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In this vital role as Executive Director, Study Start-Up (SSU), you will lead SSU Hub as a global center of excellence, and define and oversee the global SSU capability strategy, synthesizing sub-function strategies into a cohesive operating model that accelerates timeliness and drives consistent quality across all new studies. You will ensure operational consistency and scalability of study start-up delivery across all programs and therapeutic areas. Represent the SSU Hub in enterprise and governance forums, influencing portfolio decisions and ensuring start-up insights to inform program and study planning. You will champion innovation and continuous improvement in start-up approaches, embedding digital solutions, predictive analytics, and harmonized ways of working across the global portfolio.
Job Responsibility:
Shape the long-term vision and strategy of the SSU Hub, ensuring alignment with CPSO, GDO, and enterprise priorities
Integrate and harmonize strategies from the six sub-functions into a single global capability strategy, balancing standardization with local/regional adaptability
Act as the global escalation point for study start-up risks and issues, ensuring timely resolution and portfolio-level visibility
Embed within the industry - bringing outside ways of working and representing Amgen back into the industry
Build and develop a high-performing global SSU leadership team (Directors, Sr Managers) creating a culture of accountability, innovation and operational excellence
Lead, and mentor the global SSU Hub leadership team, ensuring robust succession planning, talent development, and organizational effectiveness
Drive consistent performance management, alignment, and calibration across sub-functions to ensure equitable resourcing and delivery
Embed a center of excellence mindset, encouraging knowledge-sharing and best practice adoption globally
Oversee start-up planning and execution across all new studies globally, ensuring timelines and quality standards are consistently achieved
Partner with Clinical Program Strategy and Operations TA Heads to ensure seamless integration of start-up into program execution
Monitor and report global SSU performance through clear metrics and KPIs, driving accountability for continuous improvement
Maintain and strengthen cross-functional and global business relationships, representing the SSU Hub in governance forums and enterprise initiatives
Partner with senior leaders across Clinical Development, Operations, Regulatory, and Regions to ensure study start-up strategy enables trial success, and resources required to execute are assigned and aligned to SSU hub plan
Act as a visible change leader, promoting the SSU Hub’s role as a strategic enabler of faster, more predictable clinical trial execution and drive cross functional sponsorship
Requirements:
Doctorate degree and 6 years of clinical execution experience
Master’s degree and 10 years of clinical execution experience
Bachelor’s degree and 12 years of clinical execution experience
6 years of managerial experience directly managing people and/or leadership experience leading teams, projects, programs or directing the allocation of resources
12+ years’ work experience in life sciences industry, particularly focusing on clinical trial work, including 10+ years of biopharmaceutical clinical research experience obtained at a biotech or pharmaceutical company
Experience engaging and working across clinical trial teams in multiple geographies to deliver global clinical trials
Experience driving and leading organizations through cross-functional change initiatives such as identifying solutions to problems and innovating and change strategies and structure to meet future needs
Experience leading cross-functional / cross-geography / cross-trial teams, ensuring operational excellence and smooth decision-making
ability to escalate and resolve challenges in alignment with global study strategy priorities
Extensive knowledge of the clinical and pharmaceutical drug development process, from early to late-stage development with a deep understanding of relevant therapeutic areas to meet the highest scientific and regulatory standards
Adept in cross geography, cultural dynamics and running efficient global teams - Ability to lead and motivate geographically dispersed teams in an inclusive manner
Experience in assessing internal capabilities and identifying key capabilities to build training content, monitoring skill improvement, and drive competency builds across function and within teams
Demonstrates clear understanding of how to build collaborative networks across cross-functional teams, senior management, and external stakeholders, internally and externally to drive efficiency across processes
Big picture, proactive thinking with the ability to assess broad impacts across multiple product portfolios to identify innovative solutions
What we offer:
Comprehensive employee benefits package, including a Retirement and Savings Plan with generous company contributions, group medical, dental and vision coverage, life and disability insurance, and flexible spending accounts
A discretionary annual bonus program, or for field sales representatives, a sales-based incentive plan
Stock-based long-term incentives
Award-winning time-off plans and bi-annual company-wide shutdowns
Flexible work models, including remote work arrangements, where possible