Director, Project Management

What if… you could join an organization that creates, resources, and builds life sciences companies that invent breakthrough technologies in order to transform health care and sustainability?

Metaphore Biotechnologies is an early-stage biotechnology company with an ambitious and exciting mission: to reimagine drug discovery and vaccine design. The company is developing a first-in-class platform for the intelligent design of molecular mimicry. Our platform integrates massively parallel assays with machine-learning-guided protein engineering to navigate the combinatorial space of molecular interactions and design protein-protein interfaces with exquisite precision.

Metaphore Biotechnologies is a product of Flagship Pioneering's venture creation engine, which has also given rise to companies such as Moderna Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MRNA), Editas Medicine (NASDAQ: EDIT), Omega Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OMGA), Seres Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MCRB), and Indigo Agriculture. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has applied its unique hypothesis-driven innovation process to originate and foster more than 100 scientific ventures. In 2021, Flagship Pioneering was ranked 12th globally on Fortune’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies.

Position Summary

We are looking for an experienced Research and Early Development Project Manager to build the function and drive the delivery of pipeline programs and technical projects. The position will work collaboratively with the project leaders, program teams and functional area leads in a fast-paced and exciting environment at the heart of ensuring planning and achievement of our critical corporate goals. This role is focused on enabling teams to advance therapeutic programs from idea to IND, regulatory documentation, clinical manufacturing, project strategy and CRO management. This is an exciting and visible role for a highly qualified and motivated individual.

The successful candidate will be results-driven, highly organized and have a proven track record in managing and driving project success as a Project Manager in the pharma/biotech industry, preferably with protein and antibody programs. Furthermore, the successful candidate will have excellent communication and collaboration skills, knowledge of IND processes, and experience managing internal and external teams.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership

• Establish, integrate, and continuously improve the Program Management function within the Metaphore culture.
• Provide strategic leadership and expertise in terms of scenario planning, trade-off decisions, and risk / value discussions.
• Partner closely with Project Leads and functional heads to develop and maintain integrated project plans to identify/communicate interdependencies as well as critical path activities for the project.
• Act as the source for information regarding the overall progression of the portfolio, milestone achievements and risk monitoring.

Accountabilities

• Develop, track and monitor key milestones and decision points to drive delivery of project objectives.
• Effectively communicate with team members, senior leaders and key stakeholders on the status, objectives, risks, and mitigation plans associated with projects.
• Ensure team members are aware of integrated project timelines and provide timely updates of status and cross-functional impact.
• Facilitate team meetings using project management best practices/tools to drive cross-functional communication, timely and effective decision making, and successful execution of project objectives.
• Organize and maintain team communications including meeting agendas, minutes, decision logs, tasks lists, and risk analyses/mitigation strategies. Develop project management tools/templates to facilitate timely communication and execution of projects.
• Facilitate budgeting/forecasting/long-range planning activities for assigned projects.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in life sciences, engineering or related field. Advanced degree (MS, PhD or MBA) and/or PMP Certification preferred. 
• A minimum of 7-9+ years of experience in the biopharmaceutical/pharmaceutical industry. Previous experience in protein and antibody therapeutics preferred.
• A minimum of 5-7+ years of experience in project management of pharmaceutical products.
• Knowledge of biotechnology/pharmaceutical product development processes including technical transfer, manufacturing, stability studies, analytical development, regulatory filings, and clinical/commercial operations. Pre-IND experience is preferred.

Skills / Capabiliti