Associate Director, Strategic Operations

IQVIA; North Carolina; On-site; USD 85,000 - 237,000; Full time

Job summary

IQVIA is seeking an Associate Director, Strategic Operations to act as a strategic change management advisor for external partners through complex transformations. You will guide change strategy, adoption best practices, and cross‑functional alignment to accelerate adoption and value realization.

Responsibilities include shaping scalable adoption roadmaps, establishing governance and KPIs, and tracking adoption metrics while coaching leaders to champion the change across multiple organizations.

Qualifications

• Preferential certification in change management (PROSCI or ACMP).
• Experience designing and delivering structured change management approaches.
• Strong ability to map adoption impacts across multi‑workstream initiatives.
• Proven track record of guiding cross‑organizational transformations.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and executive presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a strategic change management advisor to external partners guiding complex transformation initiatives.
• Shape and align change strategies for collaboration, adoption, and value realization across stakeholders.
• Translate objectives into scalable adoption roadmaps across operating models, governance, roles, and behaviors.
• Anticipate adoption risks and recommend mitigations to senior leaders.
• Design and deliver structured CM approaches, including communications, training, and reinforcement.
• Establish governance, KPIs, and decision frameworks to drive accountability across multi‑workstream programs.
• Track adoption and value metrics and adjust strategies based on insights.
• Coach leaders and teams to champion change and reinforce new behaviors.

Skills

PROSCI or ACMP Certification

Data Management

Program / Project Planning

Change Management Methodologies

Communication & Facilitation

MS PowerPoint

MS Office

Lean / Six Sigma

Cross‑functional Leadership

Executive Presentations

Job description

The Associate Director, Strategic Operations serves as a strategic change management advisor, with primary responsibility for supporting external partners through complex transformation initiatives. This role provides expert guidance on change strategy, adoption best practices, and cross-organizational alignment to enable effective collaboration, accelerate adoption, and drive measurable value realization across organizational boundaries. The Associate Director partners closely with internal and external stakeholders to align approaches, mitigate adoption risks, and ensure change strategies are scaled appropriately as strategic partnerships evolve.

Responsibilities

Strategy

• Serve as a strategic change management advisor to external partners, guiding complex transformation initiatives across organizational boundaries.
• Shape and align change strategies that enable effective collaboration, adoption, and value realization across external and internal stakeholders.
• Translate transformation objectives into scalable adoption roadmaps spanning operating models, governance, roles, and behaviors.
• Anticipate adoption risks across interdependent organizations and recommend mitigation strategies to senior leaders.
• Advise leadership on change impact, readiness, and trade‑offs associated with evolving strategic partnerships.

Execution

• Design and deliver structured change management approaches supporting external partner transformations, including communications, training, engagement, and reinforcement.
• Partner with internal and external stakeholders to assess readiness, define change impacts, and sequence adoption activities.
• Establish clear governance, decision frameworks, and KPIs to drive accountability and momentum across multi‑workstream initiatives.
• Track and report adoption and value metrics, adjusting strategies based on insights and feedback.
• Act as a trusted advisor to leaders and teams navigating complex, cross‑organizational change.
• Facilitate CM upskilling and coaching of senior leaders, frontline managers and business experts to champion the change and reinforce new behaviors
• Ensure projects are delivered on time, in scope, on budget, and aligned with strategic priorities
• Help maintain standards, templates, and best practices around project management and change delivery
• Communicate clearly with executive sponsors and senior leaders on project status, risks, tradeoffs, and outcomes.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to leaders navigating complex change.

Skills required

• Preferential PROSCI or ACMP Certification
• Data Management experience required
• Extensive program / project planning and execution skills in handling large and complex change and transformation programs/projects
• Experience of using a variety of project and business change management methodologies (Prosci, Kotter, etc.)
• Proven adaptability skills that enhance communications, trainings and ultimately adoption
• Expert user of MS PowerPoint, Smartsheet
• Fluent in MS Office.
• Understanding of Lean / Six Sigma and Continuous Improvement
• Proven experience building or formalizing project and/or change management functions, not just operating within them.
• Exceptional communication skills, including facilitation and executive presentations.
• Excellent negotiation and conflict resolution skills
• Customer management with a global attitude decision-making, influencing and challenging ability
• Ability to empower others toward project goals
• Strong program governance and delivery leadership with the ability to guide project teams through CM activities when working in Agile environments.
• Proven track record of deploying Change Management in enterprise/commercial settings, with measurable business outcomes.
• Adaptability across cultures, roles, and learning needs
• Analytical mindset to interpret usage and learning data

IQVIA is a leading global provider of clinical research services, commercial insights and healthcare intelligence to the life sciences and healthcare industries. We create intelligent connections to accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments to help improve patient outcomes and population health worldwide. Learn more at https://jobs.iqvia.com

IQVIA is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other status protected by applicable law. https://jobs.iqvia.com/eoe

IQVIA is committed to integrity in our hiring process and maintains a zero tolerance policy for candidate fraud. All information and credentials submitted in your application must be truthful and complete. Any false statements, misrepresentations, or material omissions during the recruitment process will result in immediate disqualification of your application, or termination of employment if discovered later, in accordance with applicable law. We appreciate your honesty and professionalism.

The potential base pay range for this role, when annualized, is $85,000.00 - $237,000.00. The actual base pay offered may vary based on a number of factors including job-related qualifications such as knowledge, skills, education, and experience; location; and/or schedule (full or part-time). Dependent on the position offered, incentive plans, bonuses, and/or other forms of compensation may be offered, in addition to a range of health and welfare and/or other benefits.