Project Manager - Pharma

Company Description

Publicis is an omni-channel communications agency with over 600 employees across our Canadian operations. The office is the largest in our industry in Canada and boasts talent across various disciplines of marketing and advertising expertise. Publicis carries a balanced split of Canadian, U.S. and Global clients for which we are Agency of Record.  Publicis supports a range of D&I actions through our Driving Change team as well as giving back to the community through a long-standing participation in the Out of the Cold Program. With a strong, active and familial culture, Pub United is the agency’s social club, hosting events as wide reaching as Curling, Trivia Nights and more.

 

Publicis Health Canada partners with healthcare and pharmaceutical clients to deliver meaningful, high-quality work across traditional and digital channels. We are committed to creating an inclusive, collaborative, and respectful environment where team members can continue to learn, build their careers, and do their best work.

Overview

We are looking for a Project Manager with agency experience to join our growing healthcare team in Toronto or Montreal and support a leading biopharmaceutical client. This role is for a delivery owner who can translate approved scope into a clear plan, guide cross-functional teams through the project lifecycle, maintain strong financial and operational control, and communicate the right information at the right time.

 

The Project Manager will lead low- to mid-complexity, multi-channel work across digital and traditional deliverables, which may include websites, emails, banners, social content, print materials and related production assets. The role partners closely with Client Service, Creative, Copy, Medical, Regulatory, Production, Finance and Resource Management to deliver high-quality work that meets client requirements and agency standards.

 

 

What You Will Own

 

End-to-end delivery: Manage assigned projects from initiation through close, maintaining an accurate view of deliverables, owners, milestones, dependencies and approval requirements.

Scope, schedule and budget: Build and maintain integrated timelines and project budgets; monitor progress, burn and cost-to-complete; identify out-of-scope activity and support timely change control.

Risk and decision management: Identify and monitor risks, assumptions, issues and dependencies; recommend practical mitigation options; escalate early when decisions or support are required.

Team coordination and resourcing: Lead project-level resource and priority discussions, support smooth hand-offs, and keep cross-functional contributors aligned to the plan and expected outcomes.

Quality and compliance: Ensure required quality-control steps are planned and completed, route materials through the appropriate review platforms, and confirm comments and queries are resolved before work advances.

Stakeholder alignment: Provide concise, timely and audience-appropriate updates that distinguish critical signal from routine activity and clearly communicate decisions, risks, next steps and owners.

Operational discipline: Maintain accurate project data and documentation across agency systems, apply standard ways of working, and identify repeatable efficiencies without compromising quality or compliance.

Continuous improvement: Participate in retrospectives, apply lessons learned, adopt new tools and ways of working, and share practical improvements with the broader team.

Responsibilities

Project Planning and Execution 

• Clarify project goals, deliverables, assumptions, constraints, roles and approval requirements with the project team. 

• Create and maintain realistic project plans and timelines using a cross-functional, collaborative approach. 

• Manage day-to-day workflow, priorities, dependencies and hand-offs across concurrent assignments. 

• Lead project meetings that result in clear decisions, owners and next steps; distribute concise recaps when required. 

• Keep project documentation, status reporting and core systems current and accurate. 

Financial and Scope Management 

• Develop budgets and estimates assigned projects, with appropriate review and support. 

• Monitor scope and cost-to-complete; connect work effort and resourcing decisions to budget impact. 

• Maintain organised records of estimates, revisions, purchase orders and change orders. 

• Identify scope ambiguity or out-of-scope requests early and partner with Client Service and leadership on next steps. 

• Participate in regular financial hygiene, reconciliation and billing-readiness activities. 

Risk, Quality and Regulatory Workflow 

• Maintain visibility to project risks and impacts across quality, budget and timing, with practical mitigation actions and owners. 

• Ensure deliverables follow required quality-control, medical, legal and regulatory review processes. 

• Manage document routing in approved platforms and confirm feedback is clear, complete and appropriately resolved. 

• Apply working knowledge of pharmaceutical approval requirements, including MLR, FDA or ASC/PAAB processes as applicable. 

• Protect confidential information and follow agency, client and regulatory standards. 

Collaboration and Communication 

• Build productive relationships across Client Service, Creative, Copy, Medical, Regulatory, Production, Finance, Resource Management and external partners. 

• Manage internal and client expectations through clear, timely and actionable communication. 

• Adapt communication style and detail to the audience, selecting the right channel and escalation path. 

• Bring forward issues with proposed solutions, not just status updates. 

• Contribute to an inclusive, collaborative environment and support onboarding or informal coaching of junior team members when needed. 

Qualifications

 

• Approximately 2-4 years of project-management experience in an advertising, marketing, communications, production or similar agency environment. 

• Demonstrated experience independently managing low- to mid-complexity projects through an end-to-end workflow. 

• Experience with digital and/or traditional advertising deliverables. Pharmaceutical or healthcare agency experience is strongly preferred. 

• Working understanding of project planning, resource coordination, financial tracking, risk management, change control and quality assurance. 

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to make complex information clear and actionable. 

• High attention to detail, sound judgement, adaptability and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment. 

• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 tools. Experience with Smartsheet, Adobe Workfront, Workfront Proof, Jira, Confluence or comparable project-management and workflow platforms is an asset. 

• Post-secondary education in project management, marketing, advertising, communications, business or a related field is preferred, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience. 

What Success Looks Like 

• Projects move with clear ownership, realistic plans and predictable follow-through. 

• Scope, budget, timing, resources and risks are visible, current and actively managed. 

• Stakeholders receive concise updates that clarify decisions, priorities, owners and next steps. 

• Quality-control and regulatory workflow requirements are incorporated into the plan, not treated as afterthoughts. 

• Problems are surfaced early with options and recommendations. 

• Project data and documentation are dependable, and lessons learned translate into better ways of working. 

Additional Information

 

Transparency matters to us. The salary range for this position is CAD $75,000 - $85,000 per year. Actual compensation within this range will be based on a variety of factors, including relevant experience, knowledge, skills, and applicable certifications. This range reflects what we reasonably expect to offer based on current market data.  

 

We use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of our hiring process, such as reviewing applications or analyzing resumes. These tools assist our recruitment team but never replace human decision-making. We believe in a human-first approach, where your experience and potential are recognized by people.

 

Publicis Canada is committed to building a diverse workforce representative of our community. We encourage and are pleased to consider all qualified candidates, without regard to race, colour, citizenship, religion, sex, marital / family status, sexual orientation, gender identity, aboriginal status, age, disability or persons who may require an accommodation, to apply.  If you require a specific accommodation please contact Human Resources.