Principal Scientist – Project Management

Background Sygnature Discovery is a world-leading integrated drug discovery Contract Research Organisation based in the UK and Canada with its headquarters in Nottingham and additional facilities in Alderley Park, Macclesfield, Glasgow, Montreal and Quebec City. Its staff of over 1,000, which includes 900 scientists, partners with global pharma, biotech and NFP organisations. Since 2004, Sygnature Discovery has delivered over 40 novel pre-clinical and 22 clinical compounds, with its scientists named on over 170 patents. Therapeutic areas of expertise include oncology, inflammation and immunology, neuroscience, metabolic diseases, infectious diseases, fibrotic diseases and more. To find out more, please visit www.sygnaturediscovery.com.   About the role We are looking for a highly motivated, enthusiastic, and proactive individual who has the ability to manage a diverse and demanding workload to join our Project Management team.

This role will report to and support, the Project Management Lead, contributing to the effective management of the Scientific Project Management team.  This will include leading on specific areas of Project Management capacity and strategy building, optimisation of Project Management business activities and overseeing the effective delivery of successful scientific projects and programmes within Sygnature. Collaboration with all areas of Sygnature, including Scientific Operations, Finance and Commercial Teams is essential with this role to ensure project alignment and efficiency.

The role requires extensive knowledge and scientific understanding of drug discovery, coupled with extensive cross-functional project management experience.  The successful candidate will ensure best practice and consistent ways of working align with business values, alongside managing and coaching other project management team members to ensure efficient & consistent support across all projects.  

Principal responsibilities will include;

• Working with the PM Lead to define best practice and identify opportunities for process improvements to ensures a consistent approach to project planning, governance, and delivery.
• Working with external stakeholders, to understand their needs and requirements with particular focus on strategic clients and/or complex projects.
• Line Management of PM team members identifying and developing specific training and development for junior team members
• Build and maintain internal and external relationships, with a diverse range of stakeholders at all levels of seniority leading to effective problem-solving and issue resolution.
• Working to develop responsive PM capabilities and implement best practices to enhance project management efficiency and effectiveness across Sygnature
• Tracking and maintenance of database to monitor all projects across Sygnature.
• Collaborating with cross-functional teams to develop comprehensive project plans, outlining key milestones, timelines, and resource requirements.
• Ensure provision of information for project/programme monitoring including milestone attainment, budget variance, timeline tracking, and other requirements to assess project/programme performance.
• Generate and present regular progress reports to stakeholders, including senior management and other relevant teams.

To succeed in the role, you will have the following capabilities;

• Hold a professional project management qualification i.e. PRINCE 2, APM Qualification or similar.
• Strong leadership skills with previous experience developing and leading high-performing project management teams.
• Expert understanding of Project Management methodologies, tools,  techniques and principles
• Have gained significant scientific project management experience with a drug discovery, pharmaceutical or clinical background and have a strong fundamental understanding of drug discovery.
• Experience of cross-functional project management and global team-working with the ability to effectively influence and communicate with key stakeholders
• Strong commercial acumen and business decision making skills.