Project Manager (Supplier Manager)

Supplier Manager, R&D Supplier Management and Performance Analytics (SMPA) is responsible for oversight of outsourced services supporting the Research and Development organizations and driving quality from external third party providers with the goal of maintaining a stable supply of healthy suppliers capable of supporting a spectrum of R&D activity.

The Manager will work as part of a cross-functional team that includes internal scientists and other staff, contract operations support staff, sourcing, legal, finance and budget leads. They will lead team meetings, manage timelines, ensure correct collection and reporting of KPIs / metrics, manage escalations, and provide forecasting to ensure our ability to support the pipeline.

The Manager will assist in developing & executing efficient supplier and expense management strategies while finding opportunities to align, improve and re-design processes and tools. The Manager will directly liaise with counterparts at contract research organizations to ensure adherence to timelines and delivery of quality data in full compliance to industry regulations. In addition, they will participate in R&D-wide strategic initiatives to improve operational efficiency and enable the organizational vision to be achieved.

The successful candidate will demonstrate supplier oversight expertise in the areas that may include one or several of the following areas : bioanalysis, drug discovery and development, development, preclinical. They will display an ability to support a variety of cross-functional activities, including supplier evaluation, qualification, and management.

Day-to-day activities include scientific oversight and project management skills including driving supplier governance meetings, managing timelines, facilitating correct collection and reporting of KPIs / metrics, triaging escalations, and assisting with forecasting to ensure our ability to support the pipeline. The individual will also serve as an internal escalation point capable of issue triage, escalation, and resolution.

The successful candidate will have strong organizational, analytics, managerial, and communication skills. Working knowledge of the drug development end-to-end process from discovery to post-marketing activities is a plus but not required. Previous experience with CRO management or other external third-party supplier performance management, budget development and financial analytics are preferred.

The individual in this role will focus on :

Developing strong collaborative relationships with internal partners to support and proactively respond to business needs.

Maintaining oversight of a global pool of suppliers and finding innovative solutions that provide the right mix of quality, agility, and value.

Leading supplier evaluation, qualification, & remediation teams

Maintaining proper documentation to drive regulatory inspection readiness (may participate in audits)

Collaborating cross-functionally to develop and track appropriate supplier performance metrics, engage in the contract negotiations process to develop contractual terms and conditions and managing supplier contract deliverables throughout the life cycle of the study.

Developing and maintaining data visualization tools to ensure transparency of budget and timelines

Participating in establishing departmental and cross-functional initiatives to review and update key policies and procedures

Assisting functional stakeholders in resolving issues relating to contract negotiation or management.

Managing study level supplier deliverables in conjunction with other corporate functions

Owning the relationships with external suppliers to be able to influence processes and outputs while proactively identifying areas of concern and remediating any issues

Working with internal customers in supplier scope of work development (request for proposal creation and analysis, depending on thresholds)

Leading contract life cycle management process related to various supplier agreements

Develop, create, and transition any existing non-automated support model into an automated model

Assisting Sr. Manager SMPA in optimizing and expanding the strategic values of SMPA support model to other function areas, identifying and evaluating other suppliers within the function area that should adopt the SMPA support model

This role will provide support across all R&D functional verticals so ability to flex and learn quickly in a fast-paced environment is required. Requirements / Qualifications :

Doctorate degree or Master’s degree and 2 years of experience or Bachelor’s degree and 4 years of experience or Associate’s degree and 8 years of experience or High school diploma / GED and 10 years of experience

Supplier Relationship Management

Strategy planning / governance

Issue resolution / performance monitoring