Director, Business Strategy and Operations, Global Clinical Development Operations (GCDO)

Brief description

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The Director, Business Strategy & Operations (BS&O) – GCDO serves as the strategic business partner and Chief of Staff to the Head of Global Clinical Development Operations and the GCDO Leadership Team (LT). Reporting to the Head of R&D Business Strategy & Operations, this role drives strategic alignment, operational cadence, workforce planning, and continuous improvement across the global clinical development operations organization.

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The Director oversees multi-year workforce and resource planning, acts as the functional data steward for capacity models and budget cycles, coordinates business development due diligence and integration, and partners with the Communications team to ensure unified, transparent organizational messaging.

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Essential functions

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Chief of Staff & Operational Governance

• Serve as trusted advisor and Chief of Staff to the Head of GCDO and the GCDO LT.
• Lead the operational rhythm of GCDO: establish agendas, facilitate LT meetings and strategic offsites, track action items, and drive execution.
• Partner with the R&D Chief of Staff to align GCDO priorities and governance with enterprise R&D strategy and portfolio milestones. Supports preparation for Quarterly Performance Meeting (QPM) and Board of Director Meetings.
• Represent GCDO in key R&D operational committees and cross-functional forums.

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Workforce Planning & Resource Data Stewardship

• Lead proactive, multi-year workforce planning across GCDO in partnership with Finance, HR, and Resource Management.
• Serve as functional Data Steward for resource planning, overseeing named allocation tools, algorithm-based demand models, and timecard coding adherence to ensure data integrity.
• Translate clinical study pipeline requirements into robust FTE and contract resourcing forecasts to secure functional headcount and budget during annual and Long-Range Planning (LRP) cycles.

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Financial Stewardship & Budget Management

• Partner with R&D Finance and GCDO budget holders to build, track, and optimize the functional operating budget (OpEx and headcount).
• Drive the financial operating cadence across monthly accruals, quarterly forecasting, variance reporting, and annual budget builds.

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Business Due Diligence & Functional Integration

• Serve as the clinical operations lead on business development (BD), licensing, and M&A evaluations, assessing operational viability, trial delivery models, risks, and resource impacts.
• Lead post-transaction functional integration for acquired or partnered clinical assets, ensuring seamless onboarding, process alignment, and operational continuity.

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Goal Setting, Performance & Process Improvement

• Lead GCDO annual goal-setting (OKRs/KPIs), cascading R&D priorities into actionable functional metrics and executive dashboards.
• Lead and implement targeted process improvement initiatives across GCDO and R&D interfaces, streamlining trial delivery workflows, eliminating bottlenecks, and updating operating standards.
• Apply structured change management methodologies to ensure sustainable adoption of process improvements across global teams.

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Functional Communications & Culture

• Partner closely with the Communications team to design and execute GCDO communications, including Town Halls, All-Hands forums, and leadership announcements.
• Drive organizational health and engagement initiatives that reinforce accountability, trust, and clinical operational excellence.
• Foster a cohesive, forward-looking organizational culture that bridges project management rigor with data science and AI innovation, reinforcing transparency, accountability, and collaboration.

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Required knowledge, skills, and abilities

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Key competencies

• Executive Presence & Influence: Skilled at navigating organizational complexity, building consensus, and influencing without direct authority.
• Operational & Analytical Acumen: Adept at translating clinical pipeline demands into rigorous capacity models, budgets, and actionable operational plans.
• Strategic Problem-Solving: Ability to drive root-cause problem solving and lead impactful continuous improvement initiatives.
• Communication & Collaboration: Exceptional verbal, written, and presentation skills; experienced in partnering with Communications to engage large, dispersed organizations.

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Experience

• Extensive progressive experience in the biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, or life sciences industry, with substantive exposure to drug development, portfolio/project management, data science/informatics, or R&D business operations.
• Experience operating in a strategic business operations, Chief of Staff, or PMO leadership capacity partnering directly with executive leaders (VP/SVP level).
• Direct experience leading workforce planning, capacity modeling oversight, named resource allocations, and timecard compliance.
• Demonstrated track record managing departmental budgets, financial forecasting, and variance tracking in collaboration with Finance.
• Experience participating in business development due diligence and leading post-deal functional integrations or external platform onboardings.
• Executive Presence & Strategic Partnership: High emotional intelligence with a proven ability to advise and influence senior functional executives (VP/SVP level) across diverse technical, analytical, and operational disciplines.
• High-Stakes Communication: Exceptional ability to synthesize complex project management narratives, data science strategies, and operational data into polished, compelling executive- and board-level presentations.
• Operational & Analytical Acumen: Strong capability to interpret complex resource models, algorithm demand outputs, and financial analyses to formulate actionable business strategies.
• Financial & Resource Stewardship: Demonstrated financial acumen managing multi-million-dollar functional operating budgets (OpEx, vendor contracts, software licensing) and multi-year workforce plans.
• Cross-Functional Orchestration: Proven track record in orchestrating multi-faceted initiatives across matrixed global teams, balancing competing priorities across distinct functional domains.
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation: Deep experience in process optimization, change management frameworks, and the practical application of digital and AI tools to enhance operational efficiency.

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Required/preferred education and licenses

• Bachelor’s degree in a Life Sciences discipline (Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacology, Neurobiology, Oncology, etc.) or related business/scientific field required.
• Advanced degree (MS, PhD, or MBA) strongly preferred.
• Lean Six Sigma, Agile, or Project Management (PMP) certification is a plus.

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Compensation

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For US based candidates only:

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Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. For this role, the full and complete base pay range is: $192,000.00 - $288,000.00.  Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, and other pertinent factors.

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At Jazz, your base pay is only one part of your total compensation package. The successful candidate may also be eligible for a discretionary annual cash bonus or incentive compensation, as well as discretionary equity grants.

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The successful candidate will also be eligible to participate in various benefits offerings, including, but not limited to, medical, dental and vision insurance, 401k retirement savings plan, and flexible paid vacation. For more information on our Benefits offerings please click here.

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Equal opportunity employer

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Jazz Pharmaceuticals is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any characteristic protected by law.