Head of Project Management

POSITION SUMMARY

The Head of Project Management is a hands-on leader responsible for strengthening project execution across BPGbio and leading the Project Management function. The position directly manages complex, cross-functional projects while leading, coaching, and developing members of the Project Management team. 

This individual establishes and reinforces practical project management discipline, including clear project plans, defined ownership, realistic timelines, effective meeting practices, action-item follow-through, risk management, and timely escalation. The Senior Manager converts company priorities into executable plans and ensures that commitments move from discussion to completion. 

This player-coach remains directly engaged in project delivery while improving the Project Management team’s capability, consistency, and accountability. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Project Leadership and Execution 

• Personally lead assigned high-priority projects from initiation through completion, with clear scope, deliverables, owners, milestones, timelines, dependencies, budgets, and completion criteria. 
• Develop and maintain integrated project plans covering the critical path, decisions, dependencies, resources, and budget. 
• Lead focused project meetings with clear agendas, documented decisions, accountable action owners, and due dates. 
• Actively follow up between meetings to confirm progress, resolve obstacles, and address overdue or incomplete commitments. 
• Identify and mitigate risks early; escalate unresolved issues with clear options, impacts, and required decisions. 
• Drive cross-functional accountability for deliverables, including where team members do not report directly to the position. 
• Close projects and major workstreams with documented outcomes, unresolved items, and lessons learned. 

Team Leadership and Development 

• Directly manage, coach, and develop Project Management team members, with clear expectations for ownership, work quality, communication, and follow-through. 
• Review team members’ project plans, meeting materials, dashboards, status reports, and escalations for quality and actionability. 
• Coach team members in planning, critical-path management, meeting leadership, risk management, escalation, and stakeholder communication. 
• Assign work based on company priorities, project complexity, workload, and employee development needs. 
• Set and enforce practical Project Management standards, tools, and ways of working for a lean biotechnology company. 

Scientific and Development Project Support 

• Lead assigned projects supporting drug discovery, preclinical development, clinical development, regulatory activities, and other business priorities, as applicable. 
• Coordinate timelines and deliverables for preclinical studies, including animal studies, and other research and development activities. 
• Work with scientific and technical leads to translate study requirements into executable plans, milestones, dependencies, and resource needs. 

External Partners, Budgets, and Reporting 

• Integrate external partner and consultant deliverables into project plans in coordination with the accountable internal functional owner. 
• Track external milestones, dependencies, decisions, and risks; escalate delays, scope changes, budget concerns, or performance issues promptly. 
• Support review of proposals, statements of work, budgets, timelines, and deliverables with appropriate functional, Finance, and Legal stakeholders. 
• Monitor project budgets and forecasts with Finance and functional leaders and identify potential variances early. 
• Maintain concise, decision-ready dashboards showing milestones, critical-path activities, actions, decisions, risks, issues, dependencies, budget status, and required leadership intervention. 
• Provide leadership with accurate project updates and recommendations rather than activity summaries. 

Project Management Standards

• Maintain a practical Project Management operating model covering project initiation, planning, meetings, action tracking, escalation, reporting, and closeout. 
• Improve processes that lack clear ownership, timely decisions, or follow-through while avoiding unnecessary administrative burden. 
• Perform other duties as assigned. 

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• BS or MS in biology, biotechnology, biochemistry, life sciences, business, operations, or a related discipline. 
• Six to eight years of progressive Project Management experience in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, or a closely related environment, including three to five years directly managing, mentoring, and developing a Project Management team. 
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification required. 
• Experience assigning work, setting performance expectations, providing day-to-day oversight, and supporting professional development of Project Management staff. 
• Demonstrated success personally leading complex, cross-functional biotechnology projects from planning through execution. 
• Working knowledge of biotechnology research and development, including preclinical studies and drug development activities. 
• Experience developing integrated project plans, managing critical paths, documenting decisions, tracking actions, managing budgets, and escalating risks. 
• Strong meeting leadership, written and verbal communication, stakeholder management, and executive reporting skills. 
• Ability to influence, constructively challenge, and drive accountability without relying solely on reporting authority. 
• Ability to work on-site in BPGbio's Waltham office; this is not a hybrid role. 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• Experience managing preclinical, animal-study, or other scientific research projects. 
• Experience managing outsourced work involving consultants, research partners, CROs, or other external service providers. 
• Experience implementing or improving project management standards, dashboards, templates, and operating cadence in a small biotechnology company.