R&D&I Project Manager

Mission

RINA is looking for an R&D&I Project Manager, to drive innovation through funded R&D projects ensuring effective management across the full lifecycle, from proposal development to project execution and monitoring in the field of Sustainable Chemical Processes for fuels, materials and storage.

Key Accountabilities

Key responsibilities include funded R&D proposal preparation and project management activities, coordinating both internal teams and external partners.

The key areas of accountability of the Innovation Project Manager comprise:

• Proposal development:

• Identify the applicable requirements, scoring model and award criteria.
• Define the proposal scope: for funded R&D projects contribute to the definition of the most competitive concept or value proposition to match call requirements and RINA’s strategy.
• Engage, coordinate and ensure effective interaction with internal support teams and externals, such as public entities, private companies, universities, research centers, non-exclusive personnel, subcontractors and other external stakeholders.
• Coordinate preparation of proposals covering technical, commercial, contractual, and administrative aspects.
• Ensure preparation of high-quality technical proposals, using appropriate techno-scientific language, from concept elaboration to elaboration of methodology, writing of documents and final review.
• Ensure proposal package is complete, competitive from both technical and commercial perspective and oversees proposal submission and handle post-submission clarifications and negotiations.

• Project coordination and delivery:

• Set up, induct, and engage project teams (both internal and external, if applicable), defining the roles and responsibilities of each team member along with the subdivision of the individual tasks constituting the scope of work.
• Ensure effective interaction with funding bodies or R&D project partners and other external stakeholders.
• Ensure smooth project communication and progress reporting.
• Ensure quality, compliance with scope of work, and fulfillment of contractual obligations and project objectives,
• Work with team members to optimize resource utilization throughout the project lifecycle.
• Prepare or coordinate preparation of project documentation and reporting under PM responsibilities.

• Internal stakeholder management and Interaction:

• Interact with internal management to obtain authorization to proceed and gather guidance.
• Provide proposal and project details to internal stakeholders to support decision-making.
• Interact with corporate strategy function to ensure R&D projects are aligned with RINA strategic interests.
• Liaise with R&D Administrative team and R&D Financial Manager for budget definition, grant / consortium agreement definition, resource planning, reporting, invoicing and collection.
• Actively collaborate with practices and disciplines during both proposal development and project execution.
• Liaise with project control functions for effective financial and economic planning and control.

Education

Qualifications

• • Professional experience:
  • Minimum 3+ years in an engineering or technical role within project-based environments, ideally with exposure to cross-functional teams; alternatively, 1–3 years in an associate project management role. PhD, if any, duration counts as part of such experience.
  • Proven track record in managing European and international R&D projects, including grant compliance, financial reporting, and stakeholder coordination.
  • Technical and project management skills:
  • Demonstrated knowledge of EU funding programs (e.g., Horizon Europe, LIFE, Interreg, Innovation Fund, etc.) and/or national funding schemes (e.g., MASE, PNRR, etc.). Previous experience with cascading funding projects is considered a plus.
  • Previous experience in proposal development and projects management either related to funded R&D programs or to conventional industrial projects.
  • Proficiency in project management methodologies (Waterfall, Agile, etc.).
  • Expertise in project planning and execution, including scope definition, scheduling, budgeting, and resource allocation.
  • Experience in budget management and financial monitoring
  • Ability to identify risks, anticipate challenges, and implement effective quality control measures.
  • Strong ability to engage with diverse stakeholders including funding agencies, consortium partners, clients, and internal teams.

Competencies