Associate Director, Distribution & Final Mile Strategy

AbbVie • North Chicago, IL

7h

About The Position

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas – immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com . Follow @abbvie on X , Facebook , Instagram , YouTube , LinkedIn and Tik Tok . This role drives strategic global distribution and strategy initiatives and partners with Strategic Management Office (SMO) leadership to propel the business towards being prepared for the future of Supply Chain. The AD partners closely with leadership to ensure the SMO delivers on its vision and goals, providing strategic guidance and fostering a culture of performance, collaboration, and excellence. Playing a key role in shaping and executing business management routines, this role supports initiatives that include strategic planning, overseeing budget and financials, engagement with key stakeholders, and supporting talent development, while actively promoting cross-functional connectivity throughout the organization. This role leads the design and ongoing optimization of the global distribution network, aligning supply chain operations with long-term business plans and evolving regional priorities.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required, in preferred fields in Supply Chain, Business Management, or other applicable degrees.
• At least 10 years of experience in Operations, Supply Chain, Transformation, or similar fields, with experience in Supply Chain Network Design or Optimization required.
• Objective strategic thinker with a demonstrated drive for results.
• Analytical orientation and comfortable with ambiguity and complexity.
• Dependable, trusted leader who is used to dealing with confidential information.
• Ability to connect the dots and influence across a complex organization.
• Excellent Emotional Intelligence (EQ) skills and relationship building experience.
• Strong leadership, negotiation, and mentoring / coaching skills.
• Strong communication skills, oral and written, great at packaging information depending on audience.
• Good understanding of project management practices, portfolio review, finance, and budgeting.

Nice To Haves

• Pharmaceutical industry experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Partner with SMO and Global Supply Chain Leadership to design and optimize the global distribution network strategy, ensuring alignment with long-range organizational plans and regional priorities.
• Partner with and advise Distribution Managers and Regional Leads to implement strategic vision and change initiatives (e.g. automation, advanced capabilities, and/or other applicable technology), ensuring alignment across the network
• Coordinate with cross-functional supply teams to align on strategies or opportunities to monitor or optimize inventory levels across the distribution network (e.g. Supply Planning)
• Lead and drive strategic initiatives and special projects focused on enhancing storage, warehousing capabilities, and capturing value, with continued assessment of distribution network effectiveness.
• Proactively assess and communicate trade-offs between cost, service, and risk across global distribution nodes to enable agile, informed decision-making and to ensure operational excellence.
• Manage key suppliers and internal relationships to identify, implement, and optimize innovative partnership strategies for enhanced supply chain resilience.
• Define, track, and analyze KPIs to measure distribution efficiency, inventory performance, and supply chain health, ensuring data-driven improvements to processes and outcomes.
• Engage cross-functionally and externally to foster strategic partnerships that promote best practices, facilitate innovative supply chain solutions, and strengthen connectivity across business units and with external providers.
• Oversee business management routines, including performance metrics, operating reviews, and management reviews, and brings in specialized partners when necessary to ensure efficient, compliant, and scalable operations.
• Maximize opportunities for continuous improvement by sharing best practices, supporting capability building, and facilitating value creation through targeted supply chain initiatives.

Benefits

• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
• This job is eligible to participate in our short-term incentive programs.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director