On-Site Construction Program Manager — Pharma/Life Sciences

erm; United States; On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

ERM is seeking a Construction Program Manager (Owner's Representative) to provide senior leadership across a multi-workstream capital program within a pharmaceutical or life-sciences manufacturing environment.

You will oversee planning, design coordination, procurement, construction execution, and turnover activities, ensuring alignment between owner, designers, contractors, commissioning teams, and site operations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Architecture, or related field; or equivalent experience.
• Minimum 12+ years managing complex capital construction projects.
• Proven track record delivering projects safely, on schedule, and within budget.
• Strong command of CPM scheduling and cost control.
• Experience with procurement, bid processes, contract administration, and change management.
• Excellent communication and leadership; ability to influence without direct authority.
• Proficiency with construction management tools such as Primavera P6, MS Project, Procore/ACC, Excel/Power BI.
• Willingness to work 100% on site in an active construction program.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the owner's representative and primary liaison between program leadership, design partners, GC/CMs, and specialty contractors.
• Lead governance processes (decision logs, risk/issue registers, action trackers, meeting cadences).
• Ensure scope clarity, workstream alignment, and timely resolution of cross-functional issues.
• Lead creation and management of integrated master schedules, phasing strategies, and site logistics plans.
• Coordinate design development to ensure constructability, operational alignment, and alignment with CQV readiness.
• Develop contracting strategies, bid packages, and procurement timelines to support cost and schedule objectives.
• Own cost and schedule performance across the program, including forecasting, variance tracking, and contingency management.
• Perform critical path analysis and schedule risk reviews; drive recovery actions as needed.
• Manage change control processes and negotiate scope, cost, and time adjustments with contractors and vendors.
• Lead bid solicitations, evaluations, award recommendations, and contract onboarding.
• Administer contracts with support from commercial/legal teams; validate progress, pay applications, and deliverables.
• Identify risks of claims early, drive dispute avoidance strategies, and support resolution activities.
• Maintain a daily field presence to validate progress, sequencing, manpower, and adherence to plans/specifications.
• Coordinate closely with GC/CM on workface planning, logistics, and constraint removal.
• Oversee quality assurance processes, including submittals, inspections, non-conformance management, and punchlist execution.
• Champion safety expectations and hold teams accountable for proper planning and execution.
• Interface with the Client/GC/EHS teams to track safety concerns, corrective actions, and systemic improvement opportunities.
• Manage the program risk register, ensuring risk mitigation and contingency strategies are defined and executed.
• Convert field details, contractor inputs, and technical data into concise executive-ready updates and dashboards.
• Lead coordination meetings across design, construction, operations, permitting, quality, and CQV teams.
• Communicate proactively with key stakeholders to prevent gaps, misalignment, or schedule impacts.

Skills

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Schedule management

Cost control

Procurement experience

On-site leadership

Communication

Risk management

Contract administration

Change management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Construction Management

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Architecture

Tools

Primavera P6

MS Project

Procore

Excel

Power BI

Job description

ERM is seeking a Construction Program Manager (Owner's Representative) to provide senior leadership across a multi-workstream capital program within a pharmaceutical or life-sciences manufacturing environment.

You will oversee planning, design coordination, procurement, construction execution, and turnover activities, ensuring alignment between owner, designers, contractors, commissioning teams, and site operations.