vanderlande teams outside Italy.

Diversity & Inclusion

Vanderlande is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Qualified applicants will be considered without regards to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status.