Senior Project Manager, Laboratory

The Senior Project Manager serves as the primary client relationship lead for assigned bioanalytical programs, overseeing the successful delivery of complex clinical studies from startup through closeout. This role is responsible for providing strategic project leadership, ensuring operational excellence, managing study timelines and financial performance, mitigating risks, and driving cross-functional collaboration to achieve client expectations and business objectives.

The Senior Project Manager acts as a trusted partner to sponsors, building strong relationships while leading internal teams to ensure studies are executed in accordance with regulatory requirements, study protocols, contractual obligations, and company procedures.

This is a hybrid role requiring onsite presence three days per week in our Lenexa, KS location.

• Recognize, exemplify, and champion ICON's values centered around our commitment to People, Clients, and Performance.

• Serve as the senior-level sponsor contact and strategic partner for assigned bioanalytical studies and programs.

• Lead the planning, execution, monitoring, and closeout of multiple studies, ensuring delivery against scope, quality, budget, and timeline commitments.

• Build and maintain strong client relationships, providing proactive communication, strategic guidance, and issue resolution throughout the study lifecycle.

• Review contracts, protocols, amendments, and study-specific requirements to ensure successful implementation and operational execution.

• Provide overall project leadership, coordinating cross-functional teams to achieve study milestones and deliverables.

• Develop and maintain project plans, risk assessments, resource requirements, and mitigation strategies for assigned studies.

• Proactively identify, escalate, and resolve project risks, operational challenges, and client concerns.

• Lead sponsor governance meetings, study update calls, kick-off meetings, and issue-resolution discussions.

• Present study progress, key performance indicators, risks, and mitigation plans to both internal leadership and external stakeholders.

• Provide sponsors with regular study management reports, forecasting study timelines, deliverables, resource needs, and potential impacts to study execution.

• Drive accountability across functional teams to ensure adherence to protocol requirements, governing procedures, quality standards, and client expectations.

• Monitor study budgets, scope changes, and financial performance in partnership with Business Development and operational leadership.

• Support proposal development, bid defenses, and client presentations as needed.

• Gather, analyze, and interpret study metrics to support operational decision-making and continuous improvement initiatives.

• Oversee study documentation, ensuring files remain inspection-ready and compliant throughout the study lifecycle.

• Ensure proper archival of all study documentation upon project completion.

• Participate in and contribute to process improvement initiatives, SOP reviews, and the development of best practices to enhance operational efficiency and client satisfaction.

• Mentor and provide guidance to junior project managers and team members, supporting knowledge-sharing and professional development across the organization.

• Represent ICON at sponsor meetings, investigator meetings, industry events, and other client-facing engagements as required.

• Perform additional responsibilities as assigned by management.

• Bachelor's degree or local equivalent in Life Sciences, Business, Project Management, or a related field.

• 5+ years of experience in clinical research, bioanalytical laboratory services, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO, or related life sciences environments.

• 3+ years of project management experience leading clinical, laboratory, or drug development programs with direct client-facing responsibilities.

• Demonstrated experience managing complex, multi-phase clinical studies or laboratory service programs.

• Strong understanding of bioanalytical testing, clinical trial operations, laboratory services, and regulated environments.

• Proven ability to build and maintain executive-level client relationships.

• Experience managing project financials, budgets, forecasting, and scope management.

• Strong risk management, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities.

• Excellent verbal, written, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.

• Demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional teams and drive results in a matrix environment.

• Experience mentoring, coaching, or leading less experienced team members is preferred.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and project management tools.

• Strong organizational, analytical, and strategic thinking skills.

• Ability to work in a hybrid environment with onsite presence three days per week.