Project Manager

Actalent; Big Lake (MN); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Dental benefits

Vision benefits

401(k) plan

Job summary

Actalent in Big Lake, MN is seeking a Project Manager (NPI) to lead New Product Introduction programs in a high-precision medical contract manufacturing environment. You will coordinate customers, engineering, quality, operations, and manufacturing to move programs from prototype through production, ensuring on-time delivery, budget adherence, and defined scope.

The role requires strong project leadership, excellent communication, and experience with regulated medical device environments.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in project or program management within manufacturing.
• Experience with NPI in medical devices or high-precision manufacturing.
• Proven ability to manage customer-facing programs and budgets.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams across engineering, manufacturing, and quality.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary customer contact and internal leader for NPI programs.
• Transition new opportunities from quote to execution with Sales teams.
• Lead customer interactions and manage risks, budgets, and schedules.
• Develop and control program budgets, milestones, and design-to-cost efforts.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality.

Skills

Project leadership

Cross-functional collab

Stakeholder management

Customer interfacing

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

PMP certification

MBA

Tools

Microsoft Project

Job description

Job Title

Project Manager (NPI)

Job Description

This Project Manager role supports New Product Introduction (NPI) programs for a high-precision medical contract manufacturer. You will act as the central coordination point between customers, engineering, quality, operations, and manufacturing, guiding products from prototype through to full production. You will own the project lifecycle, ensuring delivery on time, within budget, and to agreed scope and quality standards. This position requires strong project leadership, deep understanding of manufacturing environments, and excellent communication skills to manage expectations, drive disciplined execution, and maintain transparent status reporting for customers and internal leadership.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary customer contact and internal leader for assigned NPI programs, managing expectations and ensuring alignment on scope, schedule, budget, and quality requirements.
• Partner with Sales and Technical Solution teams to transition new business opportunities into the manufacturing site, ensuring a smooth handoff from quote to execution.
• Lead customer interactions throughout the program lifecycle, focusing on clear communication, proactive expectation management, and timely issue resolution.
• Own project and program-level risk control and communication, including identification, assessment, mitigation planning, and ongoing tracking of risks and issues.
• Direct and coordinate program activities with limited oversight, including schedule adherence, budget management, milestone tracking, scope change control, and design-to-cost efforts.
• Guide successful completion of projects by collaborating closely with Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality teams, ensuring cross-functional accountability and alignment.
• Partner with internal departments to align resource requirements with project expectations, balancing priorities and resolving resource conflicts as needed.
• Assist in developing and executing transition and ramp plans for NPI into production, working with operations to ensure equipment, staffing, and quality requirements support expected production volumes and cost targets.
• Use Microsoft Project and related tools to develop and maintain detailed project schedules, allocate resources, and track program budgets and deliverables.
• Monitor project performance against key metrics, reporting progress, risks, and issues to leadership and customers in a clear and timely manner.
• Drive continuous improvement by identifying process gaps or inefficiencies in NPI and manufacturing workflows and collaborating with stakeholders to implement enhancements.
• Support adherence to medical device regulations and quality standards by integrating regulatory and quality requirements into project plans and execution activities.

Essential Skills

• Bachelors degree and at least 7 years of relevant experience in project or program management, engineering, operations, or NPI within a manufacturing environment, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in NPI project management within a medical device or high-precision manufacturing context.
• Demonstrated experience managing customer-facing programs, including customer interfacing, expectation management, and customer relationship management.
• Hands‑on experience with medical device manufacturing or high-precision medical contract manufacturing, including exposure to machining operations and manufacturing processes.
• Proven ability to manage project timelines, budgets, and schedules, including scope changes and design‑to‑cost initiatives.
• Strong project leadership skills with a track record of leading cross‑functional teams across Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and Microsoft Project for developing schedules, allocating resources, and establishing and tracking program budgets.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to convey business and technical concepts clearly to diverse customer and internal technical audiences.
• Familiarity with medical device regulations and quality standards, such as FDA guidelines and ISO‑based quality systems.
• Strong problem‑solving abilities, with the capability to think creatively and develop innovative solutions to complex project and manufacturing challenges.
• Proven ability to multi‑task and manage several development activities and projects simultaneously in a fast‑paced environment.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience with account management or sales, particularly in a manufacturing or medical device environment.
• Experience working in a precision machine shop environment, including exposure to high‑precision machining operations.
• PMP (Project Management Professional) certification.
• Masters degree, MBA, or other advanced degree in a relevant field.
• Experience with lean manufacturing principles and process improvement initiatives.
• Demonstrated experience in new product introduction, including transitioning products from prototype to production within a regulated environment.

Job Type & Location

This is a Permanent position based out of Big Lake, MN.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $100000.00 - $140000.00/yr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job‑related factors.

Employees and their families are eligible to participate in a comprehensive benefits package, including company‑sponsored medical, dental, vision, flexible spending accounts (FSA), health savings accounts (HSA), voluntary benefits, supplemental life/AD&D insurance, and the companys 401(k) plan. Additional benefits include access to an employee assistance program (EAP) for employees and household members, long‑term disability coverage, and short‑term disability for full‑time employees.

Full‑time and Part‑time employees receive Paid Time Off (PTO) based on years of service, as well as paid holidays, personal holidays and MN Safe and Sick Time.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Nov 3, 2026.

Workplace Type

This is a hybrid position in Big Lake,MN.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email [e-mail] for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.