Associate Director, Project Management

At Lilly, the work is demanding because patients are waiting. We unite caring with discovery to help make life better for people around the world, knowing that every decision, every detail, and every day matters. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, our over 50,000 employees around the globe take on complex challenges to discover and deliver life-changing medicines, strengthen how health is understood and managed, and support the communities we serve. This is hard, urgent, selfless work—but it’s work worth doing. If you’re driven by purpose and ready to bring your best to work that truly matters for patients, we invite you to join us. 

Overview

Centessa Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, is a clinical-stage company developing orexin receptor 2 (OX2R) agonists as a new class of medicines for the treatment of narcolepsy and potentially other sleep-wake disorders. Centessa’s lead investigational candidate – cleminorexton (formerly ORX750) – is being developed for narcolepsy type 1, narcolepsy type 2, and idiopathic hypersomnia. Centessa's OX2R agonist portfolio includes additional clinical and preclinical-stage assets with potential utility across a broader range of neurological, neurodegenerative, and neuropsychiatric conditions.  Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Centessa was recognized as a Great Place to Work® in 2026.

Centessa is seeking a (Associate) Director, Program Management – Orexin Development Programs. This individual will leverage both project management and drug development experience to manage one or more early-stage global Orexin development programs. This position will report to the Executive Director, Global Team Leader.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the GTL (Global Team Leader) to project manage a cross-functional matrix development team, and select sub-teams

• Lead the development of and continuously maintain detailed and fully cross-functionally integrated program Gantt chart, incorporating all relevant dependencies, and provide fit-for-purpose summary views for team use and executive management reviews

• Identify and manage interdependencies, critical path and at-risk activities to support program level scenario planning and risk management strategies

• Develop and maintain relevant dashboards to communicate status and track progress

• Manage cross-functional team meetings including scheduling, preparing agendas, presentation materials, and minutes that ensure proper follow up of action items

• Develop and maintain issue logs and risks registers, and ensure team proactively resolve issues in a timely manner and that risks are mitigated as appropriate

• Work with cross-functional team and Finance to develop and update budgets, and manage program spend within approved budget

• Manage select external vendors (timelines, budgets, MSA/SOW documents, etc.) and integrate deliverables into program Gantt

• Support development of Governance and Executive presentations

• Provide support for the planning and preparation of documents to a quality standard required for Regulatory/Health Authority submissions

• Contribute to establishment and refinement of best practices, processes and procedures

Basic Qualifications

• BS plus 8+ years’ experience in pharmaceutical/biotech R&D environment, or MS/MBA plus 6+ years in pharmaceutical/biotech R&D environment, including 4+ years as PM or equivalent

• Experience managing project teams through IND-enabling activities, pre-IND mtgs, IND submissions, and Phase 1 development.

• Proven expertise in drug development and registration, including early and late-stage clinical, nonclinical, CMC development, and regulatory interactions, submissions/reviews globally

• Highly motivated, proactive, detail-oriented and organized self-starter with strong communication, collaboration, interpersonal skills, and influence to accomplish work without formal authority and to ensure optimal team performance

• Excellent analytical skills and expert in facilitating team decision making; competent in the application of decision analysis methodologies and related tools

• Expert knowledge of project management principles and practices with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced dynamic environment (PMP certification is highly desired), and expert in project management software, e.g., Smartsheet

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Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia (AMECA), Black Employees at Lilly (BE@Lilly), Chinese Culture Network (CCN), EnAble, Evolve, Lilly Indian Network (LIN), Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), Pride (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN) and Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL).

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location.  The anticipated wage for this position is

Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities).Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.

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