AstraZeneca

Associate Director for Operational Excellence - Site Operational Excellence Lead

AstraZeneca$121K — $181K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree required.
  • Minimum 8 years in operational excellence, training, consulting, strategy, process improvement, or business analysis.
  • 4+ years as a Six Sigma Black Belt with formal Lean Sigma training and experience.
  • At least 2 years in a management or leadership role.
  • Proven experience in mentoring and coaching individuals and teams.
  • Strong analytical problem-solving skills with DMAIC and Lean methodology knowledge.
  • Advanced skills in Minitab, Microsoft Visio, and Project.

Responsibilities

  • Provide strategic and technical leadership to support operational excellence initiatives.
  • Develop and implement training programs for all levels; issue training certifications.
  • Collaborate with senior leadership to set and prioritize operational excellence goals.
  • Engage with BPOG and conferences to bring best practices to AstraZeneca.
  • Monitor and analyze standard processes in partnership with business process owners.
  • Lead the management review of KPIs, training staff on measurement principles.
  • Serve as a change agent to instill an operational excellence culture.

Benefits

  • Qualified retirement program (401(k) plan).
  • Paid vacation and holidays.
  • Health benefits including medical, dental, vision, and prescription coverage.
  • Paid leaves and opportunity for short-term incentive bonus.
Full Job Description
The role can be based at either the Santa Monica or Tarzana site.

What you will do:
  • Provides strategic and technical leadership, training, mentoring, people development, project support, and facilitation as required to support AZ Cell Therapy, Operational Excellence journey.
  • Strategic Planning, development and deployment along with Change Management, Capacity Management, TPN, Enterprise and AstraZeneca initiatives.
  • Serve as master Operational Excellence trainer, develop trainings and conduct training activities at all level and issue appropriate training completion/belt certificates.
  • Work with the SLT and Management Team to create Operational Excellence program strategic goals, prioritize activities and in the development and execution of OE projects.
  • Participate BPOG, related OE conferences, summits, and benchmarking; and bring back and champion the best practices at AstraZeneca.
  • Work with business process owners to create, monitor, measure and analyze standardized processes.
  • Play key role in the development and implementation of a formal management review of KPIs, and train and coach all functional areas on measurement principles.
  • Act as a change agent and implement Operational Excellence mindset into operational guidelines and practices and lead ongoing expansion of the excellence culture across the organization.
  • Development and implementation of lean journey of site.


Educations and Qualifications:
  • Bachelor's degree.
  • Minimum of 8 years or more work experience in operational excellence, training, consulting, strategy, process improvement, or business analysis required.
  • Must have worked as a Six Sigma Black Belt for a minimum of 4 years with formal training and experience in applying Lean Sigma methods and /lean methods in DMAIC Six Sigma Black Belt level or PDCA lean projects.
  • Minimum 2 years' experience directly managing or leading a team.
  • Demonstrated mentoring, coaching, and people development capabilities.
  • Ability to work independently with minimal direction.
  • Excellent working knowledge of the principles and philosophies of analytical problem-solving techniques, along with a demonstrated track record of achievement. Strong level of DMAIC and/or Lean tools and methodology knowledge required.
  • Experience as an Operational Excellence trainer.
  • Advance user of Minitab or similar, Microsoft Visio and Project.
  • Ability to develop and lead initiatives, changes and improvements in a start up and / or large-scale operation.
  • Solid business acumen.
  • Strong Project Management skills.


Preferred Qualifications:
  • Minimum 2 years' experience in the pharmaceutical or biopharma industry in a manufacturing, technical, or related role
  • Business process design, deployment, and change management experience
  • Experience working globally, leading virtual teams in a matrixed environment
  • Cell Therapy Operations experience


The annual base pay for this position ranges from $121,149.60 - $181,724.40. Base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. In addition, our positions offer a short-term incentive bonus opportunity; eligibility to participate in our equity-based long-term incentive program. Benefits offered included a qualified retirement program [401(k) plan]; paid vacation and holidays; paid leaves; and, health benefits including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans. Additional details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment. If hired, employee will be in an "at-will position" and the Company reserves the right to modify base pay (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, Company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.

Join us in making a difference-apply today!

Date Posted
23-Jun-2026

Closing Date
23-Jul-2026

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company that specializes in the research, development, and manufacturing of prescription drugs. The company was formed in 1999 through the merger of Astra AB and Zeneca Group plc. AstraZeneca's products are used to treat a wide range of medical conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and diabetes. The company has operations in over 100 countries and employs more than 76,000 people worldwide. AstraZeneca is committed to developing innovative medicines that improve the health and well-being of people around the world.
Learn more about AstraZeneca
Size
83,100 employees
Market Cap
$211.5 billion
Industry
Net Income
$3.1 billion
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+10.2%
Revenue
$26.6 billion
NASDAQ

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