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The Position
The position will report to the Global Head Digital Technology - Pharma Medicines which is still being recruited
About Roche Digital Technology (RDT)
Roche Digital Technology (RDT) is where innovation meets purpose. As a global team at the heart of Roche, we are a community of business-minded technologists committed to help shape tomorrow's digital future of healthcare. Our mission is to power Roche through cutting-edge digital technologies, harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence, data, and scalable tech innovations. Driven by purpose and passion, we're building a future where digital is a core strength across all of Roche, enabling smarter ways of working, unlocking human potential, and driving breakthroughs that truly matter for millions of patients around the world.
Role Summary
As the Head of RDT for Pharma Technical Operations (PT), you assume a critical executive leadership role, serving as the essential Strategic Business Partner to the Global Head of Pharma Technical Operations and their Leadership Team. This position is accountable for the performance and results of a vital division within the Sub-Function, directly influencing and shaping the overall PT digital strategy.
Your strategic mandate is to co-create, define, and drive the unified global digital strategy covering all capabilities required to run a world-leading Pharma Manufacturing & Supply Chain organization. This encompasses Drug Substance, Drug Product, GMP Quality, Supply Chain, and the crucial convergence of Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) to build a truly integrated and resilient global production network. You are directly responsible for delivering a compliant digital landscape that ensures uninterrupted production and uncompromising operational excellence, translating complex business imperatives into robust, forward-looking technology solutions that drive competitive advantage.
Key Accountabilities
The Head of RDT will provide leadership and direction through multiple levels of management, executing the long-term operational strategy to achieve key business objectives:
* Global Digitalization Strategy: Define and execute the comprehensive digital strategy for manufacturing, supply chain, and logistics. This includes the accelerated digitalization of factories, the deployment of smart logistics solutions, and the modernization of our quality and control systems.
* Operational Resilience and Assurance: Ensure uninterrupted production and resilient service delivery with an extremely low tolerance for failure. Establish a proactive monitoring framework and a robust incident response plan to ensure all mission-critical systems—from shop-floor automation to enterprise-level planning—maintain continuous operation.
* Asset and Efficiency Optimization: Spearhead continuous, integrated enhancements to the digital landscape, identifying and implementing solutions that significantly enhance operational efficiency and physical asset management. This utilizes technologies such as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), AI-powered predictive maintenance, and digital twins to optimize performance and reduce downtime.
* Strategic Executive Partnership: Function as a strategic partner to senior leaders across manufacturing and supply chain, actively participating in business steering committees to influence sub-function strategy. Manage a global portfolio of projects that are directly tied to critical business outcomes.
* Product and Portfolio Governance: Own the overall product vision, strategy, and roadmap for all platforms managed within the domain. Lead a group of Product Managers and Engineering Team Leads, ensuring the continuous improvement, robust operation, and high-quality delivery of the product suite.
* Enterprise Integration: Work seamlessly with the ERP Centre of Excellence (CoE) to ensure that all manufacturing and supply chain requirements related to ERP systems are fully understood, appropriately prioritized, and delivered from the ERP CoE.
* Domain Financial and Operational Health: Oversee the financial, contractual, and operational health of the domain as a business unit. Provide the executive operational insight necessary to enable Product and Engineering leaders to focus on their core responsibilities of strategy and execution. Strategically manage the global budget and rigorously oversee portfolio performance.
* Talent and Vendor Strategy: Lead and develop a team of senior leaders, cultivating a culture of innovation and high performance. Be accountable for building strategic relationships with external vendors and technology partners to ensure the organization remains at the forefront of industry trends and capabilities.
Key Leadership Competencies and skills
Success in this leadership role requires a sophisticated combination of strategic insight, deep functional expertise, and proven capacity to shape strategy and lead through multiple levels of management.
* Domain Expertise: Possesses a deep understanding of pharmaceutical manufacturing, supply chain processes, and related technologies (e.g., MES, ERP, IoT). Extensive experience with GxP regulations and the unique challenges of a highly regulated, large-scale production environment is mandatory.
* Operational Excellence: Demonstrated track record of successfully leading and managing mission-critical systems and processes in a production environment. Must demonstrate a "first time right" mentality and an uncompromising commitment to quality and service.
* Strategic & Data Acumen: Advanced ability to leverage data and analytics to optimize manufacturing workflows and inform strategic decisions. Demonstrated capability to build a compelling business case for digital investments and rigorously measure their Return on Investment (ROI).
* Leadership & Talent: Proven ability to lead and influence senior leaders, empowering a global team, emphasizing accountability and talent management. Must foster a culture defined by psychological safety and a strong sense of ownership.
* Technical Architecture Leadership: Serves as the senior technical leader across platform teams, ensuring architectural coherence, driving major cross-domain technical initiatives, and providing technical mentorship to senior engineering staff, particularly concerning IT/OT convergence.
* Risk & Compliance Mastery: Possesses a sophisticated and in-depth understanding of global regulatory standards (e.g., GMP) related to pharmaceutical production. Will serve as the executive point of authority for digital audit integrity, ensuring all systems are designed and operated in full compliance with global regulations.
Who we are
A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100'000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.
Let's build a healthier future, together.
Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.