Engagement Manager
Biotechnology is rewriting life as we know it, from the medicines we take, to the crops we grow, the materials we wear, and the household goods that we rely on every day. But moving at the new speed of science requires better technology.
Benchling’s mission is to unlock the power of biotechnology. The world’s most innovative biotech companies use Benchling’s R&D Cloud to power the development of breakthrough products and accelerate time to milestone and market.
Come help us bring modern software to modern science.
ROLE OVERVIEW
Benchling is seeking an experienced customer-facing Engagement Manager to be responsible for implementations for our largest enterprise customers. These are generally multi-phased, 6-12+ month, cross-departmental programs which require deploying Benchling into complex enterprise IT environments, collaborating with other vendor solutions and various legacy applications. This is a meaningful role, requiring you to partner with and lead internal and external teams to drive projects to successful completion.
The Engagement Manager leads the services team from project kick off to successful launch, and plays a key role in crafting solutions that achieve our customer’s scientific and business outcomes. You will collaborate with both project team members and senior Scientific and IT leaders, establish credibility and confidence from the first meeting, and handle customer expectations throughout the project journey.
The Engagement Manager must be comfortable with Life Sciences R&D processes and scientific concepts, have experience with enterprise SaaS software implementations, and be adept at working with internal and external project teams. You are able to translate customer objectives into detailed project plans, lead all aspects of projects, and drive execution.
You will be the project leader, handling customer outcomes and satisfaction & project timelines, scope, and budget. You will be seen as a trusted advisor who has the customer’s best interests in mind, even when it means having a hard conversation, or convincing them that what they think they want may not be what they actually need, nor what Benchling best practices recommend.
If you are passionate about Life Sciences, excited by the prospect of leading implementations of pioneering technology to drive improvements in R&D processes, and looking to work for a fast-growing tech company, this is the role for you.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Lead engagements and provide oversight for multiple of our largest customers, covering multiple projects, with a focus on delivery of scope on time, within budget, and with high quality outcomes
- Work closely with Sales and Solutions teams to translate customer requirements into services agreements for implementation
- Establish and maintain relationships at all levels of the customer organization including project team members, executive sponsors & key collaborators
- Partner with internal Benchling teams to translate client requirements, objectives, and goals into practical designs and build plans that can be delivered against
- Lead the activities of the Benchling project team and drive execution of the project plan
- Set clear expectations with internal and external team members, and hold them accountable for schedules and project results
- Lead customer escalations, diagnose project issues and risks, develop contingency plans, and implement changes to drive risk mitigation
- Actively handle project financials, including team utilization, budget vs actual hours, project margin, travel and other expenses
- Run governance meetings and report regularly both internally and externally on project status, achievements, critical metrics, and deliverables
- Identify, communicate, and work with sales to develop opportunities identified during project execution, collaborate on the creation of proposals, estimates, change orders, and new statements of work
- Work with Product Management and Engineering to scope and price proof of concepts or new and unique solutions that encompass various aspects of the product including extensions and customizations
- Document lessons learned and recommend process and methodology improvements to improve execution on future project
- You will shape the long-term strategy and vision for the Enterprise services business
- You will inspire your team to accelerate our growth within the world’s largest biopharma companies by delivering magnificent Enterprise-caliber implementations and client experiences
- You will mentor, coach, and champion your team as you help them grow their professional skills
- You will run a profitable services business that doesn’t sacrifice quality or customer success in doing so
- You will be a respected cross-functional parter to our Sales, Solutions, and Product teams, known for fairly advocating for both the customer and for Benchling
- You will be known as a standout colleague, always thinking about what’s best for the company and team, and always willing to help those around you accomplish their goals
QUALIFICATIONS
Must haves:
- Experience working with Life Sciences companies with an understanding of R&D processes and scientific concepts. Must be able to confidently interface and build trust with scientists, IT, and Director/VP level audiences in top-20 Biotech and Pharma companies.
- At least 5 years client facing implementation and/or consulting experience, with demonstrated record of successfully running large scale projects, ideally in the Life Sciences space
- Proven ability to lead 5-10 person implementation teams to deliver multi-workstream projects with superior project management, organizational, and time management skills
- Functional understanding of SaaS as a product delivery mechanism including experience with agile, waterfall and hybrid implementation methodologies
- Experienced in project management for multi-workstream enterprise software deployments including scope management, budget control, project and executive reporting, and project financials
- Proficiency in project commercials including SOWs, budgeting, resourcing, and change orders
- Independent, adaptable and can thrive in a fast-paced startup environment
- Excellent interpersonal skills in verbal, written and presentation formats
- Ability to work at customer site, or in the SF or Boston offices based on customer and project needs
- BS or M.Sc. in Biology, Molecular Biology, Genetics, Biotechnology, Bioengineering or similar life science field preferred, or equivalent professional experience working with Life Sciences R&D processes and/or healthcare technology.
SALARY RANGE
Benchling takes a market-based approach to pay, and pay may vary depending on your location. The candidate's starting pay will be determined based on job-related skills, experience, qualifications, interview performance, and work location.
Zone 1: $136,170 - $184,230
To help you determine which zone applies to your location, please see this resource. If you have questions regarding a specific location's zone designation, please contact a recruiter for additional information.
Total Compensation includes the following:
- Competitive salary and equity
- 100% premiums covered for health, dental, and vision for employees
- Fertility healthcare and family-forming benefits
- Four months of fully paid parental leave
- 401(k) + Employer Match
- Commuter benefits
- Home office stipend
- Mental health benefits + Wellness stipend
- Learning and development stipend
- Generous PTO
- Company-wide winter and summer holiday shutdown
- Sabbaticals for 5-year and 10-year anniversaries
#LI-KW2
We are an equal opportunity employer. That means we don’t discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We also consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.
For applicants for U.S.-based roles only: All new hires in the United States are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to provide proof of vaccination prior to their first day of employment. If you are unable to be vaccinated for medical or religious reasons, we will explore potential reasonable accommodations; however, Benchling may not be able to grant such accommodations in all cases if doing so would cause undue hardship.
