Director, Business Strategy and Operations, Pipeline and Project Management (PPM) & Data Science (EDGE)

Jazz Pharmaceuticals; Dublin; On-site; EUR 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Jazz Pharmaceuticals, a leader in biopharma, seeks a Director of Business Strategy & Operations (BS&O) for PPM and Data Science to act as chief of staff and strategic advisor. You will architect executive rhythms, oversee workforce and budget planning, and drive cross-functional transformation across R&D programs and AI initiatives.

You will partner with functional leaders to deliver strategic narratives, manage governance processes, and ensure alignment with corporate portfolio priorities.

Qualifications

• Executive presence with senior stakeholder influence.
• Strong analytical and budgeting capabilities across multi-year plans.
• Proven ability to drive cross-functional operational improvements.

Responsibilities

• Serve as Chief of Staff to Heads of PPM and Data Science (EDGE) and leadership teams.
• Architect and manage executive operating rhythm including QBRs, strategy sessions, and offsites.
• Prepare board-level decks and strategic narratives for executive reviews and governance.
• Lead workforce planning and capacity modeling across PPM and Data Science; manage staffing data integrity.
• Oversee multi-year budgets, monthly accruals, forecasting, and variance reporting.
• Direct post-transaction integrations and due diligence for BD/licensing and AI platform onboarding.

Skills

Executive Presence

Operational Analytics

Strategic Problem-Solving

Communication & Collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences or related field

Advanced degree (MS, PhD, or MBA) preferred

Job description

Brief Description:

The Director, Business Strategy & Operations (BS&O) – PPM & Data Science serves as the strategic business partner and Chief of Staff supporting two vital R&D organizations: Pipeline & Project Management (PPM) and Evidence and Value Generation, Data Science and Enterprise R&D Advanced Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (EDGE).

Reporting directly to the Head of R&D Business Strategy and Operations, you will operate as an executive partner and trusted advisor to the functional heads and Leadership Teams of PPM and Data Science. In this dual-function role, you will architect operational rhythms, lead multi-year workforce and resource planning, oversee departmental financial stewardship, steer organizational communications, and drive cross-functional operational transformations that accelerate pipeline delivery and digital/AI innovation across Jazz R&D.

Essential Functions

1. Chief of Staff & Leadership Cadence

• Serve as trusted advisor, operational sounding board, and Chief of Staff to the Heads of PPM and Data Science (EDGE) and their respective leadership teams.

• Architect and facilitate the executive operating rhythm across both functions, including leadership team meetings, quarterly business reviews (QBRs), strategy sessions, and annual offsites; establish strategic agendas, drive decision-making, resolve operational bottlenecks, and track executive execution.

• Partner with the R&D Chief of Staff, functional leadership, and Project Management to develop high-stakes executive briefings, board-level decks, and strategic narratives for Executive Committee Reviews, Board of Directors Meetings, and R&D Leadership Forums.

• Represent PPM and EDGE on key enterprise R&D operational committees, governance bodies, and cross-functional forums to align functional operations with corporate portfolio priorities.

2. Workforce Planning & Resource Oversight

• Partner with HR, Resource Management, and R&D Finance to lead comprehensive, multi-year workforce planning and capacity modeling across PPM and Data Science, ensuring appropriate resource allocation across pipeline assets, computational platforms, and enterprise AI initiatives.

• Serve as functional Lead Data Steward for named allocation tools and timecard compliance, ensuring resource and staffing data across both organizations is maintained with high fidelity and integrity.

• Lead algorithm demand modeling in partnership with Resource Management: guide collaboration between functional Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and Resource Management to ensure model parameters, productivity assumptions, and project drivers are submitted accurately and translated into actionable workforce intelligence.

• Leverage capacity analytics and named allocation insights to justify, defend, and secure functional headcount and contractor resourcing during annual budget cycles and Long-Range Planning (LRP).

3. Financial Cadence & Budget Stewardship

• Oversee and manage the combined annual functional operating budgets for PPM and Data Science in close partnership with R&D Finance and functional budget owners (encompassing OpEx, external consulting, data vendor licenses, SaaS software platforms, and headcount).

• Drive the financial operating cadence across monthly accruals, quarterly forecasting, variance reporting, and annual budget builds.

4. Business Due Diligence & Functional Integration

• Serve as the functional operations lead on business development (BD), licensing, platform acquisitions, and M&A evaluations, assessing operational viability, analytical/computational synergy, governance requirements, and resourcing impacts across PPM and Data Science.

• Lead post-transaction functional integrations for acquired assets, strategic partnerships, or external data/AI platforms, ensuring seamless operational onboarding, governance alignment, and process continuity.

5. Goal-Setting Cadence & Performance Tracking

• Direct the annual and long-term goal-setting operating rhythm (OKRs/KPIs) for PPM and Data Science, cascading enterprise R&D priorities into clear, measurable functional targets.

• Establish and maintain operational scorecards and executive dashboards to monitor pipeline health, project delivery milestones, analytics platform adoption, and organizational velocity.

• Partner with the R&D Chief of Staff office to report quarterly progress, milestones, performance metrics, and mitigation strategies to R&D executive leadership.

6. Communications Cadence & Organizational Culture

• Partner with Corporate and R&D Communications to design and execute a comprehensive internal communications strategy across PPM and Data Science.

• Establish a predictable communications cadence, including regular functional Town Halls, All-Hands forums, digital innovation showcases, and executive announcements.

• Foster a cohesive, forward-looking organizational culture that bridges project management rigor with data science and AI innovation, reinforcing transparency, accountability, and collaboration.

7. Process Improvement & Operational Excellence

• Lead and implement targeted process improvement and operational excellence initiatives that streamline workflows, simplify administrative overhead, and improve pipeline delivery velocity.

• Champion digital transformation and modern operational frameworks, including AI-assisted ways of working.

• Apply structured change management principles to ensure sustainable adoption of modernized operational processes and standards across global teams.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

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.

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 to produce 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.

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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