Business Operations Lead, Cell Therapy Discovery

SUMMARY OF THE ROLE

Level: Senior Manager / Associate Director / Director

The role will provide strategic and operational leadership for the Cell Therapy Discovery team, ensuring effective planning, coordination, and execution of key business and operational activities. This role will serve as a central interface between the Discovery organization and key enabling functions, including Human Resources, Finance, IT, Procurement, Engineering, and other cross-functional partners.

The successful candidate will bring strong operational rigor, excellent stakeholder management skills, and the ability to translate business needs into actionable plans. This individual will help drive organizational effectiveness, support resource and budget planning, coordinate operational priorities, and ensure the team has the infrastructure, processes, and partnerships required to deliver its scientific objectives. A background in finance, business operations, or related discipline is strongly preferred.

ROLE & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Operational leadership: Lead and coordinate operational activities for the Cell Therapy Discovery team, ensuring alignment with departmental goals and broader organizational priorities.
• Cross-functional partnership: Act as the primary point of contact for operational coordination with HR, Finance, IT, Procurement, Engineering, Facilities, and other support functions.
• Budget planning and financial management: Partner closely with Finance leadership to support annual budget planning, forecasting, expense tracking, and resource allocation. Monitor spend against plan and identify risks, opportunities, and mitigation actions.
• Workforce planning and HR coordination: Collaborate with HR and leadership on headcount planning, hiring coordination, onboarding, organizational changes, talent processes, and other people-related operations.
• Procurement and vendor management: Support procurement planning, purchasing processes, contract coordination, and vendor engagement in partnership with Procurement and relevant stakeholders.
• Infrastructure and capability planning: Work with Engineering, IT, and Facilities teams to support laboratory and office infrastructure planning, equipment-related coordination, space planning, and operational readiness.
• Business planning and governance: Support leadership in business planning activities, operational reviews, meeting cadence, governance processes, and preparation of materials for leadership discussions.
• Process improvement: Identify and implement improvements to operational processes, ways of working, and cross-functional interfaces to increase efficiency and effectiveness.
• Communication and alignment: Drive clear and effective communication across the team and with partner functions to ensure transparency, alignment, and timely execution of priorities.
• Risk and issue management: Anticipate operational risks, escalate issues appropriately, and coordinate resolution across stakeholders.

REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Operations, Life Sciences, or a related field
• Significant experience in operations, business management, program management, or functional coordination within a scientific, R&D, biotech, or pharmaceutical environment
• Demonstrated experience working across multiple support functions such as HR, Finance, IT, Procurement, and Engineering
• Strong experience in budget planning, financial tracking, and resource management
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to work effectively across scientific and business teams
• Strong organizational and project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment
• Proven ability to influence without direct authority and build effective cross-functional relationships

Preferred

• Advanced degrees such as MBA, master’s in finance, operations, or a related discipline
• Educational background in Finance or strong formal training in financial planning and analysis
• Experience supporting cell therapy, biologics, translational science, or discovery research organizations
• Familiarity with laboratory operations, research infrastructure planning, and vendor/contract management
• Experience in a global matrix organization

Date Posted

Closing Date

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.