Senior Project Manager

Barrington James; United States; On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Retirement matching

Job summary

Barrington James seeks a Project Manager – CDMO for pharmaceutical manufacturing to lead cross-functional client projects from technical transfer through commercial production. This highly visible role balances technical understanding with commercial and financial fluency, owning timelines, budgets, forecasting, invoicing, change orders, and site capacity.

Strong communication and stakeholder management are essential to drive client success.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of project management experience in CDMO or pharma manufacturing, client-facing preferred.
• Experience with technical transfer, scale-up, or commercial launch.
• Budgeting, forecasting, and invoicing experience; PMP preferred.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to work cross-functionally in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary project lead for assigned client accounts, managing timelines from quotation through technical transfer and into commercial production
• Own client communication — routine updates, escalations, and issue resolution
• Manage project budgets and financial forecasting, ensuring change orders and pass-through costs are tracked and processed accurately
• Coordinate internal cross-functional teams (Quality, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Regulatory) to keep projects aligned with client needs and site capacity
• Lead client meetings and site visits, including due diligence and person-in-plant activities
• Drive continuous improvement and support deviation/CAPA processes tied to client projects
• Escalate risks and issues proactively to leadership, with clear mitigation plans
• Build strong, trust-based relationships with clients to support account growth and retention

Skills

Project management

Client-facing

Budgeting

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional coordination

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Project Manager – CDMO (Pharmaceutical Manufacturing)

Our client is a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) providing formulation development, clinical and commercial manufacturing services to pharmaceutical and biotech companies worldwide. As they continue to grow their client portfolio, they're looking for a Project Manager to join their team and help drive project execution across the product lifecycle.

The Role

The Project Manager will lead cross-functional coordination of client projects — from technical transfer and development through to commercial manufacturing — acting as the primary point of contact between internal operations teams and external clients. This person will be responsible for keeping projects on time, on budget, and aligned with client expectations, while managing the day-to-day details that keep complex manufacturing programs moving: timelines, forecasting, change orders, invoicing, and cross-functional communication.

This is a highly visible, client-facing role suited to someone who's comfortable balancing technical understanding with commercial and financial fluency.

What You'll Do

• Serve as the primary project lead for assigned client accounts, managing timelines from quotation through technical transfer and into commercial production
• Own client communication — routine updates, escalations, and issue resolution
• Manage project budgets and financial forecasting, ensuring change orders and pass-through costs are tracked and processed accurately
• Coordinate internal cross-functional teams (Quality, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Regulatory) to keep projects aligned with client needs and site capacity
• Lead client meetings and site visits, including due diligence and person-in-plant activities
• Drive continuous improvement and support deviation/CAPA processes tied to client projects
• Escalate risks and issues proactively to leadership, with clear mitigation plans
• Build strong, trust-based relationships with clients to support account growth and retention

What We’re Looking For

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (Life Sciences, Business, Project Management, or similar)
• 5+ years of project management experience within a CDMO or pharmaceutical/biopharma manufacturing environment — client-facing experience strongly preferred over sponsor-side/internal PM background
• Experience managing projects through technical transfer, scale-up, and/or commercial launch
• Solid understanding of project financials — budgeting, forecasting, invoicing
• PMP certification preferred, not required
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to manage multiple clients/projects simultaneously
• Comfortable working cross-functionally in a fast-paced, deadline-driven manufacturing environment
• FDA/regulatory inspection experience a plus

Competitive base salary plus performance incentives. Full benefits package including medical/dental/vision, retirement matching, PTO, and professional development support.