Senior Program Manager, Scientist

thejacksonlaboratory; Bar Harbor (ME); On-site; USD 106,000 - 154,000; Full time

Job summary

The Jackson Laboratory seeks an accomplished Program Manager to coordinate a diverse portfolio of research initiatives, spanning multiple PIs, timelines, and funding mechanisms. You will build and sustain program tools, dashboards, and milestone trackers to ensure accountability and timely scientific deliverables.

You will lead NIH grant administration activities, including RPPRs, renewals, and budgets, while also contributing to grant writing and scientific communication.

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree required, but strong preference for a Ph.D. in Genetics, Molecular Biology, Neuroscience, Pharmacology, or a closely related biomedical science field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a research environment, with at least 2 years in a program management or research administration capacity.
• Demonstrated expertise in mouse genetics, including design and interpretation of genetic mouse models (transgenic, CRISPR-based, conditional knockouts, etc.).
• Direct experience with NIH grant mechanisms and administration, including preparation of RPPRs, competitive renewals, and budget management.
• Proven track record as a scientific writer with experience authoring or co-authoring NIH grant applications and/or peer-reviewed publications.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple programs simultaneously under competing deadlines.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills; ability to work effectively with diverse teams of scientists, clinicians, and administrators.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate a portfolio of concurrent research programs spanning multiple principal investigators, timelines, and funding mechanisms.
• Develop, implement, and maintain program management tools including project plans, milestone trackers, risk registers, and dashboards.
• Facilitate cross-functional team meetings, track action items, and ensure accountability across scientific and administrative stakeholders.
• Identify and resolve operational bottlenecks and interdependencies that may affect program timelines or scientific deliverables.
• Support strategic planning efforts, including program prioritization, resource allocation, and go/no-go decision frameworks.
• Serve as the program-level point of contact for large NIH grants (e.g., R01, P01, U01, U54, RM1), coordinating all administrative and scientific reporting requirements.
• Prepare, compile, and submit annual Progress Reports (RPPRs), non-competing renewals, supplements, and other required NIH correspondence.
• Monitor grant budgets, expenditure timelines, and ensure compliance with NIH terms and conditions in coordination with sponsored research offices.
• Track deliverables, milestones, and publication requirements across multi-project and multi-site awards.
• Coordinate with NIH Program Officers and other agency contacts as needed to address administrative or scientific programmatic matters.
• Write, edit, and contribute to all sections of grant applications including Specific Aims, Research Strategy, human subjects/vertebrate animal sections, biosketches, and resource/environment pages.
• Prepare white papers, concept papers, letters of intent, and responses to RFAs/PAs across NIH and other federal or private funding agencies.
• Draft scientific summaries, program highlights, and lay-language communications for institutional and external audiences.
• Support manuscript preparation, including literature reviews, methods sections, and figure/table organization for peer-reviewed publications.
• Provide scientific input and oversight on programs involving mouse genetics, including transgenic, knock-in, knock-out, and conditional models.
• Contribute expertise in preclinical therapeutic development pipelines, including target identification, in vivo efficacy studies, and translational modeling.
• Critically evaluate experimental designs, interpret results, and ensure scientific rigor across program deliverables.
• Engage with scientific collaborators and external partners (academic, industry, and government) to advance program goals.
• Stay current with literature and emerging methodologies relevant to mouse genetics, neuroscience, rare disease, or other applicable therapeutic areas.
• Ensure all animal research activities are conducted in compliance with IACUC protocols, institutional policies, and NIH guidelines.
• Support IRB submissions and renewals where applicable.
• Coordinate vendor management, subcontract oversight, and data sharing agreements associated with funded programs.
• Train and mentor junior program staff and research coordinators on project management best practices and grant administration procedures.

Skills

Portfolio management

NIH grant administration

Scientific writing

Mouse genetics

Cross-functional leadership

Communication skills

Project planning

Education

Master’s degree; PhD preferred in Genetics/Molecular Biology/Neuroscience/Pharmacology or related field

Tools

Smartsheet

Asana

MS Project

NIH eRA Commons/Grants.gov

Job description

Key Responsibilities

Portfolio & Program Management

• Lead and coordinate a portfolio of concurrent research programs spanning multiple principal investigators, timelines, and funding mechanisms.
• Develop, implement, and maintain program management tools including project plans, milestone trackers, risk registers, and dashboards.
• Facilitate cross-functional team meetings, track action items, and ensure accountability across scientific and administrative stakeholders.
• Identify and resolve operational bottlenecks and interdependencies that may affect program timelines or scientific deliverables.
• Support strategic planning efforts, including program prioritization, resource allocation, and go/no-go decision frameworks.

