Director/Sr. Director, Commercial Production Management (CPM) Strategy

SK Life Science; Paramus (NJ); On-site; USD 190,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) plan with company match

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Job summary

SK Life Science seeks a Director/Sr. Director to lead CPM Strategy & SRM. You will define external CMO governance, lead board-ready reviews, and drive performance improvements across clinical and commercial manufacturing partnerships.

The role coordinates MSAT activities for drug products with CMOs and manages technology transfer to support NDA submissions and product commercialization.

Qualifications

• 15+ years in pharmaceutical/biotechnology manufacturing or related external manufacturing

Responsibilities

• Define and govern the enterprise CMO operating strategy for clinical and commercial supply

Skills

SRM framework

CMO governance

KPIs & performance metrics

Executive reporting

cGMP knowledge

Risk management

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in supply chain, engineering, life sciences, pharmacy, business

Advanced degree preferred

Lean/Six Sigma or project management certification

Job description

Job Locations

US-NJ-Paramus

Contract Type: Regular Full-Time

Overview

The Director/Sr. Director, Commercial Production Management (CPM) Strategy & Supplier Relationship Management, is accountable for defining and governing the company's strategy for external Clinical and Commercial Contract Manufacturing Organizations (CMOs). The role provides objective, portfolio-level oversight, converts performance and risk information into strategic priorities, and ensures that CMO partnerships support reliable supply, quality, cost, and business continuity.

This position establishes the CMO governance model, leads business reviews, oversees strategic initiatives and contract performance, provides integrated reporting to GSM leadership, and leads assigned SRM resources and cross-functional governance teams. SRM is a core pillar of the broader CPM Strategy mandate.

This position is also responsible for MSAT activities for drug products/finished drug products to CMOs. Will be leading a team to execute technology transfer activities to CMO sites for NDA submission support and commercialization of SKLSI products.

Responsibilities

CPM STRATEGY AND GOVERNANCE

• Develop and maintain the enterprise CMO operating strategy for clinical and commercial supply, aligned with GSM, product, quality, and business priorities.
• Establish and oversee a consistent governance framework for CMOs, including decision rights, escalation pathways, review cadence, performance standards, and accountability for follow-through.
• Lead periodic CMO business reviews and executive governance forums; ensure decisions, commitments, risks, and corrective actions are documented and closed on schedule.
• Translate portfolio performance and risk trends into prioritized strategic initiatives, resource recommendations, and management decisions.
• Provide strategic oversight of CMO contracts and service commitments in partnership with Global SCM, Procurement, Legal, Finance, Quality, and business owners.

SUPPLIER RELATIONSHIP AND PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

• Own the SRM framework and serve as the strategic relationship lead for designated CMOs, promoting transparent, fact-based, and mutually accountable partnerships.
• Define standardized scorecards and key performance indicators across quality, delivery, service, cost, and responsiveness, including OTIF, RFT, lead time, deviations, complaints, CAPA effectiveness, release readiness, and Cost of Poor Quality (CoPQ).
• Evaluate CMO performance objectively across the portfolio, identify systemic trends, benchmark performance, and prioritize improvement opportunities.
• Ensure performance expectations are understood by internal stakeholders and CMOs and that improvement commitments are integrated into business-review and governance routines.

RISK, QUALITY-SYSTEM, AND IMPROVEMENT OVERSIGHT

• Maintain an integrated view of CMO supply, quality, capacity, compliance, contractual, and business-continuity risks; establish early-warning indicators and risk-based escalation criteria.
• Coordinate mitigation plans with CPM Operations, MSAT, Global SCM, Quality, Regulatory, and other functions; track ownership, milestones, residual risk, and closure effectiveness.
• Provide portfolio-level oversight of deviations, complaints, CAPAs, change controls, quality agreements, lead-time performance, and recurring operational issues without replacing functional Quality authority.
• Lead or sponsor cross-functional root-cause analysis for recurring or systemic issues and ensure preventive actions are translated into sustainable operating improvements.

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND EXECUTIVE REPORTING

• Lead strategic CMO initiatives such as governance redesign, performance recovery, network optimization, capability development, risk reduction, and partnership improvement programs.
• Develop integrated dashboards and executive reports that summarize CMO performance, material risks, root causes, decisions required, and progress against corrective actions.
• Recommend corrective actions, investment priorities, contractual remedies, or escalation based on fact-based analysis and business impact.
• Continuously improve CPM standards, tools, governance routines, and data quality to strengthen organizational capability and decision-making.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree in supply chain, engineering, life sciences, pharmacy, business, or a related discipline; advanced degree is preferred.
• Formal training or certification in Lean/Six Sigma, project management, supply chain, quality, or risk management, highly preferred.

Experience

• 15 or more years of progressive experience in pharmaceutical or biotechnology manufacturing, external manufacturing, supply chain, quality, technical operations, procurement, or alliance management; equivalent experience will be considered.
• Experience across both drug substance/API and drug product/finished-product manufacturing.
• Experience in technology transfer activities to CMOs for drug product/finished- product manufacturing.
• Experience with contract strategy, negotiation support, cost analysis, network strategy, or supplier segmentation.
• Demonstrated experience developing strategy and governance for external manufacturing partners or other complex strategic suppliers.
• Strong working knowledge of cGMP manufacturing, pharmaceutical quality systems, supply planning, CMO operations, and the cross-functional requirements supporting clinical and commercial supply.
• Proven ability to use KPIs, trend analysis, risk assessment, root-cause analysis, and executive reporting to drive decisions and sustained improvement.
• Experience leading business reviews, complex escalations, CAPA or performance-recovery programs, and cross-functional initiatives in a matrixed global environment.
• Experience working across US and Korean or other international teams and CMOs.

Additional Requirements

• Ability to travel domestically and internationally to CMO sites and business reviews, as business needs require.
• Executive-level written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to influence internal leaders and senior CMO stakeholders.

Compensation & Benefits

The anticipated salary range for this position is $190,000 to $240,000. Actual compensation may vary based on factors including experience, qualifications, skills, and business needs.

In addition to base salary, SK Life Science offers a competitive benefits package, including a 401(k) plan with company match and medical, dental, and vision coverage. Benefits are subject to eligibility requirements and may be modified at the Company's discretion.