Senior Director, Operations IT – Strategy and Operational Excellence

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience with a minimum of 10 years' industry experience.

• Strong critical thinking and structured problem-solving skills, with the ability to challenge assumptions, assess evidence, identify root causes and reach sound conclusions.
• An analytical approach, with demonstrated ability to interpret sophisticated financial, workforce, operational and portfolio data and translate it into clear recommendations and action.
• A proven track record of driving measurable results, taking ownership from problem identification through execution and benefits realisation.
• Sound judgement in ambiguous situations, including the ability to evaluate trade-offs, prioritise effectively and make timely, evidence-based recommendations.
• Demonstrated hands-on use of AI and generative AI tools in everyday work. Candidates must be able to explain practical examples of how they have applied AI to improve productivity, analysis, communication or delivery.
• Experience driving strategy alignment, governance and high-quality delivery across complex enterprise initiatives.
• Proven ability to define and track OKRs, KPIs and scorecards aligned with enterprise and Operations business priorities.
• Experience applying analytics and benchmarking to deliver continuous improvement and capability optimisation.
• Experience partnering with senior leaders to develop strategy, strategic priorities, capability roadmaps and medium-term plans.
• Strong operational and portfolio governance experience, including data quality, risk management, financial planning and benefits tracking.
• Ability to influence without formal authority, challenge constructively and secure cross-functional commitment to decisions and delivery.
• Strong executive communication skills, with the ability to present sophisticated information clearly, defend recommendations with evidence and tailor messages to different audiences.
• Experience leading sustainability agendas, employee engagement and organisational change across distributed teams.

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Senior leadership experience within Operations technology environments in life sciences or similarly complex, regulated industries.

• Familiarity with long-range digital technology strategies and OKR frameworks across large global enterprises.
• Expertise with enterprise portfolio management, objectives and key results and data visualisation tools to build transparent, decision-ready scorecards.
• Track record of leading large-scale operating model changes and capability development across distributed teams.
• Experience scaling sustainability programmes and access-to-healthcare initiatives through education and engagement.
• Experience embedding AI-enabled workflows or lightweight automation across teams, with measurable improvements in productivity or quality.

When we put unexpected teams in the same room, we unleash bold thinking with the power to inspire life-changing medicines. In-person working gives us the platform we need to connect, work at pace and challenge perceptions.

That's why we work, on average, a minimum of three days per week from the office. But that doesn't mean we're not flexible. We balance the expectation of being in the office while respecting individual flexibility. Join us in our unique and ambitious world!