Senior Director, Biospecimen Management

Bristol-Myers Squibb; Princeton (NJ); Hybrid; USD 245,000 - 296,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits

Wellbeing support

Job summary

Bristol Myers Squibb is seeking a Senior Director of Biospecimen Management to lead a global, cross-functional team within the Consent, Biospecimen & Imaging organization. The role drives operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and strategic partnerships to support full lifecycle biospecimen management for clinical trials.

You will steward resources, optimize processes, and contribute to the evolution of the CBI organization while maintaining a strong focus on quality, ethics, and patient

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant scientific or clinical discipline is required.
• Master's or Doctoral degree is preferred.
• 10+ years global experience in clinical drug development and biospecimen management.
• 7+ years of leadership experience managing global, cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing biospecimen management team with accountability for performance and growth.
• Oversee biospecimen management leads supporting trials across therapeutic areas.
• Drive operational excellence for biospecimen management across the clinical trial portfolio.
• Define, track, and report on KPIs for capacity and operational effectiveness.
• Partner with leadership on strategic planning, process improvement, and service development initiatives.
• Manage vendor relationships and ensure performance standards are met.
• Serve as SME during audits and vendor visits.

Skills

Team leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Biospecimen management

Regulatory & compliance

Project management

Vendor management

GCP/ICH familiarity

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's/Doctoral degree

Tools

Biospecimen management systems

Consent management systems

Chain-of-custody tracking systems

Job description

At Bristol Myers Squibb, our employees often ask, “Who are you working for?”—a question that fuels collaboration, accountability, and urgency in our work. Our purpose-driven culture inspires us to discover, develop, and deliver innovative medicines to prevail over serious diseases. We offer uniquely interesting and meaningful work, opportunities for growth, and a supportive environment that values inclusion, wellbeing, flexibility, and comprehensive benefits. This is work that transforms the lives of patients, and the careers of those who do it.

Senior Director, Biospecimen Management

Senior Director, Biospecimen Management is building a world-class Consent, Biospecimen & Imaging (CBI) organization within Global Development Operations, designed to drive excellence and innovation across end-to-end biospecimen management in support of both Research and Development objectives. The Senior Director, Biospecimen Management is a senior leadership role reporting directly to the Executive Director, Consent, Biospecimen & Imaging Management Head. This individual will serve as a strategic and operational leader responsible for delivering high-quality, efficient biospecimen management across all BMS-sponsored clinical trials — while contributing to the broader evolution and optimization of CBI's cross-functional capabilities.

Key Responsibilities

• Team Leadership & Performance Lead and develop a high-performing Biospecimen Management team, with full accountability for team performance, career growth, and talent development
• Oversee biospecimen management leads supporting trials across all therapeutic areas, ensuring consistent quality and delivery
• Demonstrate exemplary leadership across large, geographically distributed on-site and remote teams
• Champion team dynamics and cross-functional relationship building in a collaborative, inclusive environment
• Operational Excellence Drive high-quality, efficient biospecimen management support across the full BMS clinical trial portfolio
• Act as the primary escalation point for study- and portfolio-level risks or issues related to biospecimen collections
• Manage internal timelines to ensure alignment with vendor and clinical study milestones, maintaining open communication and proactively resolving or escalating vendor issues
• Define, track, and report on key performance metrics related to biospecimen management capacity and operational effectiveness
• Strategy & Innovation Partner with the ED and CBI leadership team on strategic planning, process improvement, and service development initiatives
• Lead internal and external initiatives to advance operational quality, close gaps, and introduce new capabilities aligned with the CBI mission
• Lead cross-functional efforts to innovate and improve biospecimen operations at scale
• Contribute to the delivery of IT capabilities that enhance operational effectiveness, biospecimen tracking, and reconciliation
• Stakeholder & Vendor Management Build and sustain partnerships across a large, diverse stakeholder network — understanding their needs and ensuring operational processes are designed to meet them
• Manage and develop relationships with biospecimen management vendors; ensure vendor performance standards are met and maintained
• Serve as a functional subject matter expert during internal audits and vendor visits
• Regulatory & Scientific Expertise Maintain current knowledge of relevant regulatory guidance, GCP/ICH standards, and external industry trends as they pertain to biospecimen management
• Apply scientific knowledge of safety, pharmacokinetics, genetics, and biomarker research to optimize biospecimen processing and sampling plans for clinical trials
• Ensure regulatory and ethical aspects of biospecimen collection are embedded across all operational processes
• Resource & Portfolio Management Ensure appropriate resourcing across the book of work (BOW), including capacity planning across a portfolio of 100+ clinical studies
• Apply strong skills in project prioritization, financial planning, and portfolio management to deliver operational objectives at scale

