Intuitive Surgical, Inc

Project Manager, CMC

Intuitive Surgical, Inc$120K — $145K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Engineering, Business, or similar; advanced degree preferred.
  • Minimum 8 years in CMC development and project management within pharma, particularly for small-molecule programs.
  • Proven skills in cross-functional coordination with teams like CMC, Regulatory Affairs, and Clinical Development.
  • Strong expertise in timeline management, risk assessment, and budget tracking.
  • Excellent communication and facilitation skills for aligning stakeholders.
  • Proficiency in Smartsheet for project planning and workflow automation.

Responsibilities

  • Implement CMC governance processes and maintain related documentation.
  • Prepare materials for CMC governance sessions, log decisions, and manage follow-ups.
  • Create and manage detailed CMC project plans with timelines and deliverables.
  • Coordinate execution across multiple functions to ensure project completion.
  • Monitor project execution, identifying risks and budget impacts proactively.
  • Develop mitigation strategies for identified issues.
  • Communicate project performance and risks to leadership and PM&Os.
  • Oversee vendor relationships and track project-related financials.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive health coverage including medical, dental, and vision.
  • Retirement savings plan with company match.
  • Generous paid time off and holidays.
  • Opportunities for professional development and certification support.
  • Employee stock purchase plan to incentivize long-term investment in the company.
Full Job Description
Job Description

Fluorescence Imaging at Intuitive Surgical

The Fluorescence Imaging Team at Intuitive is developing agents designed to work seamlessly with Intuitive's robotic platforms and Firefly imaging technology. The agents have the potential to highlight critical anatomy and disease in real time-giving surgeons clearer information at the moment decisions matter most and helping improve outcomes for patients.

Job Description

Primary Function of Position

The CMC Project Manager serves as a strategic and operational partner to Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) leadership, providing integrated project management for development programs from clinical development through regulatory submission, launch readiness, and commercialization. The role translates CMC strategies and technical decisions into coordinated cross-functional project plans that enable effective execution.

Reporting to the Program Management & Operations organization, the CMC Project Manager partners with CMC, Manufacturing, Analytical Development, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, Supply Chain, Clinical Supply, Clinical Development, Commercial, Finance, Procurement, and external partners to integrate timelines, risks, dependencies, budgets, and technical decisions into unified project plans.

Roles and Responsibilities
  • Support the Program Management & Operations team in implementing CMC governance processes, including governance forums, operating cadences, decision pathways, program reporting, and the RAID framework.
  • Facilitate CMC governance by preparing materials, maintaining RAID and decision logs, documenting actions and decisions, monitoring follow-through, and escalating cross-functional risks and decision requests, as appropriate.
  • Develop, maintain, and communicate detailed CMC project plans for assigned programs, including milestones, dependencies, critical-path activities, document workflows, key cGMP deliverables, stability pulls and reports, regulatory commitments, and cross-functional deliverables.
  • Coordinate execution across Drug Substance, Drug Product, Manufacturing, Analytical Development, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, Supply Chain, Clinical Supply, and external partners, providing hands-on project management support to assigned CMC workstreams.
  • Monitor execution and proactively identify schedule impacts, resource constraints, cross-functional dependencies, technical and operational risks, and potential budget impacts.
  • Facilitate the development and implementation of mitigation plans.
  • Develop and apply governance and project reporting materials that communicate milestone performance, critical-path status, key risks, decision requests, budget impacts, and recommended actions to leadership and PM&O teams.
  • Support regular functional-area budget management in coordination with CMC Functional Area Team Leads and PM&O by tracking actual and forecasted accruals, invoices, purchase orders, and inputs to the Annual Operations Budget Planning Cycle.
  • Support CDMO and supplier oversight by: incorporating vendor updates into project plans and governance materials; tracking purchase orders, change orders, invoices, key contract terms, and performance commitments; and coordinating business reviews and operational follow-up across internal functions.
  • Drive adoption of standardized project management tools, templates, dashboards, reporting practices, and workflow automation that improve portfolio visibility, consistency, and execution.


Qualifications

Qualifications
  • Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Engineering, Business, or a related field, or equivalent experience. An advanced degree is preferred.
  • Minimum 8 years of combined experience in CMC development and project management within the pharmaceutical industry, supporting small-molecule development programs from clinical development through NDA submission and launch readiness.
  • Demonstrated success in cross-functional coordination with CMC, Regulatory Affairs, Quality, Clinical Development, Supply Chain, and Commercial teams to support program planning, governance, and decision-making.
  • Expertise in timeline management, risk and issue management, resource coordination, budget tracking, vendor coordination
  • Strong communication, facilitation, and presentation skills, with the ability to deliver clear, actionable project updates and drive alignment without direct authority.
  • Proficiency with Smartsheet, including detailed project planning, dashboards, reporting, and workflow automation.

Preferred Qualifications
  • Experience supporting NDA Module 3 preparation and submission
  • Experience managing CDMOs (and other suppliers)
  • PMP or comparable project management certification.
  • Familiarity with procurement, contracting, and financial management systems such as Coupa, Ivalua, SAP, Ariba, or equivalent.


Additional Information

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19. Details can vary by role.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate's experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate's qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.

About Intuitive Surgical, Inc

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. is an American corporation that develops, manufactures, and markets robotic products designed to improve clinical outcomes of patients through minimally invasive surgery, most notably with the da Vinci Surgical System. The company is part of the NASDAQ-100 and S&P 500. Intuitive Surgical has installed more than 5,000 surgical systems worldwide, and has more than 4,000 employees.
Learn more about Intuitive Surgical, Inc
Size
9,793 employees
Market Cap
$93.6 billion
Industry
Net Income
$1 billion
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+16.1%
Revenue
$4.3 billion
NASDAQ

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