Director Engineering

Curium Pharma; Maryland Heights (MO); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Curium Pharma is seeking a Director of Engineering in North America to lead capital project management across R&D and Operations, ensuring scope, schedule, and budget alignment with strategic goals. You will manage engineering teams and coordinate procurement, regulatory, quality, and safety considerations.

The role requires 15+ years in pharma capital projects, strong leadership, and the ability to partner with senior leadership to drive capital programs and MOB initiatives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor degree in engineering or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 15+ years in capital project management in pharma.
• Experience leading multi-functional teams.
• Experience managing department budgets and capital budgets.
• Experience in capital estimating.
• Strong interpersonal, communication and leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership to capital projects cross-functionally, partnering with key internal and external stakeholders.
• Establish capital budgets, priorities, and execution plans across sites.
• Define KPIs for capital project execution and drive continuous improvement.
• Coordinate with Portfolio Management, R&D, PMO and site leadership.
• Scope, schedule, and cost information for capital requirements for new products.
• Ensure capital purchases meet site requirements.
• Develop and maintain site equipment standards and Master Plans.
• Conduct field inspections during implementation of capital projects.
• Organize meetings and prepare site reports; support PMs.
• Coach and develop Capital Project managers.
• Review Capital Appropriation Requests for completeness.
• Maintain up-to-date engineering standards and construction practices.
• Capture project data to drive best practices and compliance.

Job description

A unique leadership opportunity within the Curium North America Engineering Organization to collaborate across different functions including Operations, Environmental Health and Safety and Health Physics, Facilities Maintenance, the Project Management Organization, Regulatory Affairs, Research and Development, Procurement, Quality Assurance, and Legal. This individual will work closely with the Senior Director North America Engineering Services to implement Curium’s strategic initiatives as well as Maintenance of Business (MOB) projects across the North American Operations team. This individual will be required to integrate strategic, critical thinking and scientific review along with strong project management skills to guide project teams and initiatives to success from a scope, schedule, and budget perspective. This position requires effective communication on program status to senior leadership across the company.

This role will manage and support the capital needs of R&D/Operations strategic projects and initiatives as well as site MOB programs. The Director of Engineering is responsible for both managing engineering teams as well as identifying, scoping, and implementation of the capital requirements and budget for new product development opportunities and Maintenance of Business projects for Curium North America. Responsibilities include development, implementation, and management of mature CapEx management systems, cost estimating, equipment layout, detailed design, contractor selection, and implementation of all capital projects. The Capital Director will work closely with individual Project Managers and other business leaders to ensure the capital portion of the projects meets the overall project and business needs.

This role will be responsible for establishing and managing the North American capital program and will ensure projects are executed and managed successfully, including regular project status and performance reviews and reports.

Job description:

Summary of Position

A unique leadership opportunity within the Curium North America Engineering Organization to collaborate across different functions including Operations, Environmental Health and Safety and Health Physics, Facilities Maintenance, the Project Management Organization, Regulatory Affairs, Research and Development, Procurement, Quality Assurance, and Legal. This individual will work closely with the Senior Director North America Engineering Services to implement Curium’s strategic initiatives as well as Maintenance of Business (MOB) projects across the North American Operations team. This individual will be required to integrate strategic, critical thinking and scientific review along with strong project management skills to guide project teams and initiatives to success from a scope, schedule, and budget perspective. This position requires effective communication on program status to senior leadership across the company.

This role will manage and support the capital needs of R&D/Operations strategic projects and initiatives as well as site MOB programs. The Director of Engineering is responsible for both managing engineering teams as well as identifying, scoping, and implementation of the capital requirements and budget for new product development opportunities and Maintenance of Business projects for Curium North America. Responsibilities include development, implementation, and management of mature CapEx management systems, cost estimating, equipment layout, detailed design, contractor selection, and implementation of all capital projects. The Capital Director will work closely with individual Project Managers and other business leaders to ensure the capital portion of the projects meets the overall project and business needs.

