Project Management Lead, CoE - PPM

The role holder provides cross-functional project management leadership of the cross-functional project teams dedicated for external research collaborations. This includes facilitating and contributing to the formation of scientific proposals and, once approved through relevant governance, the execution of the research project by the cross-functional team. The holder will ensure cross-functional alignment for interactions with senior management, including project review meetings and relevant scientific advisory forums. The holder is accountable for project management delivery against agreed time, quality and budget objectives, working independently in partnership with the Project Lead and the Head of Project and Portfolio Management.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITES

- Leading the planning/execution of external collaboration research projects and programs, in partnership with the CoE Project Lead

- Supporting the Project Lead in the development of strategic options for a project, including assessment of delivery feasibility, resources and dependencies

- Responsible for coordinating the creation of project plan (cross-functional research plans, budget and timeline), and project plan update and maintenance

- Responsible for tracking performance of project delivery, including agreed milestones, deliverables and resource needs

- Tracking and managing project performance (e.g., timeline/budget), maintaining risks, issues and dependencies with mitigation actions, and providing regular project update to governance body, stakeholders and senior management

- Coordinating the project plan approvals by relevant governance bodies and communicating decisions and follow-up actions to stakeholders

- Coordinating preparation of project reviews at C-PRF, and relevant scientific advisory forums, as applicable; preparing review materials, recording decisions and tracking follow-up actions

- Coordinate operational follow-up with academic partners and research sites, including site start-up readiness, documentation, agreed research deliverables and close-out; track required ethics, regulatory and contractual approvals with the responsible functions, and resolve or escalate site process bottlenecks.

- Manage external vendors with Procurement and relevant functions, including selection and contracting support, clear scopes of work and deliverables, onboarding, performance reviews, issue resolution and change control; monitor quality, timelines, costs and milestone-based payments.

Maintain fit-for-purpose project management tools, documentation and lessons learned across CoE projects to support consistent execution and continuity.

JOB REQUIREMENTS

Essential:

- Education with a pharmaceutical, life sciences or related major and project management training

- Knowledge of drug development and translational research, with strong project management skills in a China and global working environment

- Solid knowledge and experience in financial management of projects and developing the business cases for projects.

- Working knowledge of one or more disease areas and ability to translate research objectives into project deliverables

- Understanding of project management tools and ways of working to plan, execute, identify and mitigate risks for a project. Ability to manage external vendor performance and coordinate research site processes from start-up through delivery and close-out

- Leadership, strategic thinking, problem solving

- Communication & Presentation skills

- Effective meeting and time mgmt and meeting minute organization, with clear decisions, action owners and follow-up

- At least 5 years relevant working experience in pharmaceutical industry

- Experience coordinating projects with cross-functional teams and diverse stakeholders

Desirable:

- Experience coordinating translational research or biomarker studies and familiarity with operational requirements for academic collaborations

- Experience supporting academic partnerships and scientific advisory or governance committees

Date Posted

Closing Date

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.