DPD Project Lead

Bespak; England; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 77,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading medical solutions company based in England is seeking a DPD Project Lead for a permanent position. The role involves coordinating DPD activities, managing project plans, and facilitating cross‑functional collaboration. Ideal candidates will have at least 5 years' experience in the pharmaceutical sector, strong regulatory knowledge, and excellent communication skills. The position offers a competitive salary, hybrid working options, and substantial benefits including a generous pension contribution and private medical insurance.

Benefits

25 days annual leave plus bank holidays

Generous employer pension contribution

Private medical insurance

Private dental insurance

Free parking

Qualifications

• At least 5 years’ experience in a pharmaceutical environment.
• Experience in multiple leadership roles across business functions.
• Good knowledge of the product development process.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate delivery of DPD activities within projects.
• Manage project plans and monitor critical paths.
• Facilitate collaboration between departments.
• Coach and develop project team members.

Skills

Strong regulatory knowledge

Excellent communication skills

Practical problem solving

Sound decision-making

Education

Degree qualified

Job description

About The Role

Bespak are looking for a DPD Project Lead for a permanent role for the Holmes Chapel site, CW4 8BE. The salary for this role is £65,250 – £76,760K plus a discretionary annual bonus. Other benefits you will receive are 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, a generous 10% pension contribution, onsite free parking, and medical/dental/health/life insurance.

Day shift pattern

Monday to Friday, with start times between 8:30am and 9:00am and finish times between 4:30pm and 5:00pm (an earlier 4:00pm finish is possible on Fridays). Start and finish times are flexible, and hybrid working is also available.

As a DPD Project Lead your duties will include:

• Coordinate and drive delivery of DPD activities within New Product Opportunity (NPO) projects, ensuring clear strategy, effective resource use, and early risk mitigation.
• Construct and manage DPD elements of project plans, monitoring critical paths, inter‑dependencies, risks, and mitigation actions.
• Identify and lead capability and business improvement initiatives within DPD, aligning with site and company goals.
• Develop and maintain a tailored DPD project management framework, including tools, templates, and ways of working, and lead regular project reviews.
• Monitor budgets and resources, ensuring proactive financial management, timely invoicing, and escalation of deviations.
• Facilitate cross‑functional collaboration between DPD, QA, QC, Regulatory, and Operations to ensure smooth project handovers.
• Manage stakeholders, including OLT/ELT function heads and sponsors, communicating risks, issues and progress effectively.
• Lead effective communication within the DPD function through regular team meetings and project updates.
• Plan proactively to anticipate future capacity, technical challenges, and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure cGMP and HSE standards are maintained across all projects.
• Coach and develop project team members to strengthen planning, communication, and project ownership.
• Collaborate with Marketing and Business Development as appropriate to support business growth.

DPD Project lead, beneficial key skills, and experience:

• Degree qualified with at least 5 years’ experience in a pharmaceutical environment ideally including multiple leadership roles in at least two business functions.
• Strong regulatory knowledge appropriate to inhalation and nasal product development and commercial product approvals.
• Good knowledge of the product development process (clinical phases etc) through to commercial product validation.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross‑functional project teams.
• Sound understanding of change control process and the importance of GMP.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively and influence technical and non‑technical disciplines, including operational personnel and senior management, both internally and externally.
• Strong practical and technical problem solving.
• Sound decision‑making skills.

Benefits

25 days annual holiday + bank holiday + Buy/Sell Scheme | A generous employer pension contribution | Private medical insurance | Private dental Insurance | Permanent Health Insurance | Group life insurance | Free will service | Active well‑being programme | Recognition awards | Free Parking

Bespak is an Investors in People silver award winner that employs over 300 people and offers development and manufacturing solutions for a variety of medical products, including pressurised metered dose inhalers, soft mist inhalers, dry powder inhalers, and nasal sprays.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and will support you throughout the recruitment process with any adjustments you require. Please contact the Recruitment Team if you require support.

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