NIH Grant Administration & Reporting

• Serve as the program-level point of contact for large NIH grants (e.g., R01, P01, U01, U54, RM1), coordinating all administrative and scientific reporting requirements.
• Prepare, compile, and submit annual Progress Reports (RPPRs), non-competing renewals, supplements, and other required NIH correspondence.
• Monitor grant budgets, expenditure timelines, and ensure compliance with NIH terms and conditions in coordination with sponsored research offices.
• Track deliverables, milestones, and publication requirements across multi-project and multi-site awards.
• Coordinate with NIH Program Officers and other agency contacts as needed to address administrative or scientific programmatic matters.

Grant Writing & Scientific Communication

• Write, edit, and contribute to all sections of grant applications including Specific Aims, Research Strategy, human subjects/vertebrate animal sections, biosketches, and resource/environment pages.
• Prepare white papers, concept papers, letters of intent, and responses to RFAs/PAs across NIH and other federal or private funding agencies.
• Draft scientific summaries, program highlights, and lay-language communications for institutional and external audiences.
• Support manuscript preparation, including literature reviews, methods sections, and figure/table organization for peer-reviewed publications.

Scientific Contribution – Mouse Genetics & Therapeutic Development

• Provide scientific input and oversight on programs involving mouse genetics, including transgenic, knock-in, knock-out, and conditional models.
• Contribute expertise in preclinical therapeutic development pipelines, including target identification, in vivo efficacy studies, and translational modeling.
• Critically evaluate experimental designs, interpret results, and ensure scientific rigor across program deliverables.
• Engage with scientific collaborators and external partners (academic, industry, and government) to advance program goals.
• Stay current with literature and emerging methodologies relevant to mouse genetics, neuroscience, rare disease, or other applicable therapeutic areas.

Compliance, Regulatory & Operational Oversight

• Ensure all animal research activities are conducted in compliance with IACUC protocols, institutional policies, and NIH guidelines.
• Support IRB submissions and renewals where applicable.
• Coordinate vendor management, subcontract oversight, and data sharing agreements associated with funded programs.
• Train and mentor junior program staff and research coordinators on project management best practices and grant administration procedures.

Required Qualifications

• Master’s Degree required, but strong preference for a Ph.D. in Genetics, Molecular Biology, Neuroscience, Pharmacology, or a closely related biomedical science field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a research environment, with at least 2 years in a program management or research administration capacity.
• Demonstrated expertise in mouse genetics, including design and interpretation of genetic mouse models (transgenic, CRISPR-based, conditional knockouts, etc.).
• Direct experience with NIH grant mechanisms and administration, including preparation of RPPRs, competitive renewals, and budget management.
• Proven track record as a scientific writer with experience authoring or co-authoring NIH grant applications and/or peer-reviewed publications.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple programs simultaneously under competing deadlines.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills; ability to work effectively with diverse teams of scientists, clinicians, and administrators.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in therapeutic development, drug discovery, or translational research programs, particularly in neuroscience or rare/genetic diseases.
• Familiarity with NIH eRA Commons, Grants.gov, and related submission platforms.
• Prior experience managing multi-site or consortium grants (e.g., P01, U54, U19).
• Knowledge of GLP/GCP principles and preclinical regulatory frameworks.
• Postdoctoral research experience with independent publication record.
• Experience with project management software (e.g., Smartsheet, Asana, MS Project) and data visualization tools.
• Established network of collaborators in academic or industry research settings.

Core Competencies

• Scientific Rigor & Critical Thinking
• Strategic Program Planning
• NIH Grant Expertise
• Stakeholder Communication
• Mouse Genetics & In Vivo Modeling
• Cross-functional Leadership
• Scientific & Technical Writing
• Budget & Resource Management
• Translational Research Acumen
• Compliance & Regulatory Knowledge

Work Environment & Physical Requirements

This position is primarily office/laboratory-based, with regular interaction in vivarium and wet lab settings as required by program needs. The role may require occasional travel for scientific conferences, site visits, and stakeholder meetings. The incumbent must be able to work with or in proximity to laboratory animals (mice) and must comply with all institutional occupational health requirements.

Preferred Experience: 6 years

Pay Range: $106,000 - $153,729, salary is determined by experience

About JAX:

The Jackson Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institution with a National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center and nearly 3,000 employees in locations across the United States (Maine, Connecticut, California),Japan andChina. Its mission is to discover precise genomic solutions for disease and empower the global biomedical community in the shared quest to improve human health.

Founded in 1929, JAX applies over nine decades of expertise in genetics to increase understanding of human disease, advancing treatments and cures for cancer, neurological and immune disorders, diabetes, aging and heart disease. It models and interprets genomic complexity, integrates basic research with clinical application, educates current and future scientists, and provides critical data, tools and services to the global biomedical community. For more information, please visit www.jax.org.

EEO Statement:

The Jackson Laboratory provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment in all job classifications without regard to race, color, religion, age, mental disability, physical disability, medical condition, gender, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, marital status, national origin, veteran status, and other classifications protected by applicable state and local non-discrimination laws.