Cerus · 23 hours ago
IT Portfolio & Project Manager
Concord, CA
Full-time
Hybrid
Senior Level
$144K/yr - $174K/yr
5+ years expCerus aims to be the global leader and trusted partner of blood centers and hospitals, and they are seeking a hands-on IT Portfolio & Project Manager to enhance their IT project management processes. This role involves managing IT projects end-to-end, establishing governance practices, and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
Biotechnology
Responsibilities
Establish and manage a single front door for IT demand (intake forms, triage workflow, and centralized backlog)
Develop and maintain simple definitions and thresholds to classify work (request vs enhancement vs project) and apply the appropriate level of governance
Partner with IT leadership and business stakeholders to implement a lightweight prioritization approach (scoring for strategic alignment, urgency, risk, effort)
Facilitate regular portfolio review meetings to drive clear outcomes: approve, defer, reject, or request discovery and with decisions captured and communicated
Serve as the primary point of contact between IT, business stakeholders, and vendors for assigned projects and portfolio initiatives
Translate business needs into actionable requirements, project charters, and delivery plans in partnership with IT SMEs and functional owners
Facilitate project status meetings and communicate progress, risks, dependencies, and decisions to stakeholders and leadership
Proactively manage expectations, align on scope and outcomes, and drive timely decisions and issue resolution
Directly manage and deliver IT projects (systems implementations, infrastructure initiatives, cybersecurity/compliance projects, process improvements) from intake through closeout
Lead project planning activities: scope definition, milestones, stakeholder alignment, communications, and implementation planning
Drive execution discipline: weekly status, issue/risk management, dependency tracking, change control, and escalation
Coordinate cross-functional delivery teams so SMEs can focus on technical execution while you manage planning, coordination, and stakeholder alignment
Coordinate and support Computer System Validation (CSV) activities, including validation planning, execution, and documentation, in alignment with company procedures
Ensure IT systems and project deliverables comply with applicable regulations and standards (FDA 21 CFR Part 11, ISO 13485, and GxP where applicable)
Incorporate CSV, SDLC controls, and regulatory requirements into project plans, timelines, and deliverables (requirements, risk assessments, traceability, testing, approvals, and evidence packages)
Collaborate with stakeholders and system owners to address data integrity, cybersecurity considerations, and validation expectations for computerized systems
Build and run an IT project governance cadence (weekly/biweekly) that provides visibility into status, risks, dependencies, and decisions needed
Maintain an auditable decision log and ensure stakeholders understand tradeoffs, scope impacts, and sequencing
Produce executive-ready portfolio dashboards and summaries
Standardize project documentation and templates
Implement a practical approach to project financial tracking starting with vendor/SOW costs (quotes, POs, invoices) plus rough internal effort estimates to support forecasting and tradeoffs
Track forecast vs actual costs for project work and highlight variances, risks, and decision points
Coordinate vendor milestones/deliverables and ensure invoicing aligns to outcomes
Identify bottlenecks, propose improvements, and evolve governance based on feedback and adoption
Coach and enable IT staff on consistent project practices (templates, reporting rhythm, role clarity)
Contribute to an IT roadmap view by linking demand and projects to business priorities and compliance/security needs
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in Information Systems, Business, Project Management, or equivalent experience
5+ years of IT project management experience in a regulated environment (medical devices, pharma, biotech, healthcare)
Strong understanding of CSV, SDLC, and regulatory requirements for computerized systems
Familiarity with data integrity, cybersecurity, and FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance concepts
Demonstrated experience establishing or improving project processes (intake, governance, reporting) in an environment with limited prior structure
Strong ability to communicate project status and issues clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences
Preferred
Hands-on experience supporting or leading Computer System Validation (CSV) for enterprise applications and/or infrastructure supporting regulated processes
Familiarity with FDA, ISO (including ISO 13485), and GxP regulations/expectations
Experience coordinating vendor-led projects and managing SOW-based delivery
Project management certification (PMP, CAPM, PMI-ACP, Scrum Master) is a plus but not required
Benefits
Medical
Dental
Vision
Domestic partner benefits
Paid maternity and paternity leaves
Healthcare and dependent care flexible spending
Life and accidental death insurance
Long-term and short-term disability insurance
Matching 401(k)
RSUs
EAP
Legal and financial services
Health club membership discounts
Tuition reimbursement
Company
Cerus
Cerus Corporation is dedicated solely to safeguarding the world’s blood supply and aims to become the preeminent global blood products company.
201-500 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Cerus has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (5)
2024 (1)
2023 (5)
2022 (10)
2021 (2)
2020 (2)
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageLeadership Team
William "Obi" Greenman
President and Chief Executive Officer
Vivek Jayaraman
Chief Operating Officer
Company data provided by crunchbase