Director, Platform Technology – Global Tech Operations
Gaithersburg, MD - USA
Job Summary
Location: Gaithersburg MD (USA) Hybrid: Three days per week on-site
Key accountabilities
- Platform strategy and standards: Set the platform vision engineering standards and multiyear roadmap. Define process engineering operating envelopes (highs/lows CPPs equipment specifications control strategies) with a clear engineering design basis. Publish reusable engineering templates and playbooks including platform process descriptions P&ID standards equipment specifications utility requirements tech transfer guides and manufacturing technology standards.
- Facility integration: Establish design principles for processfacility interfaces (cleanroom classifications HVAC requirements utility capacities material flow equipment layouts) that enable platform technologies. Build comparability and switch strategies into platforms and facility designs to manage lifecycle changes with minimal disruption.
- Manufacturing and process leadership: Set enterprise standards and adoption plans for endtoend processing including facility design requirements and utility infrastructure. Define PAT/APC strategies RTD models steadystate verification equipmenttrain configurations and startup/shutdown procedures aligned to global regulatory expectations and engineering best practice.
- Scaleup and execution: Guide piloting through commercial implementation with sound scaleup principles equipment sizing facility fit studies and utility demand modeling. Quantify value capture learnings and embed them across the network.
- Facility readiness: Assess existing capabilities versus platform requirements; define retrofit strategies or greenfield specifications to enable deployment.
- Collaboration and governance: Cocreate with CMC Clinical Regulatory QA Facilities Engineering Project Engineering and site leaders on process risk equipment selection facility design and lifecycle strategies. Harmonize engineering practices and facility design standards across internal sites CMOs and acquisitions with clear governance roles and accountability. Maintain transparent communication timely updates and risk escalation across Global Tech Ops and Biologics leadership.
- Technology and site enablement: Lead site technology transfers facilityfit assessments utility definition equipment installation and qualification protocols and adoption of digital monitoring/decision tools. Where required stand up process engineering capabilities (mass/energy balance modeling equipment sizing methodologies scaleup principles process simulation).
- Building systems integration: Define requirements for HVAC clean utilities waste treatment and automation infrastructure to support flexible manufacturing.
- Regulatory partnership: Coauthor technical content for design control strategies including process engineering rationale and facility design justification to enable postapproval flexibility. Prepare teams and sites for regulatory interactions and inspections with emphasis on process design rationale and facility compliance.
- Datadriven improvement: Establish standards for process data equipment performance metrics utility consumption tracking and information needed for autonomous decisionmaking and engineering analysis. Define engineering KPIs and scorecards (e.g. equipment utilization process capability indices facility efficiency metrics) and run feedback loops to track adoption and impact.
Modalities in scope
- Core: Fedbatch and intensified mammalian bioprocessing microbial fermentation
- Emerging: Nucleic acid therapies antibodydrug conjugates radioconjugates viral and gene therapies enzymeproduced biologics protozoan fermentation
Qualifications
- Experience: 13 years in biologics manufacturing with strong process engineering and/or facilities engineering background (or 10 years with an advanced degree in Chemical Engineering Mechanical Engineering or related field)
- 7 years in Process Engineering/Development with facility design exposure; latestage and commercial Pharma experience.
- Engineering expertise: Demonstrated experience in process scaleup equipment specification and selection P&ID development mass/energy balance calculations and facility design for biologics manufacturing.
- Intensified manufacturing: Recent handson leadership implementing n1 or n1 perfusion and/or producing highyield biologics with connected or continuous downstream in GMP manufacturing with emphasis on process engineering and facility integration.
- Facility engineering: Experience with cleanroom design utility systems (WFI clean steam HVAC) material flow optimization and equipment layout for GMP.
- Regulatory: Proven authoring of technical sections and/or leading technical regulatory strategy focused on process design and engineering controls.
- Collaboration: Strong record of leading matrix teams and influencing across process development facilities engineering project engineering and external partners/CMOs. Site engineering leadership background; validation experience for new modalities/formulations with facility commissioning and qualification.
- Latephase nucleic acid manufacturing or analytics experience.
- Experience with process simulation tools (e.g. SuperPro Designer Aspen).
- Proficiency with Power BI Power Automate AutoCAD/Revit and Microsoft 365.
What success looks like
- Engineering standardization and speed: Reusable platform standards (P&IDs equipment specs facility templates) that shorten development facility design and tech transfer timelines.
- Processfacility integration: Seamless alignment of process requirements with facility capabilities enabling rapid platform deployment.
- Automation and innovation leverage: Scaled manufacturing with optimized footprint delivering robustness cost sustainability and spaceutilization gains.
- Network alignment: Consistent engineering practices and facility design standards across sites and CMOs with clear governance.
- Operational outcomes: Higher yields lower variability optimized facility utilization reduced utility consumption and faster time to clinical and commercial supply.
Reporting line and scope
- Reports to: Senior Director/VP within Global Tech Ops (Biologics)
- Teaming model: Leads crossfunctional matrixed teams; may directly manage a small group of platform and process engineers; influences networkwide engineering community of practice.
- Hybrid: Three days per week on-site in Gaithersburg MD; two days remote aligned to site norms
- Travel: Approximately 2030% to development centers manufacturing sites and CMOs
Why AstraZeneca Join a scienceled patientfocused organization shaping the future of biomanufacturing. You will have enterprise reach the mandate to harmonize standards and the opportunity to deploy innovative platforms that accelerate medicines to patients. Equal opportunity statement AstraZeneca is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.Compensation and benefits (Gaithersburg MD) The annual base pay for this position ranges from $175498 to $263247 Annual USD. Base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors including market location job-related knowledge skills and addition our positions offer a short-term incentive bonus opportunity; eligibility to participate in our equity-based long-term incentive program (salaried roles) to receive a retirement contribution (hourly roles) and commission payment eligibility (sales roles). Benefits offered include 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 the employee will be in an at-will position and the Company reserves the right to modify base salary (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.
Date Posted
30-Mar-2026Closing Date
28-May-2026Our mission is to build an inclusive environment where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and furtherance of that mission we welcome and consider applications from all qualified candidates regardless of their protected characteristics. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation please complete the corresponding section in the application form.
Required Experience:
Director
About Company
AstraZeneca is an equal opportunity employer. AstraZeneca will consider all qualified applicants for employment without discrimination on grounds of disability, sex or sexual orientation, pregnancy or maternity leave status, race or national or ethnic origin, age, religion or belief, ... View more