US Launch Operations - PH Vet Launch Leader

At Elanco (NYSE: ELAN) – it all starts with animals!

As a global leader in animal health, we are dedicated to innovation and delivering products and services to prevent and treat disease in farm animals and pets. At Elanco, we are driven by our vision of Food and Companionship Enriching Life and our purpose – all to Go Beyond for Animals, Customers, Society and Our People.

At Elanco, we pride ourselves on fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. We believe that diversity is the driving force behind innovation, creativity, and overall business success. Here, you’ll be part of a company that values and champions new ways of thinking, work with dynamic individuals, and acquire new skills and experiences that will propel your career to new heights.

Making animals’ lives better makes life better – join our team today!

As the US Pet Health Vet Launch Manager, you will lead project management activities to ensure successful, on-time launches of veterinary products. In this role, you will partner closely with the US Pet Health Vet Launch Managers, and cross-functional stakeholders to design robust launch plans, proactively manage risk, and ensure alignment with Elanco Launch Excellence standards. Your work will directly enable the delivery of high-quality products to customers at launch.

• Independently lead project management activities for prioritized US Pet Health launch initiatives to ensure launch readiness

• Partner with cross-functional teams including Marketing, Regulatory, Manufacturing, Quality, R&D, Finance, New Product Planning, Innovation Strategy, and Affiliate Commercial teams to develop and maintain integrated launch plans

• Define, manage, and communicate launch scope, milestones, deliverables, and timelines using approved project management tools

• Identify and actively manage critical path activities, risks, and leading indicators impacting launch milestones

• Monitor performance to plan, escalate issues as needed, and drive corrective actions in partnership with the US Launch Excellence Lead

• Develop and maintain detailed launch timelines and process maps, ensuring alignment across functions

• Proactively manage schedule updates and communicate changes to stakeholders

• Partner with Brand Managers to support launch budget planning, forecasting, and re-forecasting

• Provide leadership with clear visibility into cost implications of launch scenarios and variances

• Lead launch risk assessments, mitigation strategies, and contingency planning, with clear ownership and escalation

• Proactively identify risks impacting launch timelines or portfolio milestones and take action to mitigate or avoid delays

• Apply a strong quality mindset across all project activities and escalate issues appropriately

• Ensure accurate documentation of decisions, scope changes, metrics, and launch readiness indicators

• Coordinate launch governance, including meeting logistics, agendas, documentation, and minutes

• Influence cross-functional teams to operate with a consistent quality and execution mindset

• Assess resource constraints and capacity risks, providing recommendations on scope, budget, and resourcing impacts

• Drive continuous improvement by identifying, sharing, and embedding best practices across launch and project management teams

• Lead and participate in retrospective reviews to capture lessons learned and improve future launch execution

• Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Pharmacy, Biotechnology, Engineering, Business, or equivalent

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry, with direct involvement in product launch, commercialization, or new product introduction

• Proven experience managing cross-functional projects in a matrixed environment

• Strong project management capabilities including timeline development, milestone tracking, risk mitigation, and budget oversight

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence diverse stakeholders

• Strategic mindset with the ability to translate market insights into actionable launch plans

• Strong analytical skills, including interpretation of market, sales, and forecast data

• Experience with end-to-end launch readiness, from pre-launch planning through operational execution

• High level of stakeholder management across Commercial, Supply, Regulatory, Medical, and other functions

• Comfort leading through ambiguity in fast-paced, evolving environments

• Digital fluency with project management tools, dashboards, and forecasting models

• Demonstrated ability to lead, motivate, and influence teams without direct authority

• Location: Global Elanco Headquarters, Indianapolis, IN – Hybrid work environment

• Travel: less than 10% of time.

Elanco is an EEO/Affirmative Action Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status