Director, Site Lead Combination Product Development, R&D

AbbVie; North Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 182,000 - 346,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid time off and holidays

Job summary

AbbVie is seeking a Director in North Chicago to lead combination product development activities. This role involves providing strategic leadership, managing project teams from concept to operations, and collaborating across global functions to meet rigorous timelines and regulatory standards.

The ideal candidate holds an advanced degree in a relevant field and has over 15 years of experience in medical device or pharmaceutical development, specifically in subcutaneous injection technologies.

Qualifications

• Minimum 15 years of relevant experience in medical devices or pharmaceutical industry.
• Experience with subcutaneous injection devices and electromechanical devices is desirable.
• Strong working knowledge of global regulatory requirements.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for combination product development activities.
• Oversee project teams from concept through to operations.
• Collaborate with global stakeholders to meet deliverables.

Skills

Leadership

Medical device development

Regulatory compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem-solving

Education

Advanced degree (MS/PhD) in pharmaceutical or engineering discipline

Job description

• Full-time
• Salary Min: 182000
• Salary Max: 346000
• Workday Global Grade: 22
• Compensation: USD 182,000 - USD 346,000 - yearly

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

We are seeking an experienced Director to lead the Lake County Combination Product Development (CPD) team and serve as the site lead for AbbVie’s combination product development activities in R&D. This highly visible leadership role is responsible for driving the clinical development of combination products spanning prefilled syringes, autoinjectors, on-body injectors, and subcutaneous ambulatory infusion pumps. The Director will provide strategic and operational leadership across a technically diverse, cross‑functional team, ensuring successful development of device and delivery systems.

This role will support the development of new device and platform technologies. The role is accountable for building the systems, processes, capabilities, and partnerships required to advance product development with technical rigor, customer focus, and timely execution. This role will work closely with peers in R&D and cross‑functional colleagues in a global organization as well as maintaining strong working relationships with external development partners throughout the product development process.

Responsibilities:

• Provide strategic and operational leadership for all combination product development activities at the LC site, driving innovation and excellence in device and drug‑device platform development.
  • Direct oversight spans early feasibility assessment, design analysis and optimization, platform customization, reliability engineering, specifications development, verification testing, and issue resolution across the full program lifecycle.
• Oversee project teams responsible for the broader product development lifecycle—from concept through design, engineering, verification/validation, and transition to operations.
• Build and lead a high‑performing, multidisciplinary site team comprising engineering, science, and technical staff, directly managing managers, project leads, and technical specialists.
  • Lead engineers responsible for design fundamentals, margin analysis, reliability assessment, and continuous improvement opportunities across a diverse portfolio of delivery systems. The engineering team includes mechanical, electrical, software, and materials science subject matter experts.
  • Oversee the lab and design verification teams to support design, development, and testing of combination products using state‑of‑the‑art equipment.
• Collaborate with global and cross‑functional stakeholders (R&D, Regulatory, Quality, Operations, Supply) to ensure development deliverables meet timelines and regulatory requirements. While program managers own timeline management, provide technical leadership and granular program insights to identify acceleration opportunities, develop contingency strategies, and enable informed decision‑making across the development lifecycle.
• Develop and manage resource allocation, and ensure availability of state‑of‑the‑art tools and equipment, laboratory capabilities, and talent.
• Develop and implement staffing plans for global pipeline development programs using both internal staff and external contract resources.
• Foster a culture of technical rigor, quality, and continuous improvement; anticipate and proactively work with global teams to resolve technical and operational issues.
• Champion talent development, mentorship, and succession planning within the LC site.
• Proactively manage global third‑party development partners across a broad range of drug delivery system technologies and device types.
• Represent the LC site in cross‑site collaboration, global forums, and leadership meetings; contribute to broader organizational strategy for combination products.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree (MS/PhD) in pharmaceutical or engineering discipline.
• Minimum 15 years of relevant industry experience in medical devices and/or pharmaceutical industry, including at least 8 years of leading product development teams. Prior experience with subcutaneous injection devices and electromechanical devices is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated expertise in combination product/device design, development, verification/validation, and technology transfer. Product development leading to commercial launch is a plus.
• Strong working knowledge of applicable global regulatory requirements and industry standards (e.g., 21 CFR 820.30, ISO 13485, MDR, etc.).
• Solid R&D experience employing modern, lean product development methodologies across large multi‑disciplinary teams.
• Experience in cross‑functional process improvement – identifying and implementing ways to remove barriers, improve efficiency, and allow teams to move fast.
• Ability to help teams navigate risk and ambiguity – identifying additional information needed and enabling high‑quality decisions to support development.
• Outstanding ability to lead teams, communicate across functions, and influence senior/global stakeholders.
• Demonstrated knowledge of business and leadership principles involved in strategic planning, tactical execution, resource allocation, and team coordination.
• Proven track record of building teams, expanding technical capabilities, and fostering cross‑site best practice sharing.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, and the ability to clearly articulate development challenges and implementation strategies to stakeholders across a broad range of functional groups at all layers of the organization.
• Travel (domestic and international) will be required (10%-15%)

Additional Information

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law:

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.

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