Scientific Engagement & Program Manager

Job Description Summary

The Scientific Engagement & Program Manager, working alongside the Senior Scientific Engagement Program Manager and reporting to the Scientific Engagement Lead, supports the planning, coordination, and execution of medical and scientific engagement activities across assigned programs, brands, and therapeutic areas (Oncology, Cardiovascular Disease, Renal, Neuroscience, Immunology).
As a member of the IMACE Scientific Operations team, the role contributes to the delivery of advisory boards, congress activities, standalone meetings, and medical education programs, translating engagement strategy into practical operational plans. This position helps drive consistency, strengthen processes and tools, and promote collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement in the execution of scientific engagements.
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Job Description

Key Responsibilities:

Scientific Engagement Planning & Execution

• Support project management and operational delivery of scientific engagement activities, including advisory boards, congress activities (e.g. symposia), external expert engagements (EEEs), medical education programs, and internal/external meetings.

• Translate engagement strategies into operational plans by coordinating timelines, milestones, deliverables, and event readiness for assigned therapeutic areas or projects.

• Manage logistics, materials preparation, and execution activities to ensure smooth, high‑quality delivery of scientific engagements.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with IMA (TAs, IMACE) and cross‑functional partners to align objectives, coordinate execution, and maintain consistent scientific messaging.

• Maintain regular communication with internal teams and external vendors to provide updates, flag risks, manage expectations, and ensure seamless handoffs.

Operational Excellence & Governance

• Follow standard operating procedures, templates, tools, and approval pathways to ensure compliant, structured, and audit‑ready execution of scientific engagements.

• Support continuous improvement by identifying process gaps and contributing to enhancements in tools, templates, documentation, and ways of working.

• Ensure adherence to compliance, quality, and documentation standards, maintaining accurate version control and complete audit trails.

Vendor, Risk & Issue Management

• Coordinate with external vendors, monitoring timelines, deliverables, and budgets to ensure outputs meet quality and project expectations.

• Identify and escalate risks, issues, or delays that may impact quality or timelines and support issue resolution to keep projects on track.

Essential Requirements:

• Education: BSc or equivalent. MSc, PhD, PharmD, or MD are desirable.

• 3 years’ experience in pharmaceutical, healthcare, or life sciences, with a strong focus on scientific engagement delivery and program/project management. Experience in supporting coordination of medical or scientific engagement activities, such as advisory boards, medical congresses (including symposia), standalone medical meetings, external expert engagements (EEEs),

  or medical education programs.

• Experience working in one or more of the following therapeutic areas Oncology, Cardiovascular, Renal, Neuroscience or Immunology is an advantage.

• Experience working in a matrixed, cross functional setting, collaborating with teams such as IMA, Scientific Operations, Medical Affairs, or similar scientific/medical functions. 

• Background in operational planning and execution, including managing logistics, vendors, materials, and event related deliverables. 

• Familiarity with compliance, SOPs, and approval processes within medical or scientific environments, ensuring activities are delivered to quality and audit ready standards.

• Experience maintaining documentation, tracking progress, and supporting project reporting, ideally using standard project management tools or systems. Exposure to process improvement activities, including contributing ideas to streamline workflows, enhance documentation, or improve engagement execution.

• Fluent oral and written English; additional languages desirable.

Benefits & Rewards:

Read our handbook to learn about all the ways we’ll help you thrive personally and professionally: https://www.novartis.com/careers/benefits-rewards

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:  

Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams representative of the patients and communities we serve.

Why Novartis: Helping people with disease and their families takes more than innovative science. It takes a community of smart, passionate people like you. Collaborating, supporting and inspiring each other. Combining to achieve breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. Ready to create a brighter future together? https://www.novartis.com/about/strategy/people-and-culture

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Skills Desired