Senior Director, Project & Portfolio Management

The role

You will build an AI-forward PPM organization to discover and advance a drug candidate portfolio for neurological, ophthalmological and metabolic indications. You will partner with various teams to develop project strategies and execute integrated plans spanning research, discovery, clinical development, software engineering, and data science.

What you will do

• Build an AI-forward PPM organization
• Partner with project team leaders to develop project strategies
• Create successful team environments to foster high performance
• Develop and execute integrated project plans
• Partner with Compute, Operations and Finance to establish agentic AI project management tools
• Lead matrix team meetings to enable collaboration and decision-making
• Manage project scope, deliverables, risks, and resources
• Summarize complex information for executive leaders

Required qualifications

• BS degree in a life science field
• Minimum of 15 years of experience in biotech/pharmaceutical industry in the R&D and clinical development space
• 8+ years in project/portfolio leadership leading cross-functional matrix teams
• Extensive knowledge of the drug development process and deliverables
• Deep experience in translational stages, CMC workflows, early commercial assessment and clinical development (IND into Phase 2)
• Proficiency with project management tools and software
• Exposure to the design and implementation of agentic workflows in a pharma or biotech environment
• Experience with setting up or leading decision making bodies or portfolio planning and reviews processes
• Solid understanding of metabolism, neuroscience or ophthalmology disease areas
• Previous experience in high visibility roles requiring strategic thinking and executive communication
• Deep experience leading matrix team meetings
• Ability to resolve complex problems using strong interpersonal skills

Nice to have

• MS or PhD
• Knowledge of at least one drug modality (recombinant biologic, small molecule, oligonucleotide)
• Project Management Certification (PMP or equivalent)
• Familiarity with Google Suite and Smartsheets
• Prior use of generative AI tools / LLM technologies
• Understanding of high-content human data modalities
• Familiarity with and passion about machine learning enabled drug discovery

Benefits

• 401(k) plan with employer matching
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Mental health and well-being support
• Open, flexible vacation policy
• Paid parental leave (at least 16 weeks for birth parents, 10 weeks for new parents)
• Quarterly budget for books and online courses
• Support to attend professional conferences
• New hire stipend for home office setup
• Monthly cell phone & internet stipend
• Access to free onsite baristas and daily lunch
• Access to a free commuter bus network

About the company

insitro is a drug discovery and development company using machine learning and data at scale to decode biology for transformative medicines. The company advances a pipeline of insights and therapeutics in neuroscience and metabolism.