Director, Cell Therapy Logistics Operation

AstraZeneca • Gaithersburg, MD

1d • $141,998 - $212,996

About The Position

Are you ready to build and lead the global backbone that moves living cell therapies safely and on time? This role puts you at the center of vein-to-vein logistics for autologous and allogeneic programs, ensuring every patient’s treatment journey is protected by precision, speed, and rigor.
You will own the logistics control tower, manufacturing slot management, and courier performance across the US and international markets. Partnering across functions, you will define the operational requirements for our cell orchestration platform and guide the scale-up from clinical to commercial, transforming complex pathways into reliable, repeatable operations that accelerate access to therapy.

Requirements

• A minimum BS/BA degree with a minimum of 10 years (or MS/MA/MBA with 8+ years) in logistics operations at pharma/biotech or leading clinical supply or logistics providers.
• 5 years of people leadership experience, preferably managing across multiple sites or countries.
• Proven logistics control tower leadership for critical, temperature-controlled shipments, including scheduling, COI/COC, and incident response.
• Direct courier vendor management experience (SLAs, KPIs, RCA/CAPA); strong GDP/GMP and international trade compliance knowledge.
• Experience defining requirements for a cell orchestration platform and applying analytics to capacity and network performance.
• Strong people management and stakeholder partnership across internal and external interfaces.

Nice To Haves

• Cell therapy logistics experience across autologous and allogeneic programs.
• Experience scaling operations from clinical to commercial phases.
• Lean/Six Sigma or operational excellence certification.
• Hands-on collaboration with customs brokers and regulatory agencies across multiple regions.
• Track record implementing scheduling, track-and-trace, and operational dashboards within orchestration platforms.
• Leadership of multisite, multinational teams in matrix environments.
• Advanced analytics for scenario modeling, risk simulations, and capacity planning.
• Ability to rapidly design SOPs and enable new sites in high-growth, evolving environments.
• Additional language proficiency for global operations.

Responsibilities

• Global Operations: Direct end-to-end, vein-to-vein logistics across US and ex-US; safeguard COI/COC, cold-chain integrity, right-first-time execution, and rapid exception management to protect patient treatments and program timelines.
• Slot Management: Govern manufacturing site scheduling; optimize slot utilization, anticipate conflicts, and lead escalation and recovery to maximize throughput and minimize delays.
• Courier Vendor Management: Own courier performance; set COPs and SLAs, monitor KPIs, lead RCA/CAPA, maintain qualified lanes and temperature controls, and coordinate contingency routing to ensure uninterrupted service.
• Trade Compliance: Ensure compliant import/export movements, permits/licenses, documentation, and adherence to regional requirements in partnership with Legal/Compliance and customs brokers, preventing regulatory delays and shipment risk.
• GDP/GMP and Quality: Embed GDP/GMP standards into SOPs, training, audits, and documentation; maintain inspection readiness and drive continuous improvement to elevate quality and reliability.
• People Leadership: Build and lead a high-performing logistics operations team; set goals, staffing, training, SOPs, and site enablement; foster collaboration, accountability, and clear performance standards.
• Systems and Data: Define business requirements and operational inputs for the Cell Orchestration Platform and related systems; enable scheduling, track-and-trace, dashboards, and data governance that power informed decision-making.
• Strategy and Analytics: Develop global logistics strategy and capacity plans; use analytics for scenario modeling, risk mitigation, and portfolio scaling, aligning operations with clinical and commercial growth.

Benefits

• qualified retirement programs
• paid time off (i.e., vacation, holiday, and leaves)
• health, dental, and vision coverage in accordance with the terms of the applicable plans

What This Job Offers

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