Associate Director Workforce Planning

Life Sciences WA; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Novotech is seeking an Associate Director/Director of Workforce Planning to define and lead the global strategy, operating model, and governance for scalable, data-driven resourcing across the organization. This leadership role partners with executive teams to align capacity, demand forecasting, and delivery with business goals.

Responsibilities include establishing a Gantt-based single source of truth, standardizing regional processes, and driving continuous improvement to support growth and

Qualifications

• Ideally a bachelor’s degree in business administration, Life Sciences, HR or a related field.
• Strong strategic workforce planning and analytical capability.
• Proven ability to lead and scale global or multi-regional teams.
• Strong commercial and business acumen.
• Ability to operate in a complex, fast-paced, global environment.
• Ideally 10+ years’ experience in workforce planning, operations, or resource management.
• Experience in clinical trials or CRO environment preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead the global workforce planning strategy, aligned to business objectives and growth plans.
• Oversee capacity planning, demand forecasting, and resource strategy across regions and functions.
• Embed the global workforce planning operating model, including roles, responsibilities, and accountability.
• Establish and enforce governance frameworks, standards, and planning cadence.
• Ensure consistent adoption of workforce planning processes across all regions.
• Embed the strategic direction of workforce planning systems and data dashboards.
• Partner with Business Leaders, Finance, BD, HR and Operations to align workforce strategy with business priorities.
• Define organizational structure, capability requirements, and resourcing strategy for the WFP team.
• Identify opportunities to reduce manual effort, improve efficiency, and enhance scalability.

Skills

Workforce planning

Analytical capability

Global leadership

Business acumen

Education

Bachelor’s degree (Business Administration / Life Sciences / HR)

Job description

Workforce Planning is critical to ensuring Novotech has the right resources, at the right time, to deliver clinical trials efficiently and in line with business objectives. The Associate Director / Director Workforce Planning is responsible for defining and leading the global workforce planning strategy, operating model, and governance framework, ensuring scalable, data-driven workforce planning across the organization. This role establishes resourcing Gantt as the single source of truth, drives standardization across regions, and partners with executive leadership to ensure workforce planning enables business growth, delivery predictability, and optimal utilization.

Responsibilities

Workforce Planning Strategy & Planning:Define and lead the global workforce planning strategy, aligned to business objectives and growth plans. Oversee capacity planning, demand forecasting, and resource strategy across regions and functions. Ensure alignment of workforce planning to pipeline, delivery demand, and financial targets.

Global Operating Model, Governance & Standards:Embed the global workforce planning operating model, including roles, responsibilities, and accountability. Establish and enforce governance frameworks, standards, and planning cadence. Ensure consistent adoption of workforce planning processes across all regions.

Systems, Data & Reporting:Embed the strategic direction of workforce planning systems, ensuring the resourcing Gantt is the single source of truth. Oversee data integrity, reporting standards, and analytics capability across workforce planning. Enable data-driven decision-making through dashboards, insights, and performance tracking.

Cross-Functional Partnering:Partner with Business Leaders, Finance, BD, HR, and Operations to align workforce strategy with business priorities. Act as an advisor on workforce planning, utilization, and resourcing strategies. Drive alignment between pipeline, capacity, and delivery execution.

Leadership & Capability Development:Accountable for the global Workforce Planning function. Define organizational structure, capability requirements, and resourcing strategy for the WFP team. Drive high performance, accountability, and development across the function.

Continuous Improvement:Identify opportunities to reduce manual effort, improve efficiency, and enhance scalability.

Understand the responsibilities of Novotech as a service provider in the CRO industry and ensure all communications with stakeholders presents a positive professional image of the company.

Experience and Qualifications

Ideally a bachelor’s degree in business administration, Life Sciences, HR or a related field.

Strong strategic workforce planning and analytical capability

Proven ability to lead and scale global or multi-regional teams

Strong commercial and business acumen

Ability to operate in a complex, fast-paced, global environment

Ideally 10+ years’ experience in workforce planning, operations, or resource management

Experience in clinical trials or CRO environment preferred.

Salary Band –Associate Director Workforce Planning: $160,000 to $190,000 USD – Salary offered will be based on candidates experience level.

Novotech is proud to offer a great workplace. We are committed to being an employer of choice for gender equality and providing an inclusive work environment where everyone is treated fairly and with respect.

Our team members are passionate about what we do, but we understand work is only of the things that is important to them. We support our team members with flexible working options, paid parental leave for both parents, flexible leave entitlements, wellness programs and ongoing development programs.

We are looking for people who are passionate about working clinical research and biotech, including people who identify as LGBTIQ+, have a disability or have caring responsibilities.

About Us

Novotech is a global full-service clinical Contract Research Organization (CRO).

At Novotech, ambition meets opportunity. As a globally recognized leader in clinical research and scientific advisory services, we are proud to combine our position at the forefront of the industry with an award-winning workplace culture that values ambition, innovation, and growth. Named Employer of Choice, Great Place to Work and Employer of Choice for Gender Equality (EOCGE), we are committed to fostering an environment that reflects the life-changing work we do.

Since 1997, we have expanded our global footprint, now with 30+ offices across Asia-Pacific, the United States, and Europe. This growing network unites professionals from diverse backgrounds and disciplines to advance therapies that improve patient outcomes worldwide.

At Novotech, our employees are at the heart of our success. By offering trust, flexibility, and autonomy through programs like NovoLife, our flexible benefits framework, we empower team members to create an effective work-life balance that delivers professional satisfaction and maximum results for clients.

With access to mentorship opportunities, professional development programs, and a dynamic community, Novotech offers a platform for driven individuals to achieve personal growth while shaping the future of healthcare. Join us to be a part of a team that values your contributions and supports your ambition to make a global impact.

About the Team

At Novotech we have advanced therapeutic and regulatory expertise, the ability to execute across markets and a client-centric service model,so that our clients get a trusted, long-term partner and an accelerated path to bring their life-changing advances to market. This gives our employees the opportunity to develop their careers by joining a diverse and supportive global organization with a collaborative culture, whilst working with clients on the cutting-edge of life sciences.
At Novotech you will work alongside empowered teams with a shared commitment to success.

• Strategic vs transactional mindset.
• Ability to gain insights and make proactive decisions quickly.
• Culture that fosters partnership and collaboration, where every voice is heard and valued.
• Ongoing support from senior stakeholders and leadership team.

At Novotech we have advanced therapeutic and regulatory expertise, the ability to execute across markets and a client-centric service model,so that our clients get a trusted, long-term partner and an accelerated path to bring their life-changing advances to market. This gives our employees the opportunity to develop their careers by joining a diverse and supportive global organization with a collaborative culture, whilst working with clients on the cutting-edge of life sciences.
At Novotech you will work alongside empowered teams with a shared commitment to success.

• Strategic vs transactional mindset.

• Ability to gain insights and make proactive decisions quickly.

• Culture that fosters partnership and collaboration, where every voice is heard and valued.

• Ongoing support from senior stakeholders and leadership team.

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Job Info

• Job Identification 4258
• Posting Date 07/28/2026, 08:19 PM
• Job Schedule Full time
• Locations 400 Oyster Point Boulevard, Suite 401, South San Francisco, CA, 94080, US