Program Manager (Lab Animal Science)

Company Name: Charles River Laboratories

Location: Bethesda, MD, US - 20892

Job Duration: 2024-12-17 to 2025-01-16

Overview

For 75 years, Charles River employees have worked together to assist in the discovery, development and safe manufacture of new drug therapies. When you join our family, you will have a significant impact on the health and well-being of people across the globe. Whether your background is in life sciences, finance, IT, sales or another area, your skills will play an important role in the work we perform. In return, we’ll help you build a career that you can feel passionate about.

Job Summary

We are seeking a Program Manager to join our Insourcing Solutions team, located in Bethesda, MD.

 

How will you have an impact?

This is the moment to use your talents and imagine those talents contributing to improving global health and peoples’ lives. In the PM role, you will utilize your management experience and talents as a leader to provide mentorship and operational direction to a diverse team dedicated to the NIH mission, specifically to infectious disease research at a large multi-species and multi-position program. You will grow and strengthen an existing animal facilities team through mentorship, open communication and QA utilizing industry standards for the care and use of animals in infectious disease research at the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease. You will mentor and grow Deputy Mangers to form a cohesive management team that can offer support and leadership to Facility Managers and future leaders in the field. 

 

What you will do!

  • Use existing SOPs and quality assurance standards to oversee the operations of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) contract, consisting of eight facilities in Maryland.
  • Ensure that all contract deliverables are met; manage by walking around; assist Contract sections to prepare budgets for fiscal year allocations; assist in generating LOEs and Response Letters for the Government’s Request for Contract Modifications; interact with client representatives to resolve various inquiries; as well as participate in the development of projections for equipment, supplies, and personnel needed to effectively operate the research facilities.
  • Assist facility managers and staff to establish specifications for recommendations for the selection and purchase of animal care related equipment; as well as review site specific standard operating procedures for the care of laboratory animals, and the operation of the facility.
  • Assist in the review and analysis of operational needs and make recommendations to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of animal care services.
  • Act as corporate liaison to designated contract business clients to assess contract performance; supervise direct reports; conduct or participate in interviews of applicants for key personnel open positions; be actively involved in personnel investigations and outcomes; as well as coordinate personnel scheduling.
  • Serve as temporary backfill for Deputy Program Managers during vacancies, and you will train and mentor members of the management team. There will be a need to conduct periodic meetings with subordinate staff to keep them informed of current and future projects, policies, and procedures; as well as assist in assessing training needs, including developing and delivering course content and materials for training, presenting training for staff and investigators, as well as continuing education of the animal care staff to achieve AALAS certification. In addition, investigate personnel problems and develop performance improvement plans, provide counseling to employees, and write employee performance evaluations.
  • Periodically, you may be asked to review site quality assurance procedures for various functions within the facility as deemed necessary by the client.

Job Qualifications

Who are we looking for?

  • A dynamic, well-rounded and experienced team builder skilled in personnel management, problem solving with the proven ability to integrate into a large, decentralized animal program.
  • A candidate that possesses either a BS degree in Animal Sciences or Biological Sciences; or an MS, Ph. D, or DVM degree. Must have 10 years of experience working in a large multi-level animal program, of which 6 are a supervisory capacity. Experience in specialty areas, such as rodent and rabbit facilities management, NHP (Non-Human Primate) facilities management, barrier management, high containment, hazard containment, and animal facility data management are required. Must be LATG (Laboratory Animal Technologist) certified; preference given to CMAR certification.

 

Knowledge, skills, and abilities

  • Proficient in contract and personnel management. 
  • Demonstrated success in collaboration with others and demonstrating independent thought.
  • Must be skilled in the mentoring and developing supervisory staff.
  • Working knowledge and understanding of laboratory animal facilities operations and contract services business issues and trends.
  • Superior customer service orientation with strong follow-up skills and attention to detail.
  • Demonstrated strong business judgement, critical thinking, problem solving and effective decision-making skills.
  • Ability to quickly identify areas of improvement and implement solutions with an interdisciplinary approach. 
  • Experience in developing and leading large teams, managing people and animal research facilities and building rapport to influence messaging, acceptance and understanding.
  • Process driven with the ability to execute functional processes while using appropriate change management approaches.

 

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday 7:30/8AM-4/4:30PM. Should be available for emergencies during weekends/holidays.

Compensation Data

The pay range for this position is $150,000/yr. – $180,000/yr. Please note that salaries vary within the range based on factors including experience, skills, education, certifications, and location.

Competencies

Care – We show we care when we respect each other, our animals and the communities where we work and live, when we create a positive healthy workplace, when we are mindful of our compliance standards, and when we choose to do the right thing.
Own – We act like owners when we hold ourselves accountable for our actions, when we respond to internal and external client needs with speed and accuracy, when we set and achieve meaningful goals, and when we strive towards continuous improvement.
Collaborate -We collaborate when we partner with each other and promote teamwork, when we communicate clearly and effectively across the hall or around the globe, and when we welcome all forms of diversity and encourage inclusiveness.
Lead – We lead when we advocate our purpose and model our values, when we deliver innovation, when we embrace change, and when we appreciate and celebrate the great work of others.

About Insourcing Solutions
Charles River Insourcing Solutions℠ can streamline research by delivering operational and cost efficiencies through the strategic insourcing of GMP, GLP and non-GLP research services from discovery through safety assessment. Insourcing Solutions℠ provides you with the ability to maintain control of your facility and expertise while leveraging available space.

About Charles River
Charles River is an early-stage contract research organization (CRO). We have built upon our foundation of laboratory animal medicine and science to develop a diverse portfolio of discovery and safety assessment services, both Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and non-GLP, to support clients from target identification through preclinical development. Charles River also provides a suite of products and services to support our clients’ clinical laboratory testing needs and manufacturing activities. Utilizing this broad portfolio of products and services enables our clients to create a more flexible drug development model, which reduces their costs, enhances their productivity and effectiveness to increase speed to market.

With over 20,000 employees within 110 facilities in over 20 countries around the globe, we are strategically positioned to coordinate worldwide resources and apply multidisciplinary perspectives in resolving our client’s unique challenges. Our client base includes global pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, government agencies and hospitals and academic institutions around the world.

At Charles River, we are passionate about our role in improving the quality of people’s lives. Our mission, our excellent science and our strong sense of purpose guide us in all that we do, and we approach each day with the knowledge that our work helps to improve the health and well-being of many across the globe. We have proudly worked on 80% of the drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the past five years.

We’re committed to providing benefits that elevate your quality of life.  Based on your position these may include:  bonus/incentives based on performance, 401K, paid time off, stock purchase program, Health and wellness coverage, employee and family wellbeing support programs, and work life balance flexibility.

 

Equal Employment Opportunity
Charles River Laboratories is an Equal Opportunity Employer – all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin, veteran or disability status.

If you are interested in applying to Charles River Laboratories and need special assistance or an accommodation due to a disability to complete any forms or to otherwise participate in the resume submission process, please contact a member of our Human Resources team by sending an e-mail message to crrecruitment_US@crl.com. This contact is for accommodation requests for individuals with disabilities only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.

 

For more information, please visit www.criver.com.