Life Sciences Project Executive: Growth & Compliance Leader

Yates Construction; Atlanta (GA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Yates Construction seeks a Project Executive - Life Sciences to provide executive leadership for project acquisition, contract negotiations, client relations, budget management, and trade partner strategy across complex life science facilities.

This role oversees managers and professionals across multiple departments, coordinating with pharmaceutical, biotechnology and research clients, while ensuring compliance with safety, quality, and cGMP/cleanroom standards.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of general construction experience.
• 10+ years in construction management leadership, including large life science or pharma projects.
• Experience with cGMP, cleanrooms, or validated environments.

Responsibilities

• Executive Leadership & Team Recruitment: Recruits, assembles, and builds high-performing project teams specializing in technical MEP/HVAC commissioning and validated environments. Supervises managers and multi-departmental staff, providing executive direction to exceed project goals.
• Project Acquisition & Business Growth: Generates leads across the life sciences and biotech sectors using industry contacts, leads specialized RFP/RFQ processes, and participates in executive-level contract negotiations.
• Pre-Construction & Project Start-Up: Works with pre-construction teams to align target value design, specialized equipment long-lead procurement, schedules, and baseline budgets, leading smooth turnover meetings between pre-construction and execution teams.
• Operations & P&L Governance: Maintains full accountability for Accounts Receivable, Financial Forecasting, and P&L across life science portfolios. Regularly visits project sites to monitor performance, clean build protocols, and safety compliance.
• Client & Executive Relationship Management: Serves as the primary executive point of contact for pharmaceutical clients, lab planners, and owners, building long-term relationships to secure repeat business.
• Lean & Safety Strategy: Champions company safety programs and leads project team implementation of Lean/Last Planner processes, modular pre-fabrication strategies, and baseline schedule development.

Skills

Executive leadership

Negotiation

Analytical problem-solving

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor's degree in Construction Management or Engineering

Tools

Primavera P6

MS Project

ProjectSight

Job description

Yates Construction seeks a Project Executive - Life Sciences to provide executive leadership for project acquisition, contract negotiations, client relations, budget management, and trade partner strategy across complex life science facilities.

This role oversees managers and professionals across multiple departments, coordinating with pharmaceutical, biotechnology and research clients, while ensuring compliance with safety, quality, and cGMP/cleanroom standards.