R&D Preclinical Projects Lead

The Steely Group; Jersey City (NJ); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

The Steely Group is seeking an experienced Project Manager, R&D, in Jersey City, NJ to support planning, coordination, and execution of outsourced preclinical studies and broader R&D activities. This role emphasizes operational management, vendor oversight, budgeting, and cross-functional collaboration to drive programs on time and within scope.

The ideal candidate has 7+ years in biotech/pharma project management, strong communication skills, and a proven track record coordinating CROs and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 7+ years in biotech/pharma project management.
• Experience coordinating CROs, labs, consultants, and vendors.
• Strong planning, budgeting, risk management, and governance skills.
• Experience with IND-enabling activities or preclinical programs preferred.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain integrated R&D project plans aligned with milestones.
• Coordinate outsourced preclinical studies across internal teams and vendors.
• Manage timelines, deliverables, dependencies, risks, and critical paths.
• Serve as operational liaison between internal teams and CROs/consultants.
• Oversee vendor selection, RFP/RFQ processes and contract scoping.
• Track budgets, expenditures, forecast spend, and identify cost-saving opportunities.
• Maintain study records, trackers, and documentation repositories.
• Prepare documentation for regulatory submissions, including IND-enabling programs.
• Create dashboards and status reports for program visibility.
• Drive continuous improvement of preclinical operational processes.

Skills

R&D project management

Vendor management

Cross-functional coordination

Budget management

Preclinical operations

Regulatory submissions support

Communication with stakeholders

Education

Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Business, Operations, or related field

Tools

Smartsheet

Microsoft Project

Microsoft Office

Job description

The Steely Group is seeking an experienced Project Manager, R&D, in Jersey City, NJ to support planning, coordination, and execution of outsourced preclinical studies and broader R&D activities. This role emphasizes operational management, vendor oversight, budgeting, and cross-functional collaboration to drive programs on time and within scope.

The ideal candidate has 7+ years in biotech/pharma project management, strong communication skills, and a proven track record coordinating CROs and