Project Controller

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Minnesota.

📋 Description

• Take charge of schedule, cost, change management, and risk controls for a biopharmaceutical manufacturing project.

• Create and sustain the integrated project schedule in Microsoft Project in accordance with the WBS, incorporating durations, logic, constraints, resources, and cost allocations.

• Set up and uphold the approved baseline schedule, manage baseline change control, and document any revisions.

• Gather weekly progress updates across engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, automation, CQV, technical transfers, and operational readiness.

• Conduct critical path and total float analysis, generate 3-week and 6-week look-ahead schedules, and execute what-if and recovery scenarios.

• Integrate contractor and vendor schedules into the master schedule, ensuring accuracy in logic and progress.

• Develop and oversee the project cost baseline and budget control, aligned with the approved capital appropriation and structured by WBS/CBS Levels 1–3.

• Monitor and reconcile commitments, actuals, and accruals against the budget; coordinate purchase requisitions, purchase orders, and invoice reviews.

• Act as the gatekeeper for purchase orders, facilitating approvals from SOW submission through to PO approval.

• Compile monthly cost reports detailing budget, committed costs, incurred costs, forecasts, ETC, and EAC.

• Maintain the project cash flow forecast and spend curve categorized by CBS.

• Utilize Earned Value Management to analyze cost variances and propose corrective action recommendations.

• Manage contingency and reserve, keeping a log of contingencies and reconciling them to residual risk exposure.

• Keep the change log updated; author Project Change Notices detailing cost and schedule impacts and route for approvals based on financial thresholds.

• Maintain the risk register and issues log; facilitate risk workshops, assign ownership, and define mitigation actions.

• Conduct quantitative schedule and cost risk analysis using Monte Carlo or QSRA as necessary.

• Prepare the monthly Steering Committee reporting package, which includes executive summary, CAPEX phasing, change control, master schedule, milestones, progress, risks, actions, and procurement status.

• Report directly to the client Project Manager; collaborate with the client project team, general contractor, automation supplier, and CQV partners; no direct reports involved.

⛳️ Requirements

• Over 5 years of project controls experience on capital projects, with responsibilities encompassing both schedule and cost management.

• Experience in the Pharmaceutical / Life Sciences sector.

• Proven experience managing a resource and cost-loaded integrated schedule in Microsoft Project, including baselining, baseline change control, and the integration of contractor and vendor schedules; Primavera P6 experience alone does not fulfill this requirement.

• Capability to produce and interpret Earned Value metrics, such as CPI, SPI, CV, SV, ETC, EAC, and VAC.

• Experience in creating and maintaining a cost baseline structured by WBS and CBS, including tracking commitments, actuals, accruals, and cash flow forecasting.

• Familiarity with managing a change control process, including drafting change notices and facilitating approvals against financial thresholds.

• Experience in managing a risk register, leading risk workshops, and communicating risk status to a governance forum.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel for tracking costs, earned value, cash flow, and maintaining registers.

• Preferred experience in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or other regulated manufacturing capital projects, including CQV, technical transfers, and operational ramp-up.

• Preferred experience with Monte Carlo schedule and cost risk analysis.

• Preferred experience with Power BI.

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, construction management, or a related field is preferred.

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary.

• Health, dental, and vision insurance coverage.

• 401(k) retirement program.

• Paid time off and paid holidays.

• Support for professional development and training.

• Remote-first work policy.

• Up to 25% travel required to the client site located in Minneapolis, Minnesota.