Associate Director, Marketing Program Management

Job Description Summary #LI-Hybrid Location: Mexico City, Insurgentes Contract Type: This role is based in Mexico City, Insurgentes. Novartis is unable to offer relocation support: please only apply if accessible. Reimagining Medicine Starts With Our People The Associate Director, Marketing Program Management is responsible for leading complex strategic programs and cross-functional initiatives from planning through execution. This role ensures strong governance, stakeholder alignment, disciplined project delivery, and effective change management while supporting organizational priorities. The successful candidate will bring deep project and program management expertise, strong leadership capabilities, and a passion for improving ways of working through innovation, digital solutions, and responsible use of AI-enabled tools.   Job Description Key Responsibilities Strategic Program Leadership • Lead end-to-end delivery of complex, high-priority marketing and organizational programs. • Develop and manage project plans, roadmaps, timelines, budgets, resources, and success metrics. • Ensure projects are aligned with strategic business objectives and deliver measurable value. • Identify risks, dependencies, and opportunities, implementing mitigation plans as needed. Stakeholder Management & Communication • Partner with cross-functional teams and senior leaders across multiple functions and geographies. • Facilitate governance activities, including Steering Committee and Leadership Team engagement. • Establish communication strategies that promote transparency, alignment, and successful adoption of program outcomes. • Influence decision-making through data-driven recommendations and strategic insights. Operational Excellence • Apply project management best practices, methodologies, and governance frameworks. • Drive accountability, structure, and execution discipline across project teams. • Monitor program performance and proactively resolve issues impacting timelines, budgets, or scope. • Identify opportunities to optimize processes and improve organizational effectiveness. Digital Innovation & AI Adoption • Leverage AI-enabled tools and emerging technologies to enhance project delivery, productivity, and decision-making. • Promote responsible AI practices, ensuring appropriate governance, compliance, data privacy, and human oversight. • Coach teams on innovative approaches that improve efficiency and business outcomes. Change Management & Continuous Improvement • Support organizational transformation initiatives and evolving business priorities. • Foster collaboration across global and multicultural teams. • Contribute to the ongoing development and maturity of project management capabilities across the organization. • Share lessons learned and best practices to strengthen project execution excellence. Essential Requirements Education • Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Life Sciences, Project Management, or a related field. • Master's degree and/or MBA preferred. • PMP and/or Agile/Scrum certifications are highly desirable. Experience • Minimum of 7 years of experience in portfolio, program, or project management. • Experience managing large-scale, cross-functional initiatives in complex organizations. • Background within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, or consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry preferred. • Demonstrated success leading multiple simultaneous projects and driving strategic outcomes. Skills & Capabilities • Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English. • Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, including engagement with senior leadership. • Ability to lead multidisciplinary teams through ambiguity and change. • Strong planning, priori