Intellectual Property & Contract Specialist

WhiteWater makes products, but we are a service business at our heart, which means we are a people business. In this way, we excel and create value for our clients by listening to their needs, collaborating to develop solutions, problem-solving and attending to the details. Our culture, as you would expect, reflects these traits. We are a diverse group of experts, from creative designers to talented engineers. Whatever expertise we bring from all over the world, we listen and learn from each other because we are aligned with a clearly understood purpose. Together, we create fun for families globally.

Interested in starting an exciting career with WhiteWater? Apply today!

Position: Intellectual Property & Contract Specialist
Shift: Regular Full Time, 40 hours per week
Department: Innovation
Location: Richmond, B.C., Canada
Reports to: Director, Innovation

Purpose:

Under the general direction of the Director of Innovation, as the Intellectual Property Specialist, you are expected to support a broad range of intellectual property related workflows and initiatives including, but not limited to, strategic planning, risk management, cross-functional coordination, portfolio management and financial reporting. You will have the opportunity to contribute to WhiteWater’s intellectual property policy development, collaborate with legal teams, support business with IP related matters, disclosure authoring, and IP protection strategies.

You will also be supporting the Director Legal & Risk Management, as the Contract Specialist, by providing contract reviews and be supporting the commercial team as a liaison to provide insights into the legal aspect of these reviews.

This role requires the ability to effectively manage concurrent assignments and set priorities to ensure deadlines are met and assigned portfolios are consistently moving forward.

The role will provide you with the opportunity for training and personal development in the field of intellectual property and commercial contracts, to support both yours and WhiteWater’s continued growth with intellectual property internal expertise.

Essential Responsibilities

Contract Specialist Duties:

• Review of project contracts in a broad range of settings, regions and cultures (this includes exposure to American Institute Architects contracts, International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) contracts, bespoke Engineering Procurement & Construction contracts, supply and services subcontracts, after sales and others) under the guidance of the Director Legal & Risk Management
• Assemble and update contractual documentation, in particular, contract annexes related to specification, scope, schedule during the bidding and/or contracting process
• Work in close collaboration with the Director, Legal and Risk Management and Operations team to ensure the sharing and advising of critical contractual elements are communicated, and that the company guidelines and objectives are followed during contract negotiations.
• Serve as the liaison with both internal clients and external contracting representatives in various regions of the World including attending virtual meetings when required
• Support research and documentation to prepare responses and actions regarding breach of contracts
• Research regulations to ensure contracts are updated and in compliance with applicable local jurisdictional laws as required
• Scope of responsibility to evolve with success and seniority

Patent and Trademark Administrator Duties:

• Serve as the primary contact for all intellectual property (IP) program cross-functional team partners, maintaining regular communication and providing program updates to all internal IP stakeholders.
• Provide application information to external attorneys to assist and support new patent prosecutions or Trademark (TM) applications and manage adherence to application timelines.
• Prepare preliminary disclosure documents for utility & design patent applications to assist filing decision making milestones with IP stakeholders.
• Maintain internal IP/TM portfolio documents, organize correspondence and documents, budget tracking, and patent and trademark invoice coding.
• Assist with timely collection of drawings and technical documents for preliminary or active patent applications.
• Manage patent/TM annuity and maintenance deadlines, track application action response deadlines and related tasks.
• Provide patent research services using available patent search services, competitive IP landscape analysis, and other IP related administrative and technical support duties.
• Participate in intellectual property planning and strategic development opportunities with product line teams.
• Demonstrating a team approach; supporting and standing in for colleagues to cover absences.
• Other administrative and technical duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Completion of Paralegal Certificate, diploma or equivalent is an asset.
• Proven work experience as assisting or as a Contracts Specialist or similar role
• Relevant training and/or certifications as a Contracts Specialist
• 5+ years of experience as legal assistant in the field of Intellectual Property/Trademarks/Patents is an asset.
• Secondary school technical education in the fields of applied science is an asset.

Competencies, Skills & Abilities:

• Attention to detail: Willing and able to take responsibility for deadlines and workflow management.
• Able to identify tasks and prioritize a high-volume workload with limited resources.
• Self-Motivated and Goal Oriented
  
• Able to achieve the right things to a high standard, on time, and with minimal supervision.
• Excited about working in intellectual property.
• Responsive, professional attitude with a willingness to learn
• Outstanding Communication Skills: Position requires communication within many departments internal to the company, as well as with outside counsel and other third parties.
• Skilled at maintaining professional communication while also efficiently conveying information.
• Able to interact with technical colleagues in an effective manner.
• Excellent spoken and written communication skills.
• Team Player: Ability to work independently and collaboratively with others.
• Skilled at providing support to internal stakeholders by combining critical thinking skills, a high level of initiative, and a proactive approach to problem solving.
• Action oriented approach: If you don't know something, you seek to find it out.
• Strong organization and problem-solving skills.
  
• Advanced computer skills; proficient MS Office – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams; working knowledge of SharePoint and IP docket management is an asset.
• Maintain professional manners by using judgment, discretion and confidentiality.
• Must be legally eligible to work in Canada.

WhiteWater Competencies:

• Accountability – We do what we say
• Collaboration – We work well together
• Customer Focus – We know and respond to our customers
• Communication – We listen to and understand each other
• Authenticity – We are honest and trust each other
• Resilience – We deal effectively with pressure, are persistent and optimistic
• Flexibility & Adaptability – We are willing and able to respond to changing circumstances

WhiteWater is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate the diversity of all employees and applicants and are strongly committed to creating an inclusive environment for everyone.

We thank all the candidates who take the time and energy to apply. Given the volume of applications, it makes responding personally to each applicant difficult, but please know we are grateful for your interest. We look forward to connecting with you through this search or future ones. All the best in your job search.