Senior Director Global Biologics Reagent Processing

Abbott • Carlsbad, CA

1d • $218,700 - $437,300

About The Position

At Abbott, you can do work that matters, grow, and learn, care for yourself and family, be your true self and live a full life. You’ll also have access to: Career development with an international company where you can grow the career you dream of. Employees can qualify for free medical coverage in our Health Investment Plan (HIP) PPO medical plan in the next calendar year. An excellent retirement savings plan with high employer contribution Tuition reimbursement, the Freedom 2 Save student debt program and FreeU education benefit - an affordable and convenient path to getting a bachelor’s degree A company recognized as a great place to work in dozens of countries around the world and named one of the most admired companies in the world by Fortune. A company that is recognized as one of the best big companies to work for as well as a best place to work for diversity, working mothers, female executives, and scientists.

The Senior Director Global Biologics & Reagents Processing will define and execute the biologics development and manufacturing strategy for our Carlsbad location, enabling a Center of Excellence operating model designed to deliver significant gross margin expansion and robust business continuity. This role will oversee end to end development, manufacturing, and lifecycle management for biologics and reagents, ensuring operational readiness, technical excellence, and direct contribution to the business’s long term cost and capability advantage. The Senior Director will ensure operational excellence, scalability, and innovation to support business growth and compliance with global standards.

Requirements

• Bachelors Degree in Chemical Engineering or related field
• 12+ years experience in regulated industries (medical devices, diagnostics, or pharmaceuticals).
• Deep technical expertise biologics unit operations employed in manufacturing for protein biologics (enzymes, antibodies) and synthetic oligonucleotides
• Proven expertise in industrial Biologics manufacturing with demonstrated leadership in both upstream and downstream operations as well as analytical method development and specification-setting
• Strong track record of leading technical investigations, process troubleshooting, and lifecycle management for commercial products.
• Experience supporting or managing multiple manufacturing sites or a global production network.
• Experience with tech transfer, scale up, and process validation for biologics.
• Familiarity with global regulatory frameworks (FDA, EMA, ICH).
• Financial acumen for managing large-scale budgets and investments
• Strong track record in capital project management and transformation programs
• Strategic thinker with the ability to translate scientific and operational insights into actionable plans.
• Strong communicator who can influence across functions, cultures, and geographies.
• Decisive, resilient, and comfortable leading through complexity.
• Passion for developing people and building high performance teams.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally (25-50%).

Nice To Haves

• PhD in Chemical Engineering or related field

Responsibilities

• Manufacturing Excellence: Provide strategic and operational leadership for all upstream (cell culture/fermentation) and downstream (purification) biologics manufacturing activities. Oversee fill/finish operations, ensuring efficient execution and adherence to global GMP requirements. Direct analytical method development, specification-setting, and troubleshooting. Build Oligo development and manufacturing capabilities to support the new Infectious Disease molecular platform.
• Strategic Investing: Own the Biologics capital budget and lead planning, budgeting, and execution of investments to optimize manufacturing capabilities.
• Technical Stewardship: Serve as the senior technical authority for biologics production processes, including proteins, enzymes, antibodies, and synthetic oligonucleotides. Lead complex technical investigations, root cause analyses, and process troubleshooting for material, equipment, and process related issues. Drive continuous improvement initiatives, including process robustness, yield optimization, and technology upgrades. Partner with R&D, Quality, and Regulatory Affairs to support process validation, lifecycle management, and regulatory submissions.
• Global Network Support: Establish and maintain global standards for process performance, documentation, and operational excellence. Support global supply chain continuity through proactive risk management and cross site coordination.
• People & Organizational Leadership: Lead and develop high performing technical and operational teams, fostering a culture of scientific rigor, accountability, and collaboration. Mentor emerging leaders and build organizational capability in biologics manufacturing science and operations. Champion safety, quality, and compliance as foundational pillars of site and network performance.
• Compliance: Ensure adherence to regulatory requirements and company standards across all activities.

Benefits

• Employees can qualify for free medical coverage in our Health Investment Plan (HIP) PPO medical plan in the next calendar year.
• An excellent retirement savings plan with high employer contribution
• Tuition reimbursement, the Freedom 2 Save student debt program and FreeU education benefit - an affordable and convenient path to getting a bachelor’s degree

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees