Project Management Associate II

Kite Pharma, Inc.; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 107,000 - 139,000; Full time

Job summary

Kite Pharma is seeking a Project Management, Business Operations, and Strategic Initiative Support professional in the United States (CA). The role focuses on supporting Commercial Operations, contracting, procurement, and governance activities to drive efficiency and strategic initiatives.

Ideal candidates have strong organizational skills, experience in cross-functional projects, and a background in biotechnology or pharmaceuticals.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of relevant experience and a BA or BS degree.
• OR 2+ years of relevant experience and an MS or MBA degree.
• Experience in business operations, project management, commercial operations, procurement, finance, consulting, healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, or cross-functional project coordination.

Responsibilities

• Provides support to Commercial Operations project leads to maintain and track project activities including timelines, budgets, action items, risks, dependencies, resource plans, and other project documentation.
• May independently manage routine sub-projects or defined workstreams under the guidance of Commercial Operations leadership.
• Participates in project meetings and relevant business operations activities.
• Conducts research and gathers information from internal and external sources to support project planning, business analysis, and decision-making.
• Maintains project information, documentation, trackers, and materials within shared repositories and collaboration platforms.
• Identifies routine issues or risks that may adversely impact project execution and appropriately escalates concerns to project leads.
• Assists with project budgeting, spend tracking, resource planning, and budget reporting activities.
• Follows up with project team members and stakeholders regarding progress on action items, deliverables, and deadlines.
• Generates and maintains project tracking and reporting tools, dashboards, status reports, and metrics to support project teams and leadership.
• Prepares meeting materials, meeting notes, action trackers, leadership updates, and executive communications.
• Supports maintenance of operating model documentation, process maps, governance materials, organizational documentation, and role clarity resources.
• Compiles and analyzes business data, stakeholder feedback, and operational metrics to identify trends, issues, and opportunities for improvement.
• Supports AI adoption and process improvement initiatives by documenting workflows, coordinating pilot activities, tracking outcomes, and maintaining training materials.
• Facilitates collaboration across Commercial Operations, Finance, Procurement, Legal, and functional business teams to enable efficient execution of priorities and initiatives.

Skills

Project management

Operations management

Procurement

Budgeting

Cross-functional coordination

Business analysis

Dashboards

Education

BA or BS degree

MS or MBA degree

Tools

SAP

Ariba

Oracle

Job description

We’re here for one reason and one reason only – to cure cancer. Every moment is dedicated to developing treatments and every action moves us one step closer to our goal. We’ve made incredible scientific breakthroughs and our pioneering personalized CAR T-cell therapies have changed the paradigm. But we’re not finished yet.

Join Kite, as we make even bigger advances in cancer therapies, and help shape where our business and medical science goes next.

We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Kite and help create more tomorrows.

Job Description

We’re here for one reason and one reason only – to cure cancer. Every moment is dedicated to developing treatments and every action moves us one step closer to our goal. We’ve made incredible scientific breakthroughs and our pioneering personalized CAR T-cell therapies have changed the paradigm. But we’re not finished yet.

Join Kite, as we make even bigger advances in cancer therapies, and help shape where our business and medical science goes next.

We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Kite and help create more tomorrows.

Project Management, Business Operations, and Strategic Initiative Support

• Provides support to Commercial Operations project leads to maintain and track project activities including timelines, budgets, action items, risks, dependencies, resource plans, and other project documentation.
• May independently manage routine sub-projects or defined workstreams under the guidance of Commercial Operations leadership.
• Participates in project meetings and relevant business operations activities.
• Conducts research and gathers information from internal and external sources to support project planning, business analysis, and decision-making.
• Maintains project information, documentation, trackers, and materials within shared repositories and collaboration platforms.
• Identifies routine issues or risks that may adversely impact project execution and appropriately escalates concerns to project leads.
• Assists with project budgeting, spend tracking, resource planning, and budget reporting activities.
• Follows up with project team members and stakeholders regarding progress on action items, deliverables, and deadlines.
• Generates and maintains project tracking and reporting tools, dashboards, status reports, and metrics to support project teams and leadership.
• Prepares meeting materials, meeting notes, action trackers, leadership updates, and executive communications.
• Supports maintenance of operating model documentation, process maps, governance materials, organizational documentation, and role clarity resources.
• Compiles and analyzes business data, stakeholder feedback, and operational metrics to identify trends, issues, and opportunities for improvement.
• Supports AI adoption and process improvement initiatives by documenting workflows, coordinating pilot activities, tracking outcomes, and maintaining training materials.
• Facilitates collaboration across Commercial Operations, Finance, Procurement, Legal, and functional business teams to enable efficient execution of priorities and initiatives.

Contracting, Procurement, and Commercial Operations

• Manage onboarding of new vendors and suppliers in coordination with Legal and Procurement.
• Manage end-to-end purchase order activities including creating orders, invoicing, reconciliation, issue resolution, and payment tracking.
• Maintain positive relationships with internal stakeholders and external vendors.
• Prioritize multiple procurement activities and deadlines in a fast-paced environment while ensuring timely execution.
• Partner with Legal, Procurement, Accounting, and Finance to support contracting activities, purchase order workflows, timely payment processing, and budget execution.
• Monitor procurement workflows, identify routine issues, and proactively elevate risks that could impact budgets, timelines, vendor relationships, or project deliverables.
• Maintain accurate supplier, contract, purchase order, and invoice records.
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of procurement dashboards and metrics, providing visibility into spend, cycle times, and vendor performance.
• Serve as a subject matter resource on procurement systems and purchase order processes while providing guidance to business partners as needed.
• Ensure compliance with Gilead policies, procurement and financial controls, data integrity standards, and confidentiality requirements.
• Support continuous improvement efforts by identifying operational challenges and recommending practical process improvements to enhance efficiency and reduce cycle times.

Basic Qualifications

• 4+ years of relevant experience and a BA or BS degree

OR

• 2+ years of relevant experience and an MS or MBA degree

Relevant experience includes work in business operations, project management, commercial operations, procurement, finance, consulting, healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, or cross-functional project coordination activities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting cross-functional projects, business operations initiatives, or project management activities.
• Strong organizational skills with exceptional attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple priorities and workstreams simultaneously.
• Self-motivated with a strong sense of ownership, accountability, and follow-through.
• High integrity and sound judgment, including the ability to navigate challenging conversations while maintaining compliance with company policies and procedures.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to prepare concise updates, presentations, meeting materials, and executive communications.
• Ability to identify routine operational or project risks and proactively elevate issues when appropriate.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical-thinking capabilities.
• Ability to work collaboratively across functions and build productive relationships with internal stakeholders and external vendors.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, Teams, and collaboration platforms.
• Experience with procurement, contracting, budgeting, reporting, and enterprise systems such as SAP, Ariba, Oracle, or related platforms preferred.
• Experience creating dashboards, project plans, trackers, status reports, and operational metrics.
• Technical aptitude and ability to quickly learn new systems, tools, and business processes.
• Experience supporting operating model design, process improvement, organizational effectiveness, or AI-enabled productivity initiatives is a plus

The salary range for this position is: $107,185.00 - $138,710.00. Kite considers a variety of factors when determining base compensation, including experience, qualifications, and geographic location. These considerations mean actual compensation will vary. This position may also be eligible for a discretionary annual bonus, discretionary stock-based long-term incentives (eligibility may vary based on role), paid time off, and a benefits package. Benefits include company-sponsored medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans*.

For additional benefits information, visit:

https://www.gilead.com/careers/compensation-benefits-and-wellbeing

* Eligible employees may participate in benefit plans, subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans.

Kite is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of innovative cancer immunotherapies with a goal of providing rapid, long-term durable response and eliminating the burden of chronic care. The company is focused on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) and T cell receptor (TCR) engineered cell therapies designed to empower the immune system’s ability to recognize and kill tumors. Kite is based in Santa Monica, CA. For more information on Kite, please visit www.kitepharma.com. Sign up to follow @KitePharma on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kitepharma.

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Kite Pharma is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment, and is dedicated to fostering an inclusive work environment comprised of diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences. Employment decisions regarding recruitment and selection will be made without discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability,genetic information or characteristic, gender identity and expression, veteran status, or other non-job related characteristics or other prohibited grounds specified in applicable federal, state and local laws. In order to ensure reasonable accommodation for individuals protected by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Act of 1974, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, applicants who require accommodation in the job application process may contact [e-mail] for assistance.

For more information about equal employment opportunity protections, please view the Know Your Rights poster.

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Our environment respects individual differences and recognizes each employee as an integral member of our company. Our workforce reflects these values and celebrates the individuals who make up our growing team.

Kite Pharma provides a work environment free of harassment and prohibited conduct. We promote and support individual differences and diversity of thoughts and opinion.