Project Enablement & Effectiveness
About this role
Job Description Summary
The Project Enablement & Effectiveness Manager, US Medical Affairs, based in the Mexico Novartis Operations Center (MX NoCC) reports to the Program Manager Director, is responsible for leading the successful planning, execution, monitoring, and delivery of strategic, operational, and transformational initiatives that support US Medical Affairs. The role serves as a trusted partner to Medical Affairs leaders and cross-functional stakeholders, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within scope, within budget, and in compliance with organizational standards.
The Project Enablement & Effectiveness Manager will drive project governance, financial oversight, stakeholder alignment, risk mitigation, and change management activities while coordinating resources across a highly matrixed global environment. This individual must combine strong project management expertise with a consulting mindset, the ability to influence without authority, and proven experience translating strategic objectives into actionable plans and measurable business outcomes. The role requires a highly collaborative professional who can manage multiple priorities simultaneously, navigate ambiguity, and continuously identify opportunities to improve operational effectiveness, ways of working, and organizational performance
Job Description
Project Planning & Delivery
Lead end-to-end execution of Medical Affairs projects, ensuring delivery against agreed scope, timelines, budget, quality, and business objectives.
Develop and maintain detailed project plans, milestones, deliverables, resource requirements, and success metrics.
Manage project lifecycle activities from initiation through closure, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities.
Monitor project performance and proactively address delays, dependencies, and resource constraints.
Facilitate project meetings, document decisions, and track action items to ensure successful execution.
Drive project financial management, including budget monitoring, forecasting, cost management, and change requests.
Stakeholder & Cross-Functional Leadership
Serve as the primary point of contact for project stakeholders and business partners.
Build trusted relationships with Medical Affairs leaders, Program Managers, Finance, Resource Management, Compliance, Operations, and external partners.
Facilitate alignment across cross-functional teams and ensure effective communication throughout project execution.
Influence stakeholders at multiple organizational levels to drive decision-making and project outcomes.
Deliver executive-ready presentations, status reports, recommendations, and business updates.
Governance, Risk & Compliance
Ensure adherence to project management methodologies, governance frameworks, and organizational standards.
Identify, monitor, and mitigate project risks, issues, assumptions, and dependencies.
Escalate critical risks appropriately and drive resolution plans.
Ensure compliance with applicable Novartis policies, procedures, quality standards, and regulatory requirements.
Support audit readiness and project documentation best practices.
Operational Excellence & Transformation
Support organizational transformation, operating model evolution, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Apply structured problem-solving and consulting methodologies to address complex business challenges.
Drive adoption of new processes, tools, technologies, and ways of working.
Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, scalability, project execution, and stakeholder experience.
Support implementation of strategic initiatives that enhance Medical Affairs operational effectiveness.
Team Collaboration & Capability Building
Coordinate project resources across multiple teams and functions.
Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, inclusion, and continuous improvement.
Education
Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Life Sciences, Engineering, Technology, Finance, or a related field.
Requirements
- Minimum 5–7 years of experience in Project Management, Program Management, PMO, Business Operations, Consulting, Transformation, or Strategic Initiatives.
- Demonstrated experience leading complex cross-functional projects in a global matrix organization.
- Proven experience managing project scope, timelines, budgets, risks, dependencies, and stakeholder communications.
- Experience coordinating multiple workstreams and project resources simultaneously.
- Experience delivering projects using structured project management methodologies.
- Technical & Professional Skills
- Strong project planning, organization, prioritization, and execution skills.
- Advanced stakeholder management and influencing capabilities.
- Exceptional written, verbal, facilitation, and presentation skills.
- Strong analytical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities.
- Ability to operate independently in a fast-paced and ambiguous environment.
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft PowerPoint, Excel, Teams, and other project management tools.
- Leverages AI tools
- to streamline tasks, generate content, and support decision-making, demonstrating practical fluency in prompting, interpreting, and refining AI outputs to improve work quality and efficiency.
- Fluent English (written and verbal) — mandatory and non-negotiable.
- Highly Desirable
- Experience within the Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, Healthcare, Medical Affairs, or Life Sciences industry.
- Experience working in a top-tier consulting firm or internal consulting/transformation organization.
- MBA or Master's degree in Business Administration, Project Management, Healthcare Management, Operations, or a related field.
- PMP, PRINCE2, Agile, Scrum, Lean Six Sigma, or equivalent project management certifications.
- Experience supporting Medical Affairs organizations and operational excellence initiatives.
- Experience managing large-scale transformation, operating model, change management, digital, AI, or process improvement programs.
- Experience working across global teams and multicultural environments.
- Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
- Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams representative of the patients and communities we serve.