Senior, Project Manager

Company Overview:

Outer Biosciences’ mission is to improve human skin health by discovering and developing novel bioactives that are more effective and safer than anything available today. Founded by a scientific team with deep experience in engineering advanced organ systems, our fully integrated technology platform combines complex, long-lasting, clinically relevant ex vivo skin models with multimodal data analysis and predictive machine learning. Company overview here.

Role Overview:

Outer Biosciences is seeking a Senior, Project & Alliance Manager to own the day-to-day health and delivery of Outer Bio's external research partnerships. You will ensure that partners and internal project teams stay aligned from kickoff to delivery of the final report. This person will serve as the principal liaison between Outer Bio project teams and external partners. They will simultaneously manage multiple external research partnerships, including day-to-day communication, define resource requirements, project updates and deliverables, anticipate issues, and implement solutions. They will be responsible for all facets of contract research and scientific research partnerships ensuring effective governance of the relationship, intellectual property, data-sharing, and agreement compliance. Ultimately, they are focused on maximizing the long-term value for all stakeholders. The role requires cross-functional collaboration with product development, commercial, legal, and R&D. The ideal candidate understands the operational and scientific requirements associated with pre-clinical research. This critical position requires strategic thinking, attention to detail, exceptional communication skills, and creative problem-solving abilities. This person will report directly to the Chief Business Officer.

Key responsibilities:

• Own the relationship and serve as the primary liaison between Outer Bio’s project team and external research partners and clients.
• Establish Outer Bio's project and alliance management playbook, templates, and tools as the company grows.
• Work with legal and business development on research agreements, SOWs, MTAs, and amendments.
• Ensure contractual obligations are met and ensure data, samples, and reports move between partners and Outer Bio on time
• Own project budgets: forecast spend, track invoices against milestones, and flag variances to leadership.
• Translate research goals into integrated project plans with milestones, dependencies, and decision points.
• Identify project risks early, build mitigation plans, and keep leadership informed with status reporting.
• Run partnership governance: joint steering committees, quarterly business reviews, meeting agendas, minutes, and action tracking.
• Monitor partnership and project performance against agreed deliverables, timelines, and quality standards.
• Assess partnership health regularly and recommend renewals, scope changes, or exits.

Qualifications and Skills

• Minimum Education: Bachelor’s degree in a life science (Biochemistry, Bioengineering, Biology) or related technical discipline. Previous laboratory-based research experience is required. Advanced degree preferred.
• Minimum of 7 years in biotech, pharma, or at a contract research organization, including at least 4 years in project or alliance management.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Proven track record managing multiple external research collaborations at once
• Experience owning project budgets and milestone-based payments
• Fluency with project management and collaborative tools (e.g., Smartsheet, MS Project, Asana, or similar)
• Working knowledge of research agreements, SOWs, and intellectual property and publication terms
• Continuous learner, meticulous, and thrives in dynamic environments.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interactive communication skills. Comfortable presenting to leadership and executives.
• Strong teamwork and collaboration skills with the ability to work effectively both independently and in a group.

We are deeply committed to diversity, equality, and inclusion in all its forms and practices. As a company we promote inclusion and desire to work with people from all walks of life. As we grow our team, we strive to be the change we want to see. If your experience is somewhat different from what we've described and you believe you can bring value and contribute to the role, we'd be honored to learn more about you.