About The Michael J. Fox Foundation
The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) was founded in 2000 with one clear objective: accelerating meaningful therapeutic advances and, ultimately, a cure for Parkinson’s disease (PD). The Foundation applies extraordinary scientific, business and media assets to this singular focus — thus creating a unique and dynamic organization. Since inception, MJFF has quickly grown into the largest global funder of Parkinson’s disease research outside the U. S. federal government, having funded over $900 million in research projects in both academic and industry labs worldwide.
In order to achieve our mission of finding a cure for PD it is critical that we engage with, and bring together, members of the PD community including researchers, physicians, health professionals and most important, people with Parkinson's and their families. We believe that raising the Foundation’s profile with a broader audience will help us more efficiently reach and mobilize highly engaged stakeholders who are more likely to feel personally vested in helping speed progress toward a cure.
We believe that to find a cure for PD as quickly as possible, our capital needs to push research forward today — we therefore deliberately have no endowment. We instead start our fundraising from zero each year and seek to deploy funds raised as quickly and wisely as possible. MJFF raises over $100 million annually. Today, the Foundation’s staff comprises approximately 155 full-time employees, increasingly including remote employees as well as those based in New York City.
Position Description:
The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) is seeking a Senior Project Manager (Marketing) to join our Strategy & Planning team. The ideal candidate is a highly focused, detail oriented and motivated multitasker with strong interpersonal and communication skills.
Reporting to the Vice President of Strategy & Planning, the Director of Project Management is responsible for planning and overseeing programs and projects to ensure they are completed on time and within budget while meeting business requirements. As a liaison between business owners and project teams, the Director standardizes workflows to collect key pieces of information to scope projects, aggregate data into digestible information, connect dots, track progress, and ultimately deliver results.
MJFF is a fast-moving, fast-growing nonprofit organization that is wholly dedicated to curing Parkinson’s disease in our lifetime, and effective project management is key to achieving our ambitious goals. The Strategy & Planning department functions as an enterprise Project Management Office (PMO) within the Administration Division, alongside Finance, Digital Strategies, and Information Technology. Our purpose is to define, prioritize, resource, and manage a portfolio of programs and projects that meet the Foundation's strategic objectives and to provide full-service project management for the Marketing & Communications division.
We strive to create a partnership culture that embodies the MJFF values of urgency, optimism, resourcefulness, collaboration, accountability, and persistence. Our department behaviors are to continually ask how something can be improved, set personally high standards, keep things simple, and move quickly.
This is a full-time role with no expected travel. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Director of Project Management will begin as a remote position but will eventually be expected to work at least part-time in MJFF’s office in the midtown area of New York City. Standard business hours are 9am to 5pm. The Foundation supports flexible and remote work schedules.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
Project Management (70%)
- Manage a portfolio of programs and projects owned by the Marketing & Communications division.
- Determine and define project scope and objectives.
- Estimate resources needed to reach objectives and manage resources in an effective and efficient manner.
- Prepare budget based on scope of work and resource requirements.
- Track project costs in order to meet budget.
- Develop and manage detailed project schedules and work plans.
- Provide project updates on a consistent basis to various stakeholders about strategy, adjustments, and progress.
- Manage contracts with vendors and suppliers by assigning tasks and communicating expected deliverables.
- Monitor project progress and make adjustments as needed.
- Measure project performance to identify areas for improvement.
- Implement a comprehensive management plan for each project and hold regular stakeholder meetings to keep all interested parties updated in project progress. Anticipate roadblocks, uncover areas for improvement and implement solutions.
- Pinpoint how teams can leverage existing strengths and improve its weaknesses through various business process improvements.
- Operate within the PMO’s governance processes, supporting both the delivery teams and business owners to ensure the right balance between control and timely delivery and quality.
- Adhere to the PMO’s standards, utilizing industry best practices and techniques throughout entire project execution.
- Partner with portfolio managers in the Strategy & Planning group to ensure all project data meets operational planning requirements.
Business Analysis (15%)
- Perform rigorous analysis and extract key information quickly and simply providing teams with facts that guide strategy management, planning, and control of multiple projects.
- Service internal stakeholders across organization to collect new business requests and operational objectives; review, analyze and evaluate stakeholder needs. Gather information, define scope and feasibility, develop and implement project plans to execute deliverables.
- Act as the key interface between stakeholders and the functional teams that execute on the vision.
Management (15%)
- Manage a team of trained program and project managers.
- Develop and deliver a training curriculum for project managers based on Project Management Institute global standards.
- Facilitate monthly project management council meetings, which consists of representatives from all departments across the Foundation.
- Facilitate weekly office hours with stakeholders across the Foundation.
Qualifications and Skills:
- Minimum of 10 years of project management experience, including a demonstrable track record of implementing successful integrated marketing campaigns that include print publications, direct mail, online advertising and promotion, live and virtual events, and video production.
- Bachelor’s degree or higher in business, project management, marketing, or a related field.
- PMP or equivalent certification strongly preferred.
- Management experience is required (managing full-time direct reports).
- Ability to successfully manage multiple programs and projects at once.
- Strong communication skills (oral and written).
- Highly organized and detail oriented.
- Ability to think critically and solve complex problems.
- Ability to work effectively both independently and as part of a team.
- Ability to multitask and work on tight deadlines.
- Competency in Microsoft applications including Word, Excel, and Outlook.
- Experience with project management tools such as Asana and/or Jira a plus.
The Michael J. Fox Foundation is an equal opportunity employer.