Associate Director, Project Management

Initial Therapeutics, Inc.; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 117,000 - 189,000; Full time

Job summary

Lilly is seeking an Associate Director, Program Management for Orexin development programs in the US, reporting to the Executive Director, Global Team Leader. The role combines project management discipline with drug development experience to guide early‑stage Orexin programs globally.

You will lead cross‑functional teams, maintain integrated Gantt charts, manage budgets, and drive risk management, governance, and regulatory submission readiness. Occasional travel is required.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in pharma/biotech R&D with PM or equivalent
• Experience managing IND-enabling activities and Phase 1 development
• Experience with drug development and regulatory submissions
• PMP certification desired; strong communication & leadership

Responsibilities

• Partner with the GTL to project manage a cross‑functional matrix development team
• Develop and maintain detailed cross-function program Gantt charts with dependencies
• Identify interdependencies, critical path and at‑risk activities for risk management
• Develop and maintain dashboards to communicate status and track progress
• Lead cross‑functional team meetings with agendas, materials, and minutes
• Develop and maintain issue logs and risk registers and mitigate risks
• Work with Finance to develop and manage budgets and program spend
• Manage select external vendors and integrate deliverables into the program Gantt
• Support Governance and Executive presentations for program reviews
• Prepare documents to quality standards for Regulatory/Health Authority submissions
• Contribute to establishment and refinement of best practices and processes

Skills

PM Leadership

Cross-Functional Leadership

Gantt Chart Management

Budget Management

Regulatory Submissions

Smartsheet

PMP certification

IND Development

Education

BS with 8+ years pharma R&D

MS/MBA with 6+ years pharma R&D

Tools

Smartsheet

Job description

At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life‑changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing. If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us.

Centessa Pharmaceuticals, a wholly subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company is advancing a portfolio of high conviction programs with strong biological validation. Our asset‑centric model offers a unique R&D logic that has been applied by single‑asset companies to improve productivity. This operating model has minimal centralized infrastructure, reduced hierarchy, and exclusive focus on data‑driven capital allocation. Our teams are uniquely incentivized to expeditiously interrogate key scientific hypotheses. We believe the asset‑centric model can lead to improved success rates for programs with greater speed and modest costs.

Description of Role

Centessa is seeking an Associate Director, Program Management – Orexin Development Programs. This individual will leverage both project management and drug development experience to manage one or more early‑stage global Orexin development programs. This position will report to the Executive Director, Global Team Leader.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with the GTL (Global Team Leader) to project manage a cross‑functional matrix development team, and select sub‑teams
• Lead the development of and continuously maintain detailed and fully cross‑functionally integrated program Gantt chart, incorporating all relevant dependencies, and provide fit‑for‑purpose summary views for team use and executive management reviews
• Identify and manage interdependencies, critical path and at‑risk activities to support program level scenario planning and risk management strategies
• Develop and maintain relevant dashboards to communicate status and track progress
• Manage cross‑functional team meetings including scheduling, preparing agendas, presentation materials, and minutes that ensure proper follow up of action items
• Develop and maintain issue logs and risks registers, and ensure team proactively resolve issues in a timely manner and that risks are mitigated as appropriate
• Work with cross‑functional team and Finance to develop and update budgets, and manage program spend within approved budget
• Manage select external vendors (timelines, budgets, MSA/SOW documents, etc.) and integrate deliverables into program Gantt
• Support development of Governance and Executive presentations
• Provide support for the planning and preparation of documents to a quality standard required for Regulatory/Health Authority submissions
• Contribute to establishment and refinement of best practices, processes and procedures

Qualifications

• BS plus 8+ years’ experience in pharmaceutical/biotech R&D environment, or MS/MBA plus 6+ years in pharmaceutical/biotech R&D environment, including 4+ years as PM or equivalent
• Experience managing project teams through IND‑enabling activities, pre‑IND mtgs, IND submissions, and Phase 1 development.
• Proven expertise in drug development and registration, including early and late‑stage clinical, nonclinical, CMC development, and regulatory interactions, submissions/reviews globally
• Highly motivated, proactive, detail‑oriented and organized self‑starter with strong communication, collaboration, interpersonal skills, and influence to accomplish work without formal authority and to ensure optimal team performance
• Excellent analytical skills and expert in facilitating team decision making; competent in the application of decision analysis methodologies and related tools
• Expert knowledge of project management principles and practices with the ability to thrive in a fast‑paced dynamic environment (PMP certification is highly desired), and expert in project management software, e.g., Smartsheet

Work Location

The (Associate) Director, Project Management role is based in the US, with occasional travel.

Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.

Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.

Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia (AMECA), Black Employees at Lilly (BE@Lilly), Chinese Culture Network (CCN), EnAble, Evolve, Lilly Indian Network (LIN), Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), Pride (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN) and Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL).

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is $117,000 - $189,200. Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities). Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.

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