Exec Director, Corporate Strategy & Projects

Gilead Sciences•Foster City, CA

8d•$302,005 - $390,830•Onsite

About The Position

At Gilead, we’re creating a healthier world for all people. For more than 35 years, we’ve tackled diseases such as HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19 and cancer – working relentlessly to develop therapies that help improve lives and to ensure access to these therapies across the globe. We continue to fight against the world’s biggest health challenges, and our mission requires collaboration, determination and a relentless drive to make a difference. Every member of Gilead’s team plays a critical role in the discovery and development of life-changing scientific innovations. Our employees are our greatest asset as we work to achieve our bold ambitions, and we’re looking for the next wave of passionate and ambitious people ready to make a direct impact. We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Gilead and help create possible, together. Reporting to the VP, Corporate Strategy & Projects, the Executive Director is accountable for leading defined components of Gilead’s enterprise strategy agenda and owning a portfolio of the company’s highest-priority strategic initiatives. The role serves as an enterprise thought partner and strategic agenda driver, helping shape Gilead's long-term direction, influence high-priority enterprise decisions, and advance the company's most important strategic priorities. This leader drives assigned strategic questions from framing to decision, developing fact-based options, trade-offs, and recommendations while partnering closely with the VP, Gilead Leadership Team, and senior leaders to shape enterprise direction and strategic choices. Success in this role requires exceptional strategic judgment, executive presence, systems thinking, financial and portfolio acumen, and the ability to lead through influence, connect perspectives across functions, resolve complex trade-offs, and drive outcomes in highly ambiguous environments. This role is based in Foster City, CA at our global headquarters.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and 16+ years of relevant experience; or Master's degree, MBA, PhD, or MD and 14+ years of relevant experience.
Significant experience in corporate strategy, management consulting, corporate development, business operations, finance, or related fields.
Demonstrated experience owning major components of strategy and influencing high-impact business decisions.
Deep understanding of Gilead's portfolio, business model, strategic priorities, and external environment.

Nice To Haves

Deep biotechnology, biopharmaceutical, healthcare, or life sciences expertise.
Demonstrated success owning major components of corporate, portfolio, or business-unit strategy.
Proven ability to lead a portfolio of high-impact, cross-functional strategic initiatives from problem definition through executive decision and implementation.
Experience advising senior leaders and developing decision-ready recommendations for executive and Board-level audiences.
Strong systems-thinking orientation and enterprise mindset.
Exceptional ability to frame ambiguous strategic questions and develop rigorous options, trade-offs, and recommendations.
Demonstrated ability to influence senior stakeholders, challenge assumptions constructively, and generate alignment without formal authority.
Exceptional executive communication, facilitation, and ability to build strategic narratives.
Proven ability to mentor talent and develop future enterprise leaders.
Ability to balance long-term strategic perspective with pragmatic execution and measurable business impact.

Responsibilities

Own defined components of the enterprise strategy agenda, from problem framing and analysis through executive alignment, decision, and implementation planning.
Serve as an enterprise thought partner to the VP, GLT, and senior leaders on the company's highest-priority strategic questions.
Lead development of integrated strategic perspectives that connect portfolio, financial, scientific, commercial, operational, and external considerations.
Shape enterprise strategy and long-term direction through strategic perspectives, planning, and scenario development and translate long-term ambition into actionable enterprise priorities.
Anticipate external shifts, risks, and opportunities and determine their implications to inform enterprise priorities and strategic choices.
Own and lead a portfolio of senior-sponsored strategic initiatives with significant enterprise value, complexity, or cross-functional impact.
Design and lead governance for assigned initiatives, including mechanisms that enable effective decision-making, execution, and accountability.
Drive alignment on complex enterprise issues involving strategic trade-offs and cross-functional dependencies.
Translate strategic decisions into clear accountabilities, implementation roadmaps, and measurable success indicators; monitor progress and impact, identify barriers to value realization, and drive corrective action or executive escalation as needed.
Act as the enterprise integrator for assigned priorities, reconciling competing functional perspectives, resolving cross-functional dependencies, and driving enterprise-level alignment on decisions, accountabilities, and execution.
Lead enterprise-level problem solving and influence outcomes through strategic insight and executive engagement.
Foster collaboration, shared accountability, and enterprise-first leadership.
Own the development and synthesis of decision-ready recommendations, strategic narratives, and materials for GLT and Board consideration within assigned areas.
Partner with the VP and executive sponsors to define the objectives, decision requirements, and desired outcomes of GLT and Board discussions on long-term strategy, enterprise priorities, and critical business decisions.
Design and facilitate executive strategy sessions, strategic reviews, and other leadership forums.
Anticipate executive questions, surface competing perspectives, and ensure recommendations clearly articulate options, trade-offs, risks, and implications.
Serve as a trusted advisor on assigned enterprise strategic matters.
Contribute to a culture of curiosity, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Mentor and develop strategy talent across the Corporate Strategy Office.
Foster an enterprise mindset and strategic leadership capabilities across the organization.
Help strengthen the Corporate Strategy Office as an enterprise integrator, trusted advisor, and leadership development platform.