Associate Director, Specialty Laboratory Sourcing, Contracting and Category Management

Gilead Sciences • Parsippany, NJ

9d • $165,495 - $235,620

About The Position

The Associate Director, Vendor Outsourcing, focused on Specialty Laboratory Sourcing, Contracting and Category Management, serves as the category partner and subject-matter expert for Biomarker, Bioanalytical, and Companion Diagnostics across Clinical Development and Research. This role develops and executes category strategy, leads strategic sourcing initiatives, negotiates and executes complex agreements, and manages vendor relationships to deliver quality, compliance, innovation, and value.

The position partners with Biomarker Operations, Clinical Pharmacology, Translational Medicine, therapeutic-area research scientists, Clinical Operations, Legal, Finance, Quality, Compliance, Regulatory, and other cross-functional stakeholders to identify and implement optimized vendor solutions. It leads category and portfolio management, contracting and commercial terms, vendor onboarding and governance, and continuous improvement. The role also supports inspection readiness, audits, regulatory and contractual compliance, data privacy, and intellectual-property protection.

Success is measured by improved vendor performance and stakeholder satisfaction; timely sourcing and contracting that supports clinical development timelines; adoption of preferred-vendor strategies and category standards; reduced contracting cycle times; achievement of savings and value-generation targets; and sustained inspection readiness and compliance. People Leader accountabilities include creating inclusion, developing talent, and empowering teams.

Requirements

• Demonstrated experience leading a specialty laboratory category, laboratory vendor portfolio, strategic sourcing area, or related function in biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, clinical research, diagnostic, or laboratory services.
• Knowledge of Biomarker, Bioanalytical, Companion Diagnostic, translational medicine, and/or related specialty laboratory services.
• Strong category-management capabilities, including category strategy, marketplace analysis, vendor segmentation, capability mapping, category reviews, benchmarking, governance, and value delivery.
• Strong stakeholder-management and influencing skills across scientific, clinical, operational, legal, financial, quality, compliance, regulatory, and vendor organizations.
• Demonstrated contracting expertise, including negotiation and maintenance of master laboratory agreements or master service agreements, amendments, scopes of work, change orders, budgets, and rate cards.
• Experience onboarding vendors and coordinating qualification, contracting, operational setup, and governance.
• Financial and commercial acumen, including fair-market-value assessment, cost-driver analysis, benchmarking, rate negotiation, cost avoidance, and spend optimization.
• Ability to solve complex problems, manage multiple priorities, communicate recommendations clearly, and maintain momentum in a matrixed global environment.
• Experience leading experienced professionals, cross-functional teams, and/or direct reports, as applicable.
• Bachelor's degree in a scientific, medical, business, finance, supply-chain, or related discipline with 10 or more years of experience; or an MA/MS in a related discipline with 8 or more years of experience; or a PhD, PharmD, or JD in a related discipline with 5 or more years of experience.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced degree in a scientific, medical, business, finance, supply-chain, or related discipline.
• Professional certification in supply management, procurement, contracting, project management, or a related discipline.

Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain, and execute the Specialty Laboratory category strategy for Biomarker, Bioanalytical, and Companion Diagnostic laboratory services.
• Lead category reviews, including marketplace analysis, demand and spend assessment, vendor segmentation, capability mapping, benchmarking, and identification of core competencies.
• Manage a portfolio of core and niche laboratories based on scientific capability, quality, capacity, geographic reach, innovation, risk, performance, and total value.
• Develop and manage category-level standards for the laboratory portfolio, and monitor market practices, technologies, emerging vendors, and internal demand to recommend portfolio changes and sourcing approaches.
• Serve as the primary Vendor Outsourcing point of contact for specialty laboratory services and provide stakeholders with strategic advice on vendor strategy and market dynamics.
• Build relationships with scientific, clinical, operational, legal, financial, quality, compliance, regulatory, and vendor partners; translate requirements into sourcing strategies, vendor recommendations, contracting approaches, and implementation plans.
• Influence internal stakeholders and external laboratory partners on contractual, commercial, operational, legal, and regulatory matters.
• Lead contract negotiations with functional leaders and Legal, and manage the development, negotiation, execution, maintenance, and renewal of master laboratory agreements and master service agreements.
• Lead amendments to master agreements to address new services, capabilities, technologies, legal terms, compliance requirements, or changes to commercial frameworks.
• Manage rate cards and pricing structures using benchmarking and market assessments to support fair-market-value pricing in light of scope, service level, geography, quality, and technical requirements.
• Negotiate Companion Diagnostics agreements with commercialization terms, including milestones and royalty structures, with direction from Legal.
• Oversee scopes of work, change orders, budgets, and related contracting documents to ensure alignment with master agreements and approved commercial terms.
• Identify and execute category-level cost-containment and cost-avoidance opportunities through benchmarking, negotiation, demand management, rate-card discipline, and portfolio leverage.
• Maintain contract records and support compliant execution, inspection readiness, and agreement closeout.
• Lead onboarding of new core and niche laboratories with Vendor Qualification, Quality, Legal, Compliance, Privacy, Security, Finance, functional stakeholders, and other required groups.
• Collaborate with Vendor Performance and Relationship Management to address performance, capacity, quality, timeline, compliance, and business-continuity risks.
• Support inspection readiness, audit responses, regulatory and contractual compliance, data privacy, and intellectual-property protection.
• Monitor vendor performance and drive continuous improvement; recommend innovative or alternative laboratory sourcing solutions through stakeholder engagement and structured capability evaluation.
• Apply benchmarking analytics and industry best practices to improve sourcing, contracting, onboarding, governance, vendor performance, and cycle times.
• Support new data sources and technologies that enable efficient clinical-trial and research execution.
• As a people leader, create inclusion, develop talent, and empower teams.

Benefits

• Potential eligibility for a discretionary annual bonus.
• Potential eligibility for discretionary stock-based long-term incentives; eligibility may vary by role.
• Paid time off.
• Company-sponsored medical insurance.
• Company-sponsored dental insurance.
• Company-sponsored vision insurance.
• Company-sponsored life insurance.

What This Job Offers

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