Portfolio and Program Management Office Director

Job Description Summary

#LI-Hybrid
Location: Barcelona, Spain
Relocation Support: This role is based in Barcelona, Spain. Novartis is unable to offer relocation support: please only apply if accessible.
Lead the engine room of a pivotal transformation. As the Portfolio and Program Management Office Director, you will establish and lead the Program Management Office for ASCEND—our large-scale, technology-enabled change program in Global Development—aligning best-in-class practices (Project Management Institute standards and agile ways of working) to deliver outcomes that matter for patients and the business. You will orchestrate cross-functional roadmaps, governance, and value tracking; bring transparency through executive-ready dashboards; and foster a culture of empowerment, accountability, and continuous improvement. If you thrive on connecting strategy to execution, optimizing resources, and simplifying complexity across global, multidisciplinary teams, this is your opportunity to shape how innovation moves from idea to impact at Novartis.

 

Job Description

Key Responsibilities

• Establish and lead the Portfolio and Program Management Office for a global transformation initiative.

• Design governance structures, operating cadence, and decision forums that enable timely, transparent execution.

• Build and maintain integrated roadmaps, deliverable baselines, and cross-functional milestones aligned to strategy.

• Develop executive level reporting, dashboards, and narratives that clearly communicate progress, risks, and value.

• Institute rigorous risk, issue, and dependency management with proactive mitigation and escalation pathways.

• Drive benefits realization planning, value tracking, and outcome measurement against defined business objectives.

• Enable effective resource planning, capacity management, and prioritization across internal teams and external partners.

• Embed agile ways of working, continuous improvement, and change management practices across the program.

• Facilitate alignment with functional leaders, technology, and finance to coordinate budgets, timelines, and scope.

• Coach project leaders on planning standards, delivery excellence, and stakeholder engagement to elevate performance.

Essential Requirements

• Master’s degree or equivalent; Master of Business Administration with a bachelor’s degree, or equivalent life sciences experience.

• Fluent English, both spoken and written.

• 15 + years of cross-industry experience, including approximately 10 years in the pharmaceutical sector or similar sector.

• 5 + years of multi-functional leadership with accountability across diverse stakeholders.

• Demonstrated success leading large-scale, complex, international, and multidisciplinary programs.

• Expert knowledge of global technology transformation programs and change adoption.

• Excellent portfolio and program management skills with advanced planning, tracking, and prioritization across multiple programs.

• Expert executive communication and information management; able to influence senior leaders and align stakeholders.

 

 

Skills Desired

Drug Development, Global Project Management, Program Development, Program Management, R&D, Team Management