Associate Director, R&D IT Portfolio Delivery Lead

Bristol Myers Squibb EU Policy; Princeton (NJ); On-site; USD 167,000 - 202,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Coverage

Wellbeing Support

Financial protection

Job summary

Bristol Myers Squibb is seeking an Associate Director, R&D IT Portfolio Delivery Lead in Princeton, NJ. You will manage the R&D IT project portfolio, align initiatives with strategic priorities, and oversee budgets, risks, and stakeholder engagement to drive value for BMS R&D objectives.

The role requires strong leadership, Agile expertise, and experience in pharma regulatory environments, with clear communication across global teams.

Qualifications

• 8+ years IT project management experience, with 3+ years in portfolio/program management.
• Experience managing IT project portfolios in pharma/research environments.
• Strong knowledge of regulatory requirements (GxP, FDA, GDPR).
• Certifications: PMP, PgMP and Agile (CSM, SAFe) preferred.
• Proven leadership and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Track record delivering complex IT projects on time and budget.

Responsibilities

• Lead delivery of the R&D IT project portfolio aligned to Book of Work; optimize resources.
• Partner with IT Leadership, Product Managers, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Serve as primary portfolio update contact; translate technical details to business insights.
• Manage budgets and expenditures for investments and operational support.
• Oversee planning, execution, monitoring, and closure of projects; ensure scope, schedule, budget compliance.
• Identify and manage portfolio risks, issues and dependencies.
• Support use of Agile, Waterfall, and hybrid methodologies; define scope and success criteria.
• Coach project managers and drive delivery excellence; mitigate risks.
• Track OKRs and KPIs; provide regular status updates to R&D IT leadership.
• Foster continuous improvement by applying lessons learned and feedback loops.
• Ensure compliance with pharmaceutical regulations and BMS policies.

Skills

Portfolio management

Agile methodologies

Budgeting & forecasting

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Jira

Communication

Risk management

Strategic planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT/CS/related field

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Jira

Job description

Working with Us

Challenging. Meaningful. Life-changing. Those aren't words that are usually associated with a job. But working at Bristol Myers Squibb is anything but usual. Here, uniquely interesting work happens every day, in every department. From optimizing a production line to the latest breakthroughs in cell therapy, this is work that transforms the lives of patients, and the careers of those who do it. You'll get the chance to grow and thrive through opportunities uncommon in scale and scope, alongside high-achieving teams. Take your career farther than you thought possible.

Summary

The Associate Director, R&D BI&T Portfolio Delivery Lead, is responsible for leading the delivery and management of the R&D BI&IT project portfolio, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities and optimal resource utilization. This role will oversee project execution, financial management, and stakeholder engagement to drive successful outcomes for BMS's R&D objectives. The Associate Director will maintain portfolio governance, resource allocation, risk management, and continuous improvement, with a strong focus on Agile principles to support successful Portfolio execution.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the management and delivery of the R&D IT project portfolio, ensuring alignment with the prioritized Book of Work (BOW) and supporting effective decision-making and resource allocation.
• Build trusted partnerships with IT Leadership, Product Managers, and cross-functional stakeholders to facilitate collaboration and drive portfolio success
• Serve as the primary contact for portfolio-level updates, ensuring clear and transparent communication and translating technical information into business-relevant insights
• Manage financial for both investment projects and ongoing operational (run) support, including budgeting, forecasting, and tracking expenditures to ensure optimal use of resources and value delivery.
• Oversee project planning, execution, monitoring, and closure, ensuring adherence to best practices, regulatory requirements, and that projects remain within scope, schedule, and budget.
• Establish and monitor portfolio-level risks, issues, and dependencies, ensuring timely resolution and escalation as needed.
• Support consistent use of project and program management methodologies (Agile, Waterfall, hybrid) and collaborate with stakeholders to define scope, budget, timeline and success criteria.
• Serve as a coach and escalation point for project managers, enabling delivery excellence and risk mitigation.
• Manage objectives and key results to assess portfolio health and value realization, track key performance indicators, and provide regular status updates to R&D IT leadership.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement by implementing lessons learned and feedback loops.
• Ensure compliance with pharmaceutical industry regulations and BMS policies throughout project delivery.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in information technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Proven experience in managing complex IT project portfolios within a research or pharmaceutical environment.
• Demonstrated expertise in financial management, including budgeting, forecasting, and tracking expenditures for both investment projects and ongoing operational support.
• 8+ years of experience in IT project management. At least 3 years in a portfolio or program management role, ideally within pharmaceutical research or life sciences, preferred.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical industry regulations and compliance requirements (e.g., GxP, FDA, GDPR).
• Proven track record of successfully delivering complex IT projects and portfolios on time and within budget, with hands‑on experience in Agile environments.
• Demonstrated experience implementing and scaling Agile methodologies (e.g., Scrum, Kanban, SAFe) across teams and portfolios.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience with project management and Agile tools (e.g., Jira)
• PMP, PgMP, Agile certification (e.g., Certified ScrumMaster, SAFe Agilist) preferred.
• Ability to influence and drive change in a matrixed, global organization.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities.

