Commercial & Operations Manager, Life Sciences Partnerships

Responsibilities

The role involves partnering with executive and commercial teams to manage deal pipelines, draft proposals, and ensure client requirements are accurately translated for the clinical team. You will also participate in client meetings and improve internal operational processes to support business growth.

Requirements

Candidates should have 3-5 years of experience in client-facing, operations, or consulting roles, preferably within life sciences or health technology. Strong written communication, organizational skills, and the ability to bridge technical and commercial concepts are essential.

Skills

• Life sciences
• Operations
• Consulting
• Data analysis
• Proposal writing
• RFP management
• Project management
• Client relations
• Clinical data
• CRM tools
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Strategic planning
• Technical communication
• Process improvement
• Stakeholder management

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Employee equity options
• 401k contributions
• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance

About this role

About Lighten
Lighten envisions a future where clinical data drives the next generation of breakthroughs in human health, from uncovering personalized treatment insights, to accelerating drug discovery, to driving adoption of innovative therapies.
We build AI-native software platforms that transform raw clinical data into the highest-quality patient journeys, accelerating evidence generation for R&D and bringing life-saving therapies to market faster. We partner with life sciences and healthcare organizations to help them deliver on their mission for the patients they serve.
We offer competitive salary and employee equity options, 3% company-sponsored 401k contributions, and comprehensive medical, dental and vision insurance for employees and their families.
About the role
This is a unique role at the intersection of our executive team, commercial team, and clinical team. You’ll sit at the center of how Lighten wins and delivers: helping close deals on the commercial side while making sure what we sell is accurately translated into what our clinical team builds. It’s a front-row seat to how a high-growth life sciences AI company operates, with a clear path into a sales role or a Chief of Staff role as you grow.
What you’ll do
Partner with leadership. Work directly with the executive team and commercial team on pipeline, priorities, and cross-functional initiatives.
Join the conversation. Participate in customer calls with pharma and life sciences clients, capturing needs, following up, and helping move opportunities forward.
Draft proposals. Write and assemble proposals, scopes of work, and RFP responses that clearly communicate Lighten’s approach, deliverables, and value.
Keep deals on track. Maintain accurate tracking of opportunity status, next steps, and deadlines across the pipeline, and flag risks early.
Translate client needs. Work with our clinical team to turn client requirements (cohort definitions, endpoints, data needs) into clear, actionable specifications, and relay clinical feedback back to the commercial team and client.
Build the operating system. Improve our templates, processes, and internal playbooks so the commercial team can move faster and more consistently.
What we’re looking for
3-5 years of experience in a client-facing, operations, consulting, or analytical role, ideally in life sciences, healthcare, or health data/technology.
Excellent written communication, with the ability to turn complex technical or clinical material into clear, persuasive proposals.
Exceptional organization and follow-through, comfortable managing many moving pieces and deadlines at once.
Comfort working with senior stakeholders, both internal executives and external clients.
Curiosity and the ability to quickly learn clinical and data concepts well enough to bridge commercial and clinical teams.
A self-starter mindset: you thrive in a fast-moving startup, take ownership, and figure things out without waiting to be told.
Nice to have
Background in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health, other scientific fields, clinical/medical training or consulting
Working knowledge of EHR and claims data
Exposure to life sciences commercial, RWE, HEOR, or medical affairs organizations
Experience with CRM tools and proposal or RFP processes
We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We embrace diversity and provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications, performance, merit, and business need.

About Lighten

Artificial Intelligence · 11-50 employees · headquartered in San Francisco, CA · founded 2023