Project Management Associate

ZS; Pune District, Gurugram District; Hybrid; INR 800,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

ZS in Pune seeks a Project Management Associate to support delivery across client and internal projects in a fast-paced consulting environment.

You will coordinate cross-functional teams, maintain plans, and assist Scrum activities in Agile or hybrid settings, gaining hands-on experience with industry-standard methodologies.

Qualifications

• M.Tech or related masters, or Project Management qualification.
• Strong interest in project management within pharma/healthcare consulting.
• Excellent communication, coordination, and organizational skills.
• Comfort with Excel and PowerPoint; exposure to Jira/Confluence/Smartsheet.

Responsibilities

• Partner with project managers to execute daily project tasks and track milestones.
• Coordinate across workstreams to ensure timely delivery and adherence to timelines.
• Support sprint and delivery ceremonies in Agile or hybrid environments.
• Maintain project plans, schedules, and trackers using Jira, Smartsheet, and MS Project.
• Track dependencies, monitor progress, and assist in risk identification and mitigation.
• Support accurate updates of deliverable status and progress reporting.
• Track timesheets, budgets, forecasts, and cost allocations.
• Facilitate effective collaboration across internal and external stakeholders.

Skills

Communication

Coordination

Organizational skills

Attention to detail

Education

M.Tech

Masters in related field

Project Management certification

Tools

Jira

Confluence

Smartsheet

MS Project

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

PROJECT MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATE

As a Project Management Associate, you will be part of our Program Management Expertise Center (PMEC), collaborating with cross-functional teams delivering technology and analytics solutions to leading global pharmaceutical clients.

This is an excellent opportunity for recent graduates/postgraduates to launch their careers in project management within a fast-paced consulting environment, while gaining hands-on experience with industry-standard project methodologies.

Role Overview

The Project Management Associate supports the successful execution of client and internal projects by coordinating key activities, maintaining project discipline, and ensuring alignment across delivery teams. The role requires strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and familiarity with project management tools and methodologies.

Key Responsibilities

Project Delivery & Coordination

• Partner with project managers to execute daily project tasks and track key milestones.
• Coordinate across workstreams to ensure timely delivery of project outputs and adherence to timelines.
• Support sprint and delivery ceremonies in Agile or hybrid environments.

Project Planning & Monitoring

• Maintain project plans, schedules, and trackers using tools such as Jira, Smartsheet, and MS Project.
• Track dependencies, monitor progress, and assist in risk identification and mitigation.
• Support accurate updates of deliverable status and progress reporting.

Methodology Alignment

• Apply appropriate project delivery frameworks such as Agile, Scrum, Waterfall, and Kanban as per project needs.
• Assist Scrum activities such as sprint planning, daily stand-ups, retrospectives, and progress tracking.

Reporting & Documentation

• Prepare and maintain project documents including status reports, dashboards, minutes, risk logs, and action trackers.
• Ensure data accuracy and maintain clear communication materials for stakeholders.

Resource, Financial & Timesheet Tracking

• Track and validate timesheet submissions to ensure accurate and timely reporting.
• Support project financials through tracking budgets, billable hours, forecasts, and cost allocations.
• Track resource data in Staffing Hub, including updates to allocations, onboarding, and transitions.

Stakeholder Coordination & Communication

• Facilitate effective collaboration across internal and external stakeholders.
• Ensure alignment on goals, responsibilities, and delivery expectations through consistent follow-ups.

Process Excellence & Continuous Improvement

• Identify gaps in project execution processes and propose enhancements to improve efficiency and quality.
• Maintain governance standards, templates, and adherence to ZS best practices.

Qualifications

• M.Tech, any other masters degree in a related field, or Project Management.
• Strong interest in project management and the pharma/healthcare consulting domain.
• Excellent communication, coordination, and organizational skills.
• Comfort with tools like Excel and PowerPoint; exposure to project management platforms such as Jira, Confluence, and Smartsheet is a plus.
• A proactive, detail-oriented mindset and willingness to learn and adapt in a fast-paced environment.

Why Join Us?

• Exposure to real-world client engagements and global pharma projects.
• Learn from experienced project leaders and get mentored on the latest project management trends.
• Work in a collaborative consulting setup with diverse technology and analytics teams.
• Build a solid foundation in project management, stakeholder engagement, and operational execution.

ZS is a global consulting firm; English fluency is required, and additional fluency in at least one European or Asian language is highly desired.

Candidates must possess work authorization for their intended country of employment.