Associate Director, Talent Acquisition - R&D

AbbVie; North Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

AbbVie is seeking an Associate Director, Talent Acquisition - R&D to lead strategic TA for the company’s R&D organization. You will partner with R&D leaders, Business HR and Global TA to anticipate talent needs, shape sourcing strategies and deliver high-impact recruiting solutions.

You will direct senior recruiters, influence senior stakeholders, and manage end-to-end search execution while driving continuous improvement in TA processes and leveraging AI-driven tools.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in HR, Business Administration or similar; Master’s preferred.
• 8+ years global HR experience in large, matrixed environments.
• 5+ years global talent acquisition or strategic sourcing; leadership of HR/TA partners.

Responsibilities

• Set vision and priorities for TA across assigned R&D client groups in line with business strategy.
• Advise R&D Leadership, Business HR, Global TA and senior leaders on hiring needs and governance.
• Develop customized recruiting strategies to address evolving client needs and market dynamics.
• Recruit and manage requisitions, lead end-to-end search across senior roles when needed.
• Lead advisory work on TA processes, organizational structure, governance, and resource planning.
• Hire and develop senior recruiters and TA managers, elevating advisory capability.
• Lead initiatives with Global TA and Business HR to ensure knowledge transfer and continuity.
• Participate in global HR calls across time zones and non-prime hours as required.
• Provide data-driven insights on talent trends, recruiting performance, and market dynamics.
• Champion AI-enabled tools and new recruiting resources to improve efficiency.
• Audit TA processes for continuous improvement and compliance.

Skills

Global HR

Executive recruiting

Strategic sourcing

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Master’s Degree

Job description

About AbbVie

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.

Company Description

About AbbVie

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.

Job Description

Purpose

Associate Director, Talent Acquisition - R&D serves as a strategic talent acquisition leader for AbbVie’s R&D organization, operating with significant autonomy to set direction, influence senior stakeholders and deliver high-impact recruiting solutions aligned to business priorities. This role partners directly with R&D Leadership Team (RDLT) members, Business HR, Global Talent Acquisition and functional leaders to anticipate talent needs, assess complex business challenges, and make sound, judgment-based recommendations in ambiguous and fast-moving situations. The leader is expected to create customized solutions in the moment, personally engage in priority or business-critical recruiting when needed, and advise clients on TA process, organizational structure, sourcing strategy, TA team assignments, technology adoption and continuous improvement. As part of the global HR team, this role supports enterprise and global initiatives, participates in collaboration across time zones including non-prime business hours, provides data-driven insights on talent trends, and ensures effective knowledge transfer, client success and process continuity across assigned R&D client groups.

Responsibilities

• Independently set the vision, strategy and priorities for talent acquisition across assigned R&D client groups, ensuring alignment to business strategy, workforce priorities, enterprise expectations and global TA direction.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to R&D Leadership Team members, Business HR, Global Talent Acquisition and senior functional leaders by anticipating hiring needs, assessing talent risks and influencing decisions that enable business outcomes.
• Develop customized recruiting and sourcing strategies in real time to address evolving client needs, critical talent gaps, emerging talent profiles and competitive market dynamics while balancing speed, quality, compliance and candidate experience.
• Recruit and manage requisitions, confidential or business-critical roles when needed, demonstrating the ability to roll up sleeves, lead through complexity and model excellence in sourcing, stakeholder management and end-to-end search execution.
• Lead advisory work with assigned clients related to TA process, client organizational structure, recruiting governance, resource planning and TA team assignments to ensure the right operating model and talent resources are in place to support client success.
• Hire, develop, coach and elevate very senior recruiters, TA professionals and TA Managers by strengthening consultative capability, executive presence, business acumen, data storytelling and consistent delivery of high-quality hiring outcomes.
• Lead and support global HR and TA initiatives in partnership with Global Talent Acquisition and Business HR, ensuring smooth knowledge transfer, service continuity, change adoption and successful execution across regions and client groups.
• Operate as an active member of the global HR team, remaining available for global calls and collaboration across time zones, including non-prime business hours when required by business need.
• Provide compelling data stories, insights and recommendations in response to inquiries related to talent trends, recruiting performance, market dynamics, workforce priorities and emerging business needs.
• Champion technology enhancements, AI-enabled tools and leading-edge recruiting resources that help clients and recruiting teams adopt new concepts, strengthen existing processes and improve overall TA efficiency and effectiveness.
• Audit TA processes for assigned clients to identify opportunities for continuous improvement, process continuity, compliance, stakeholder alignment and consistent execution of best practices.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree required in Human Resources, Business Administration or similar field. Master’s Degree preferred.
• Eight (8) or more years of progressive HR experience in large, matrixed, global environments.
• Five (5) or more years of experience in global talent acquisition, executive recruiting or strategic sourcing. Previous experience in managing a team of HR or TA partners.
• Significant experience building customized talent strategies for clients, partnering with senior client leadership on new concepts, supporting sourcing strategies for emerging or specialized talent profiles, and coordinating multiple initiatives that advance business and talent objectives.
• Demonstrated ability to operate independently, exercise sound judgment in ambiguous situations, influence senior stakeholders and drive decisions through consultative leadership.
• Experience developing senior recruiters, TA professionals or recruiting managers, with a focus on elevating advisory capability, execution discipline, data fluency and stakeholder impact.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to translate data into clear insights, recommendations and executive-ready storylines.

Additional Information

• The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
• This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs.

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.

AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.

US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html

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https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html