This role will be responsible for establishing and managing the North American capital program and will ensure projects are executed and managed successfully, including regular project status and performance reviews and reports.

Essential Functions

• Provide leadership to strategic and Maintenance of Business projects cross-functionally, partnering with key internal and external stakeholders.
• Closely interact with Site and other Functional Leadership Team members and their respective functions to establish the capital budget, set capital priorities, and execute on capital requirements.
• Define Key Performance Metrics for capital project execution and employ continuous improvement principles to manage and improve project performance to quality, schedule, and budget expectations.
• Work closely with Portfolio Management, R&D, PMO and site focus factory management to provide support for all capital initiatives defined by the Curium leadership team.
• Work with the Engineering Services and PMO groups during concept phase to provide scoping, scheduling, and cost information for capital requirements for new products.
• Work with the Engineering team to ensure capital purchases meet the site requirements.
• Lead the development and upkeep of site equipment standards to maintain current compliance and industry best practices.
• Development of Site Master Plans to align the 5 Year Capital Plan and Annual Capital Budget with business objectives.
• Conduct field inspections during implementation and installation of capital equipment for all New Product Development and Maintenance of Business projects.
• Coordinate and organize (agenda, minutes, tracking, planning) meetings and provide input for site specific meetings such as Town hall meetings and the site monthly report out meetings.
• Provide day to day support to Capital Project managers via coaching and developing.
• Review all Capital Appropriation Requests for completeness.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge on engineering standards and construction practices.
• Through Project Management systems, capture and share information from each project to drive continuous improvement and best practices.
• Must maintain operational compliance with US and international regulatory agencies and guidelines (i.e. FDA, EU, HC, TGA, PIC/S, ISO, USP, NRC, cGMP, etc.).

Requirements

• Bachelor Degree in engineering or related experience. Advanced degrees preferred
• 15 or more years of experience in capital project management, including experience with Pharmaceutical or related industry capital projects.
• Team Leader experience.
• Strong evidence and mastery of being a Team contributor across functions.
• Demonstrated experience developing and managing both department budgets as well as organizational capital budgets.
• Experience in capital estimating.
• Experience leading a group of pharmaceutical professionals and engineers, with focus on skills and performance development.
• Experience developing systems and standards for a project-based organization.
• Demonstrates strong interpersonal skills, including ability to maintain composure and professionalism under pressure.
• Allocate resources effectively across multiple projects and appropriately set priorities.
• Work well under tight and conflicting deadlines.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal and negotiation skills, conflict management, priority setting, strategic agility, building effective teams, managing vision and purpose.
• Strong management, time-management, and organizational skills.
• Proficiency in computer skills and experience with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and experience with Project Management software.
• This position may require limited travel in support of projects.

Working Conditions:

• Willingness to work in plant producing radioactive materials and requiring all employees to participate in safety programs designed to minimize potential and/or actual exposure levels.
• Responsibilities include the ability to lift up to 70 pounds, kneeling, crouching, twisting the upper body, walking, bending, stooping, pushing, pulling, reaching, must be able to physically negotiate stairs and evacuation ladders with or without accommodation, wear and operate safety equipment, enter vessels, and inspect equipment.
• Material handling devices (e.g., hand truck, fork truck, and conveyors) are used when possible, however, use of proper lifting and movement techniques is necessary to prevent injury.
• Must be willing to wear a variety of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and hearing protection as needed.
• May be required to sit or stand for long periods of 8+ hours a day while performing duties.
• Must possess good hand-eye coordination; close attention to detail is required.
• Must be able to work indoors and outdoors with exposure to mechanical/moving parts, hazards including corrosive, flammable and toxic material, dust, dirt, odors, and irritants.
• Willingness to complete safety training within allotted timeframes, and work in a team-based environment.
• Must be able to work outside of regular work hours, including off shift, weekend, and holiday work as business needs require.