Compensation Overview

Princeton - NJ - US: $166,690 - $201,983

The starting compensation range(s) for this role are listed above for a full-time employee (FTE) basis. Additional incentive cash and stock opportunities (based on eligibility) may be available. The starting pay rate takes into account characteristics of the job, such as required skills, where the job is performed, the employee's work schedule, job-related knowledge, and experience. Final, individual compensation will be decided based on demonstrated experience.

Eligibility for specific benefits listed on our careers site may vary based on the job and location. For more on benefits, please visit https://careers.bms.com/life-at-bms/.

Benefits

• Health Coverage: Medical, pharmacy, dental, and vision care.
• Wellbeing Support: Programs such as BMS Well-Being Account, BMS Living Life Better, and Employee Assistance Programs (EAP).
• Financial Well-being and Protection: 401(k) plan, short- and long-term disability, life insurance, accident insurance, supplemental health insurance, business travel protection, personal liability protection, identity theft benefit, legal support, and survivor support.

Work-life Benefits Include

Paid Time Off

• US Exempt Employees: flexible time off (unlimited, with manager approval, 11 paid national holidays (not applicable to employees in Phoenix, AZ, Puerto Rico or Rayzebio employees)
• Phoenix, AZ, Puerto Rico and Rayzebio Exempt, Non-Exempt, Hourly Employees: 160 hours annual paid vacation for new hires with manager approval, 11 national holidays, and 3 optional holidays

Based on eligibility*, additional time off for employees may include unlimited paid sick time, up to 2 paid volunteer days per year, summer hours flexibility, leaves of absence for medical, personal, parental, caregiver, bereavement, and military needs and an annual Global Shutdown between Christmas and New Years Day.

All global employees full and part-time who are actively employed at and paid directly by BMS at the end of the calendar year are eligible to take advantage of the Global Shutdown.

• Eligibility Disclosure: The summer hours program is for United States (U.S.) office-based employees due to the unique nature of their work. Summer hours are generally not available for field sales and manufacturing operations and may also be limited for the capability centers. Employees in remote-by-design or lab-based roles may be eligible for summer hours, depending on the nature of their work, and should discuss eligibility with their manager. Employees covered under a collective bargaining agreement should consult that document to determine if they are eligible. Contractors, leased workers and other service providers are not eligible to participate in the program.

Uniquely Interesting Work, Life-changing Careers

With a single vision as inspiring as "Transforming patients' lives through science" , every BMS employee plays an integral role in work that goes far beyond ordinary. Each of us is empowered to apply our individual talents and unique perspectives in a supportive culture, promoting global participation in clinical trials, while our shared values of passion, innovation, urgency, accountability, inclusion and integrity bring out the highest potential of each of our colleagues.

On-site Protocol

BMS has an occupancy structure that determines where an employee is required to conduct their work. This structure includes site-essential, site-by-design, field-based and remote-by-design jobs. The occupancy type that you are assigned is determined by the nature and responsibilities of your role:

Responsibilities

Site-essential roles require 100% of shifts onsite at your assigned facility. Site-by-design roles may be eligible for a hybrid work model with at least 50% onsite at your assigned facility. For these roles, onsite presence is considered an essential job function and is critical to collaboration, innovation, productivity, and a positive Company culture. For field-based and remote-by-design roles the ability to physically travel to visit customers, patients or business partners and to attend meetings on behalf of BMS as directed is an essential job function.

Supporting People With Disabilities

BMS is dedicated to ensuring that people with disabilities can excel through a transparent recruitment process, reasonable workplace accommodations/adjustments and ongoing support in their roles. Applicants can request a reasonable workplace accommodation/adjustment prior to accepting a job offer. If you require reasonable accommodations/adjustments in completing this application, or in any part of the recruitment process, direct your inquiries to [e-mail]. Visit careers.bms.com/eeo-accessibility to access our complete Equal Employment Opportunity statement.

Candidate Rights

BMS will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, pursuant to applicable laws in your area.

If you live in or expect to work from Los Angeles County if hired for this position, please visit this page for important additional information: https://careers.bms.com/california-residents/

Data Protection

We will never request payments, financial information, or social security numbers during our application or recruitment process. Learn more about protecting yourself at https://careers.bms.com/fraud-protection.

Any data processed in connection with role applications will be treated in accordance with applicable data privacy policies and regulations.

If you believe that the job posting is missing information required by local law or incorrect in any way, please contact BMS at [e-mail]. Please provide the Job Title and Requisition number so we can review. Communications related to your application should not be sent to this email and you will not receive a response. Inquiries related to the status of your application should be directed to Chat with Ripley.

R1605343 : Associate Director, R&D IT Portfolio Delivery Lead