Associate Director, Business Process Excellence

Novartis; Barcelona; Hybrid; EUR 64,000 - 118,000; Full time

Job summary

Novartis is seeking an Associate Director, Business Process Excellence in Barcelona to lead enterprise-scale transformation across the drug-development value chain. You will partner with senior leaders to challenge assumptions, simplify processes, and design future-ready operating models.

Using Lean, AI-enabled approaches, and zero-based redesign, you will deliver improvements in speed, productivity, quality, and compliance while guiding cross-functional teams through adoption and value

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Pharmacy, Engineering, Biotechnology, Business, or a related discipline.
• Significant experience in Business Process Excellence, Operational Excellence, enterprise transformation, process re-engineering, or management consulting.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical Development with experience in Clinical Development, Regulatory Affairs, Pharmaceutical R&D, Technical Development, or Manufacturing.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional transformation from diagnosis to measurable business impact.
• Practical expertise in Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Agile, Value Stream Mapping, BPM, or zero-based redesign.
• Ability to use qualitative and quantitative evidence to identify root causes and develop recommendations.
• Strong facilitation, stakeholder engagement, change leadership, and executive communication.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and influence across organizational boundaries.

Responsibilities

• Lead enterprise-level transformation across the drug-development value chain from problem definition through future-state design and value realization.
• Apply zero-based redesign to challenge legacy assumptions and simplify processes around outcomes.
• Shape AI-enabled future-state processes and operating models by identifying opportunities to simplify, automate, or redesign.
• Diagnose bottlenecks, handoffs, decision delays, variation, and adoption barriers to drive action.
• Build transformation cases with clear problem statements, outcomes, and expected business value.
• Facilitate cross-functional sessions to enable decision-making and alignment on a practical future state.
• Collaborate with process owners, business leaders, technology teams and change leads to sustain redesigned processes.
• Establish outcome measures and track value realization to ensure improvements in speed, quality, compliance, and user experience.
• Coach teams in process excellence and continuous improvement to strengthen organizational capability.
• Act as a trusted transformation partner who constructively challenges the status quo.

Skills

Facilitation

Stakeholder management

Change leadership

Executive communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree (Life Sciences/Engineering/Business)

MBA/MSc/PhD preferred

Tools

Lean Six Sigma

Agile / Scrum / SAFe

Value Stream Mapping

Business Process Management

Zero-based redesign

Job description

Summary

Role Type: Hybrid working,

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Relocation Support: This role is based in Barcelona, Spain. Novartis is unable to offer relocation support: please only apply if accessible.

What if you could redesign how medicines move through Development and help innovative treatments reach patients faster?

As Associate Director, Business Process Excellence, you will lead high-impact transformation across the end-to-end drug-development value chain. You will partner with senior leaders and cross-functional teams to challenge existing assumptions, simplify complex processes, and design future-ready ways of working.

Using zero-based redesign, Lean, Agile, data, digital, and AI-enabled approaches, you will turn strategic priorities into measurable improvements in cycle time, productivity, quality, compliance, and organizational effectiveness.

About The Role

Key Responsibilities

• Lead enterprise-level process transformation across the drug-development value chain, from problem definition through future-state design, implementation, adoption, and value realization.
• Apply zero-based redesign to challenge legacy assumptions, eliminate unnecessary complexity, and reimagine processes around business and patient outcomes.
• Shape AI-enabled future-state processes and operating models by identifying where work can be simplified, automated, augmented, or fundamentally redesigned.
• Translate data and process insight into action by diagnosing bottlenecks, handoffs, decision delays, process variation, and adoption barriers.
• Build compelling transformation cases with clear problem statements, outcome measures, implementation considerations, and expected business value.
• Facilitate high-impact working sessions that enable cross-functional teams and leaders to make decisions, resolve complex challenges, and align around a practical future state.
• Partner with process owners, business leaders, technology teams, and change leads to convert redesigned processes into sustainable ways of working.
• Establish outcome measures and track value realization, ensuring that transformation delivers meaningful improvements in speed, productivity, quality, compliance, and user experience.
• Strengthen organizational capability by coaching teams in process excellence, structured problem-solving, zero-based redesign, and continuous improvement.
• Act as a trusted transformation partner who constructively challenges the status quo and influences decisions without relying on formal authority.

Essential Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Pharmacy, Engineering, Biotechnology, Business, or another relevant discipline.
• Significant experience in Business Process Excellence, Operational Excellence, enterprise transformation, process re-engineering, or management consulting.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical Development, supported by experience in one or more areas such as Clinical Development, Regulatory Affairs, Pharmaceutical R&D, Technical Development, or Manufacturing.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional transformation from diagnosis and design through implementation and measurable business impact.
• Practical expertise in process redesign and transformation methodologies such as Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Agile, Value Stream Mapping, Business Process Management, or zero-based redesign.
• Ability to use qualitative and quantitative evidence to identify root causes, evaluate opportunities, and develop decision-ready recommendations.
• Strong facilitation, stakeholder engagement, change leadership, and executive communication capabilities.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity, connect strategic priorities to operational processes, and influence across organizational boundaries.

Desirable Requirements

• Advanced degree such as Master of Business Administration, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy, or Doctor of Pharmacy.
• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt certification.
• Agile, Scrum, Scaled Agile Framework, Project Management Professional, or Change Management certification.
• Experience in digital transformation, process automation, artificial intelligence adoption, and data-driven decision making.

Salary Range

€63,600 to €118,000

Why Novartis?

Our purpose is to reimagine medicine to improve and extend people’s lives and our vision is to become the most valued and trusted medicines company in the world. How can we achieve this? With our people. It is our associates that drive us each day to reach our ambitions. Be a part of this mission and join us! Learn more here: https://www.novartis.com/about/strategy/people-and-culture

You’ll receive:

You can find everything you need to know about our benefits and rewards in the Novartis Life Handbook. https://www.novartis.com/careers/benefits-rewards

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:

Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams' representative of the patients and communities we serve.

Join our Novartis Network:

If this role is not suitable to your experience or career goals but you wish to stay connected to hear more about Novartis and our career opportunities, join the Novartis Network here: https://talentnetwork.novartis.com/network

Why Novartis:

Helping people with disease and their families takes more than innovative science. It takes a community of smart, passionate people like you. Collaborating, supporting and inspiring each other. Combining to achieve breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. Ready to create a brighter future together? https://www.novartis.com/about/strategy/people-and-culture

Benefits and Rewards:

Learn about all the ways we’ll help you thrive personally and professionally.

Read our handbook (PDF 30 MB)