Site Head of new site at Valencia

ICON; Barcelona; On-site; EUR 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

ICON is establishing a new kit production facility in Valencia and seeks a Site Head to lead high-volume manufacturing with a strong Lean/Six Sigma background. You will shape operations, drive on-time performance, and build scalable processes while ensuring GMP and ISO compliance on a global scale.

The role requires strategic leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and the ability to manage complex production in a rapidly expanding environment. Fluent English is essential.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in high-volume manufacturing and Lean/Six Sigma.
• Proven track record of managing complex, high-volume operations.
• Experience implementing production KPI systems and daily management routines.

Responsibilities

• Accountable Site Head with end-to-end responsibility for site performance in safety, quality, compliance, people, service, cost and delivery.
• Lead Lean and Six Sigma transformation to reduce waste and improve throughput.
• Drive improvements in on-time performance through disciplined planning and capacity management.
• Establish and embed production KPIs and governance across the site.
• Oversee vendor governance, budget management and supplier performance.
• Support automation initiatives, facility expansion and technology adoption.
• Ensure GMP compliance and ISO standards across operations.
• Develop partnerships with clients, suppliers and internal stakeholders.

Skills

Lean Manufacturing

Six Sigma

Production Leadership

Capacity Planning

OTD/OTIF Improvement

Budget Management

Stakeholder Management

English Proficiency

Job description

Site Head of new site at Valencia

ICON is a global healthcare intelligence and clinical research organisation united by a mission to bring new medicines and treatments to patients faster.

As a values-driven organisation, integrity, collaboration, agility, and inclusion are at the heart of how we work and interact with each other, customers, patients and suppliers.

Site Head role of a New Laboratory Facility
New site at Valencia : Onsite five days a week

At ICON, we're investing in the future of clinical trial supply and logistics. As part of this growth, we are establishing a new kit production facility in Valencia, creating an exciting opportunity for an experienced supply chain manufacturing leader to play a pivotal role in building and shaping this operation from the ground up.

As Site Head of a new Kit Production facility, you will serve as the organization's production and manufacturing subject-matter expert, bringing extensive experience in high-volume manufacturing, Lean/Six Sigma, capacity management and operational excellence to build a predictable, scalable production environment capable of delivering consistently high on-time performance despite demand and product-mix variability.

In addition, you will provide strategic leadership across global logistics and kit production operations, helping to define how we scale, optimize and deliver supply chain solutions that support clinical research around the world. This is a unique opportunity to combine operational leadership, commercial impact and team development while influencing the future direction of a rapidly expanding area of the business.

What You'll Do

• Serve as the accountable Site Head, with end-to-end responsibility for site performance across safety, quality, compliance, people, service, cost and operational delivery. Provide visible leadership, ensure effective governance and inspection readiness, manage site capacity and resources, and build a high-performance culture focused on accountability, continuous improvement and execution
• Bring deep, hands-on manufacturing and production leadership experience, with a proven track record of managing complex, high-volume operations and translating manufacturing best practices into measurable improvements in safety, quality, service, cost and productivity.
• Drive sustained improvements in on-time (OT%) performance, using disciplined production planning, capacity management, labor planning and constraint management to consistently achieve service-level commitments.
• Lead Lean and Six Sigma transformation, applying methodologies such as value-stream mapping, Kaizen, 5S, standard work, visual management and root-cause problem solving to eliminate waste, simplify processes, improve flow, and reduce Turnaround Times
• Build robust operating processes capable of managing demand volatility, including variable volumes, changing product mix, short lead times, capacity constraints and unexpected operational disruptions.
• Establish and embed meaningful production KPIs and performance management routines, including on-time delivery, schedule attainment, throughput, cycle time, productivity, capacity utilization, backlog, quality, waste and cost per unit.
• Implement structured daily management and continuous improvement systems, using tiered performance reviews, visual management, escalation processes and corrective actions to create accountability at every level of the operation.
• Identify and systematically eliminate operational waste, including excess handling, waiting time, unnecessary movement, inventory, rework, defects, overprocessing and inefficient production flows
• Apply strong manufacturing engineering principles to production design, including line balancing, workflow optimization, workstation design, standard work, capacity modeling and automation to improve throughput and scalability.
• Develop strong partnerships with clients, suppliers and internal stakeholders such as Planning, Production, Supply Chain and Logistics
• Provide experienced leadership through periods of growth and operational change, including facility expansion, production transfers, new technology and automation implementation, process redesign and significant changes in demand.
• Support the development and implementation of the site’s automation strategy, identifying opportunities to automate manual processes, improve productivity and reduce waste while ensuring processes are standardized and optimized before automation. Partner with Engineering, IT and external automation specialists to successfully design, implement and scale future automation solutions.
• Lead site operations in compliance with GMP and internationally recognized quality standards. Experience in ISO 13485, ISO 9001 preferred, ensuring inspection readiness.

• Oversee vendor governance, contract management and supplier performance.
• Manage departmental budgets, revenue objectives and margin performance.

What You'll Bring

• Established career that demonstrates progressive manufacturing/production leadership experience, ideally including multi-site responsibility.
• Demonstrated application of Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma, with Green Belt or Black Belt certification preferred.
• Proven record of materially improving OTD/OTIF, throughput, productivity, lead time and cost.
• Strong experience with S&OP, production planning, capacity planning and demand variability.
• Experience designing and implementing production KPI systems and tiered daily management.
• Experience with automation, manufacturing technology and facility/process redesign strongly preferred.
• A strategic mindset with the ability to lead change and deliver business results.
• Solid expertise in quality and compliance standards eg GMP and internationally recognized quality standards, ISO 13485, ISO 9001 preferred
• Proven success leading international teams.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, including vendor and budget management.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management and problem-solving skills.
• Experience within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO or clinical research industry preferred.
• Fluency in English.

Why ICON?

This is more than a leadership role. It's a chance to help establish a new operational capability within ICON, influence global supply chain strategy, and leave a lasting impact on how clinical trial supplies are delivered to research sites and patients worldwide.

#LI-SA2

What ICON can offer you: Our success depends on the quality of our people. That’s why we’ve made it a priority to build a diverse culture that rewards high performance and nurtures talent.

In addition to your competitive salary, ICON offers a range of additional benefits. Our benefits are designed to be competitive within each country and are focused on well‑being and work life balance opportunities for you and your family.

Our benefits examples include:

• Various annual leave entitlements
• A range of health insurance offerings to suit you and your family’s needs.
• Competitive retirement planning offerings to maximize savings and plan with confidence for the years ahead.
• Global Employee Assistance Programme, LifeWorks, offering 24‑hour access to a global network of over 80,000 independent specialized professionals who are there to support you and your family’s well‑being.
• Life assurance
• Flexible country-specific optional benefits, including childcare vouchers, bike purchase schemes, discounted gym memberships, subsidized travel passes, health assessments, among others.

Visit our careers site to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

At ICON, inclusion & belonging are fundamental to our culture and values. We’re dedicated to providing an inclusive and accessible environment for all candidates. ICON is committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or in order to perform the essential functions of a position, please let us know or submit a request here.