Director, Business Operations

Director, Business Operations

High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom

Purpose

The Director, Business Operations sits within the DU and is accountable for establishing and continuously optimizing business operations strategy to enable the DU to deliver the portfolio, as measured by time, cost and quality. This is achieved through broad understanding of the portfolio, strong relationships with functional units within and outside the DU, and by analysing data to uncover insights and improve ways of working.

The Director, Business Operations reports to the Delivery Operations Leader and leads Business Operations for the entire DU. The role includes leadership, growth and development responsibilities for team members. The Director also directly supports the Head of PADU and the DU Senior Leadership Team (SLT), serving as a strategic partner to ensure delivery of the portfolio, proactive risk management and strong governance.

Responsibilities

• Risk and Portfolio Management: Identify, assess, and proactively mitigate portfolio-level and operational risks. Develop and implement risk management processes and controls to ensure early identification of issues, constant inspection readiness and compliance with regulations and company policies.
• Business Operations Strategy: Manage and coordinate business operations strategy and initiatives to drive operational excellence across key functional domains, including Delivery Operations, Trial Management, and Therapeutic/Disease Area Stronghold Delivery. Collaborate closely with Business Operations peers within Global Development to align on enterprise-wide improvements.
• Reporting and Analysis: Establish and lead DU business reviews, risk forums and performance discussions. Leverage insights from data and operational metrics to support decision-making and highlight areas for continuous improvement. Shape reporting frameworks and tools to enable clear and actionable oversight.
• Functional Budget and Resource Management: Oversee DU-level planning and tracking of functional budgets, in close partnership with the Resource Management Director, Capacity Management and Finance.
• Communication Strategy and Execution: Ensure consistent and timely communication within the DU. Deliver DU-specific content that supports broader Global Development communications and ensures transparency and stakeholder engagement across internal and external audiences.
• Operational Excellence: Provide guidance and tools to support continuous improvement initiatives. Partner with PADU Delivery Operations Leads and functional experts to drive harmonisation, process maturity and delivery effectiveness.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Establish key customer and stakeholder interfaces across the DU and align operational strategy to evolving needs. Build strong partnerships to ensure effective collaboration and joint accountability for delivery outcomes.
• Team Management: Supervise and support team members within the business operations function. Promote a culture of trust, professional growth and impact-oriented performance.
• Process Improvement: Define and implement DU-wide process optimisation strategies. Lead efforts to enhance operational workflows, streamline delivery and introduce innovations aligned with enterprise priorities.
• Performance Management: Define and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and management systems to track delivery execution. Ensure visibility and accountability for operational results.
• Strategic and Operational Support to PADU-SLT: Provide strategic and operational support to the DU Head and PADU SLT. Contribute to planning, governance and execution of cross-functional initiatives that drive portfolio delivery, improve operational effectiveness and ensure alignment with DU priorities.
• Problem Solving: Take ownership of initiatives and ad hoc projects that enable smooth and agile DU operations. Act as a driver for change, resilience and results across the organisation.

Qualifications / Requirements

• Education: Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree required, preferably in Life Sciences (e.g., Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Nursing, Pharmacy). Advanced degree in a scientific discipline and/or Master’s degree is preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years of clinical research experience acquired in pharmaceutical industry or CRO.
• People management experience.
• Expertise or experience in risk and portfolio management.
• Excellent knowledge of drug development, clinical research operations and regulatory requirements including ICH‑GCP, HCC and applicable regulations.
• Proven track record of project management.
• Excellent communication and leadership skills.
• Proven ability to foster team productivity and cohesiveness.
• Strong in strategy development, project execution, stakeholder management, training and excellent interpersonal skills.
• Strong decision‑making and financial management skills.
• Flexibility to work in a rapidly changing environment with the appropriate sense of urgency.
• Experience in transforming organisations in response to business needs.
• Effective issue resolution and ability to generate and implement contingency plans for both productivity and quality issues when required.
• Ability to synthesize and evaluate data generated from various reports and sources.
• Demonstrated skills in effective communication with various internal and external stakeholders (e.g. investigational sites, ethics committees, health authorities).
• Can travel internationally or domestically up to 10‑20% of the time.

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