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant scientific or clinical discipline (required)
• Master's or Doctoral degree (preferred)

Experience

• 10+ years of global experience in clinical drug development, clinical research, or a related field — with biospecimen management experience required
• 7+ years of leadership experience managing global, cross-functional teams
• Extensive drug development experience from pre-clinical through clinical testing, with a strong emphasis on the operational, regulatory, and ethical dimensions of biospecimen collection
• Demonstrated experience working with central laboratories, data management, and clinical trial operations organizations
• Prior experience with corporate drug development and submissions, particularly in clinical development and translational medicine
• Experience managing and developing relationships with biospecimen management vendors

Technical & Functional Skills

• Advanced knowledge of GCP/ICH guidelines, biospecimen management systems, and clinical development processes
• Familiarity with chain-of-custody tracking technologies and biospecimen management tools; experience with consent management systems is a plus
• Ability to translate scientific and regulatory requirements into technology builds that enable successful digitization of biospecimen operations
• Strong project management, resource planning, and financial management capabilities

Leadership & Interpersonal Skills

• Demonstrated ability to lead large, diverse, global teams across multiple time zones and therapeutic areas
• Outstanding communication, negotiation, and influencing skills at all organizational levels
• Proven ability to build cross-functional relationships and foster positive team dynamics
• Highly detail-oriented with the ability to manage multiple priorities and complex portfolios simultaneously
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including the ability to present complex topics clearly to varied audiences

Travel Requirements

Up to 20% of travel.

Compensation Overview

• Madison - Giralda - NJ - US: $244,560 - $296,352
• Princeton - NJ - US: $244,560 - $296,352

The starting pay range(s) listed above is for full-time employees (FTE). You may also be eligible for additional discretionary incentive cash and stock opportunities. We determine starting pay thoughtfully – carefully considering the nature of the role, required skills, work location, schedule and the knowledge and experience you bring. Final compensation is guided by pay equity principles and applicable employment laws. Compensation programs are reviewed on an ongoing basis and may be adjusted over time to reflect evolving market factors, and individual, team or Company performance.

Benefits

• Subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans then in effect, you may be eligible to participate in our comprehensive benefit plans – including wellbeing support, retirement and financial protection benefits, and insurance offerings (medical, dental, vision, life and disability).
• U.S.-based exempt employees are eligible for Flexible Time Off (FTO), which provides paid time off without a set accrual limit, subject to manager approval, along with 11 paid company holidays each year.
• Non-exempt employees, RayzeBio employees, and employees located in Puerto Rico receive 160 hours of paid vacation annually for new hires (subject to manager approval), 11 paid company holidays, and 3 optional holidays.
• Depending on eligibility, employees may also have access to additional time-off benefits, including paid sick leave, up to two paid volunteer days per year, summer hours flexibility, and leaves of absence for medical, personal, parental, caregiver, bereavement, or military needs.
• Eligible employees also enjoy an annual Global Shutdown between Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
• U.S.-based job seekers can explore full benefit offerings at https://careers.bms.com/benefits

How We Work

Where you work matters – because collaboration, innovation and patient impact happen in many settings. Our roles are structured across four work models: site-essential, site-by-design, field-based and remote-by-design. The model assigned to this role is based on its core responsibilities. Learn more at https://careers.bms.com/ways-of-working.

Supporting People with Disabilities

BMS is dedicated to ensuring that people with disabilities can excel through a transparent recruitment process, reasonable workplace accommodations/adjustments and ongoing support in their roles. Applicants can request a reasonable workplace accommodation/adjustment prior to accepting a job offer. If you require reasonable accommodations/adjustments in completing this application, or in any part of the recruitment process, direct your inquiries to [e-mail]. Visit careers.bms.com/eeo-accessibility to access our complete Equal Employment Opportunity statement.

Candidate Rights

BMS will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, pursuant to applicable laws in your area. For roles based in Los Angeles County only: If you live in or expect to work from Los Angeles County if hired for this position, please visit this page for important additional information: https://careers.bms.com/california-residents/

We’re creating innovative medicines for patients fighting serious diseases. We’re also nurturing our own diverse team with inspiring work and challenging career options. No matter the role, each one of us makes a contribution. And that makes all the difference.