Vice President, Project Management

Vice President, Project Management

Description

• You know that the outcome of a project hinges on two things: the plan and the people.

• You are the glue that holds these two together. You easily maneuver the precarious path of maintaining the strategy and pace of a project, while keeping your team engaged and enthusiastic. You know what needs to be done, and your penchant for strategic delegation and problem-solving makes you a natural fit for this Vice President, Project Management position with GSW.

• The VP, Project Management has oversight of the Project Management team at GSW, which includes Project Coordinators, Project Managers, Senior Project Managers and Associate Directors and Directors. The Project Management team’s responsibilities include: execution and management of multichannel projects through agency development processes, estimating and scope of work composition, budget and scope management, multichannel delivery expertise, brand team leadership and communication, creative problem-solving. The VP, Director of Project Management is a client-facing PM lead in the Santa Monica office, and is responsible for the overall quality of work, assigning and managing Project management teams workload, on-time delivery and management of budgets for projects, process creation and efficiencies and accounts in the Santa Monica portfolio.

• Project Management

• Leads design, documentation and training for all agency delivery processes and systems

• Will perform a client-facing role for existing clients or new business opportunities as needed, participating in high-level planning meetings and attending key client meetings as project management SME (subject matter expert). Demonstrates strong presentation skills in front of internal and external audiences

• Able to speak to project schedules, critical dates, explain and clearly articulate details embedded in estimates and statements of work. Understands and is able to manage client expectations in tandem with their agency counterparts

• Drafts statements of work, budget estimates and scope definitions for digital and traditional projects. Reviews and ensures quality for these deliverables if created by direct reports

• Creates and/or reviews and approves detailed timelines for complex or large-scale projects created by direct reports

• Creation of new processes to align with new clients and the ongoing identification of efficiencies across all work

• May perform a hands-on role as lead PM for key/complex accounts, effectively managing on-time, within-budget delivery of projects for account(s) $2-5mm

• Multichannel Expertise

• Possesses thorough knowledge and understanding of all multichannel projects; knows what it takes creatively to develop print and digital projects (project steps, capabilities, technologies, creative responsibilities and skills, QA/QC processes,)

• Acts as a subject matter expert for multi-disciplinary teams and direct reports for all agency projects; suggests ways to leverage internal expertise, learn from past successes or failures, and take advantage of synergies across clients

• Ensures that traditional and digital definition processes are applied and adhered to and that these processes are clearly understood by both internal team members and client stakeholders

• Acts as a role model for digital and interactive capabilities across agency; shares knowledge, explains processes and creates awareness. Participates in leading training sessions to enhance agency digital acumen

• Team Management

• Mentors, trains and may directly supervise junior and senior PM team members; review work product, estimates and timelines developed by direct reports

• Act as escalation point for any risks or issues encountered by other PM team members

• Facilitates communication between team members in all phases of project development by ensuring all disciplines are kept abreast of action items, feedback, next steps, client communications/conference reports, project developments/status and direction etc.

• In collaboration with the Account lead, review and adjust staffing forecasts based on project status changes and priorities. Communicates and manages prioritization of work for key resources, filters requests and assigns as needed

• Financial Management

• Reviews financial health reports for Santa Monica portfolio including: budget management, forecast tracking, investments/write offs, margin impacts, resource allocation vs. actuals and identifies areas of risk to escalate and the mitigation of those risks

• Support monthly internal forecasting process for Santa Monica portfolio, including recommendations for staffing and escalations of risks to forecast

• In collaboration with brand PMs, lead annual scope development and tactical planning estimates, new business scoping for opportunities

• Supports brand PMs, Finance/Ops team and Account leads in monthly billing process and internal financial status meetings

• Recommends/oversees development of change orders and other financial documentation for client review when needed

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent plus at least 7+ years of project management experience in Pharmaceutical Advertising

• Previous launch experience, strong digital experience (5+ years)

• Previous people management experience preferred

• Ability to collaborate closely with others in a team environment under tight deadlines

• Outstanding communication, organization, Leadership and interpersonal skills

• The annual base salary for this position ranges from $150,000 to $170,000. The base salary range represents the anticipated low and high of the Syneos Health range for this position. Actual salary will vary based on various factors such as the candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies, and proficiency for the role. In addition, some positions may include eligibility to earn commissions/bonus based on company and / or individual performance.

• At GSW, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace. If your past experience doesn’t align perfectly, we encourage you to apply anyway. At times, we will consider transferable skills from previous roles. We also encourage you to join our Talent Network to stay connected to additional career opportunities.

• GSW is a full-service healthcare communications agency that goes beyond advertising to create personalized brand experiences that involve, inspire, educate and activate people through ongoing brand