Job Description
Job Title:
Lead Research Officer I, IMCB
Requisition ID:
2323
Posting Start Date:
11/05/2026
Job Description
Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*STAR is seeking a highly motivated PMO Manager to lead day-to-day PMO governance and continuously improve our Project Life Cycle Management (PLCM) processes. In this role, you will drive project management process optimisation and adoption of the A*STAR Project System to strengthen project delivery discipline, productivity and reporting across the Research Institute.
Key Responsibilities
- Serve as the key liaison between IMCB leadership, PMO and A*STAR HQ on PMO governance, PLCM policy and the A*STAR Project System.
- Prepare, analyse and present monthly financial and portfolio data to support management review and decision-making.
- Provide system training, user guidance and best-practice coaching to improve capability and compliance.
- Run PMO clinics and serve as first-line support for project queries and PLCM workflow execution.
- Manage billing operations, including invoice preparation, tracking and reconciliation.
- Track and analyse project resource utilisation, producing insights for capacity and portfolio planning.
- Partner the PMO Lead to develop portfolio dashboards, executive decks, communications and programme documentation.
- Lead project/ programme audits and reviews, coordinating with project managers, principal investigators, scientists and HQ stakeholders.
- Compile and maintain project management dashboards and governance reporting for leadership forums.
- Review, simplify and update PLCM guidelines to strengthen governance, standardisation and continuous improvement.
- Identify and implement automation opportunities to streamline PLCM workflows and reduce manual effort.
- Plan and manage end-to-end R&D projects and product delivery, from initiation through closure.
- Ensure project delivery against scope, quality, schedule and budget, with proactive risk and issue management.
- Drive resolution of cross-functional challenges across quality, procurement, finance and legal to remove delivery blockers.
- Lead change control and delivery interventions to keep projects on track and outcomes realised.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Science, Engineering or a related discipline.
- Minimum 5 years of project management experience; prior experience in PMO governance is preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to engage, influence and align cross-functional stakeholders across internal teams and external partners.
- Strong change agility and a continuous-improvement mindset, with proven ability to embed new ways of working and governance standards.
- Excellent organisational skills with the ability to prioritise, lead through ambiguity and solve problems with structure and pragmatism.
- Effective written and verbal communication skills, with ability to produce executive-ready materials and facilitate working sessions.
- High attention to detail and data quality, with confidence working in project governance reporting.
- Sound business acumen with a delivery focus and able to balance governance rigour with practicality to meet deadlines and stakeholder needs.
- PMP (or equivalent) certification is an advantage.