Project Manager

About Whipsaw

Whipsaw is a product design and brand consultancy based in San Francisco. We take products from first insight to first customer, working across strategy, industrial design, digital experience, brand identity, packaging, and market launch with one integrated team. 350+ global client partners. 1,000+ products designed. 325+ design awards. Our clients are funded startups building their first commercial product and established companies evolving an existing one, entering a new market, or launching a new sub-brand. The work spans consumer, medical, scientific, industrial, and connected products.

Responsibilities

• Join every client working session, workshop, and research review
• Capture feedback, decisions, and open questions live, then turn them into something the team can act on within a day
• Synthesize session notes, research inputs, and client materials into clear summaries for our strategy and design teams
• Prep agendas, pre-reads, and recaps for every client touchpoint
• Keep the schedule, milestones, and deliverable list current, and flag slippage early
• Track action items on both sides of the engagement and chase them down
• Give our internal Whipsaw PM the full picture so nothing gets rebuilt from scratch or asked twice
• Own file organization, version control, and shared documentation so nobody hunts for the latest file
• Spot the tricky stuff before it lands: unclear scope, conflicting feedback, missing approvals, quiet stakeholders. Work the problem first, escalate second.

Requirements

• 3+ years managing complex, multi-workstream projects
• Direct experience in at least one of: biotech or life sciences, hardware, medical devices, or software
• Real product development experience. You know how a program moves from research through concept, refinement, and handoff, and you know where it usually breaks
• Exceptional organization and communication. This is the whole job. You write clearly, you write fast, and you write for the person reading it, whether they're a scientist, a designer, or an executive
• Comfort with AI tools. We use them daily for synthesis, note capture, research, and documentation. You should already be doing the same, and you should know when to trust the output and when to check it
• Tech native. New platform, new client system, new workflow. You pick it up without a training session
• Patience. Complex programs mean repeated questions, shifting inputs, and stakeholders who join late and need catching up. You handle that without friction
• Based in the San Francisco Bay Area and able to work hybrid onsite

Nice to have

• Experience in regulated or scientific environments (FDA, ISO 13485, clinical or lab workflows)
• Agency, studio, or consultancy background
• Experience working in Microsoft 365 environments
• Experience working in Google Cloud environments
• Familiarity with Figma, Notion, or Smartsheet
• Research operations or workshop facilitation experience

Terms

• Contract Length: 4-5 months, with potential to extend
• Hours: Up to 40 hours per week, fully dedicated to one client program
• Overtime: Billed to client and paid to you hourly
• Location: Hybrid, San Francisco/ 2-3 days per week onsite at 55 Mississippi St.
• Rate: $65-75 per hour
• Start date: August 12, 2026
• Classification: 1099