Director, Azenta Business System

Azenta US, Inc.; Manchester; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative life sciences company is seeking a Director for the Azenta Business System based in Manchester, UK. The ideal candidate will lead Lean deployment initiatives, focusing on continuous improvement across operations. With at least 8-10 years in a manufacturing or life sciences environment, you'll drive strategic and tactical enhancements to elevate our operational excellence. You will be instrumental in fostering a culture of excellence and mentoring teams to achieve key performance indicators.

Qualifications

• 8-10 years relevant work experience in Continuous Improvement and Operations.
• Experience in a manufacturing or life sciences environment preferred.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to influence without direct authority.

Responsibilities

• Drive Lean deployment and organizational change.
• Utilize the Azenta Business System to improve KPIs.
• Collaborate with global ABS leaders to align corporate strategy.

Skills

Lean methodology

Continuous Improvement

Project Management

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Business, Operations, Chemistry or related field

Tools

Microsoft Office

Tableau

Job description

Director, Azenta Business System page is loaded

Director, Azenta Business System

Apply locations UK - Manchester Germany - Leipzig UK - Wotton time type Full time posted on Posted 6 Days Ago job requisition id R20250461 Azenta Inc.

At Azenta, new ideas, new technologies and new ways of thinking are driving our future. Our customer focused culture encourages employees to embrace innovation and challenge the status quo with novel thinking and collaborative work relationships.

All we accomplish is grounded in our core values of Customer Focus, Achievement, Accountability, Teamwork, Employee Value and Integrity

Job Title

Director, Azenta Business System

Job Description

Azenta Life Sciences is dedicated to enabling life sciences organizations around the world to bring impactful breakthroughs and therapies to market – faster. We provide a full suite of reliable cold-chain sample management solutions and genomic services across areas such as drug development, clinical research and advanced cell therapies for the industry's top pharmaceutical, biotech, academic, and healthcare institutions globally.

Azenta encapsulates our commitment to helping customers reach new heights in their pursuit of scientific progress. By integrating our industry-leading capabilities, Azenta Life Sciences enterprise-wide sample exploration and management solutions will accelerate discovery, development and delivery, with greater speed and precision. At Azenta, we strive to keep elevating each other, our customers’ work and our industry – building a healthier world for people everywhere.

Position Overview

The Director of the Azenta Business System will play a pivotal role in driving continuous improvement and organizational change as a member of the Corporate ABS group. They will be responsible for Lean deployment and strategy development across the UK and Germany-based sites for the Multiomics and Sample Management Solutions businesses.

The ideal candidate will have significant experience driving Lean tools and methodologies while fostering a culture of Continuous Improvement across the organization. As a proven shop floor leader, they will be hands-on in Lean deployment activities including the introduction of foundational Lean tools (5S, Standard Work, TPI, Value Stream Mapping, and Problem Solving). They will balance the strategical elements of the Azenta Business System with tactical deployment.

Key Responsibilities

• Utilizing the Azenta Business System to improve safety, quality, efficiency, cost, and other KPIs
• Aligning corporate strategy with site-based goals, needs, and improvement priorities
• Providing overall support, assistance, and direction to plant leadership teams regarding CI initiatives
• Utilizing data to identify gaps in performance versus best practices; work with teams to execute improvement plans
• Leading and coaching CI events and Kaizens through hands-on participation
• Developing Lean competencies in others to ensure sustainment
• Assisting with improvement of asset utilization and equipment management
• Developing training materials and effectively delivering in a team environment
• Understanding and applying financial drivers and key performance indicators
• Documenting best practices and sharing improvements to leverage results across Azenta
• Collaborating with global ABS leaders, plant teams, and executive leadership to ensure alignment on corporate strategy and goals

Reporting Structure:

• Reports to Vice President, Azenta Business System
• Internal relationships: Plant Managers and Business Leaders
• No direct reports

Year 1 Objectives

• Immersion into Azenta including ABS and existing lean methodologies.
• Support ABS launch strategy including democratization, culture building, and setup of ABS as a primary method of developing talent.
• Implement and sustain foundational Lean tools including Problem Solving and Daily Management in operations, commercial, and innovation spaces. Success will be measured by impact on SQDIP metrics.
• Ensure employee engagement and participation to create a culture of Continuous Improvement

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Business, Operations, Chemistry, or related field
• 8-10 years relevant work experience across Continuous Improvement and Operations within a manufacturing/industrial environment
• Experience in Life Sciences, consumables/instrumentation, or regulated industry preferred. Industrial automation, genomics, cold chain, and/or GLP experience is beneficial.
• Visual Project Management experience preferred
• Training and dedicated experience with Continuous Improvement/Lean methodology; Lean certifications preferred
• Proven successful application of Lean tools including 80/20, Lean Leadership, including Daily Management, KPI Leadership, Standard Work, Gemba Walks, Value Stream Mapping, 6S, Transactional Process Improvements, Kanban/replenishment systems, Structured Problem Solving, RCCA, etc.
• Experience leading manufacturing operations in addition to dedicated Lean roles
• Strategy / Policy Deployment experience preferred
• Demonstrated ability to facilitate Kaizen events to produce sustained, measurable improvements
• Influential leadership skills to develop, mentor, and train employees at all levels without direct supervisory responsibility
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to relate to people at all levels of the organization
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and general computer skills. Power Automate, Power Apps, Tableau experience preferred.

If any applicant is unable to complete an application or respond to a job opening because of a disability, please email at [e-mail] for assistance.

Azenta is an Equal Opportunity Employer. This company considers candidates regardless of race, color, age, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status.

About Us

Azenta is a market leader in automated bio sample management solutions and multiomics services across areas such as drug development, clinical and advanced cell therapies for the industry's top pharmaceutical, biotech, academic and healthcare institutions globally.

We provide unparalleled capabilities with our lab analysis, sample management and storage services, informatics software, and consumables, with the largest installed base managing over 1 billion samples globally.

As a global leader in R&D multiomics services, Azenta Life Sciences, leads the way in providing superior data quality with unparalleled technical support to enable researchers around the world to advance their scientific discoveries faster than ever before.