Senior Director, Strategic Planning (Pharmaceutical Distribution)

McKesson•Irving, TX

7d•Hybrid

About The Position

McKesson is seeking a Senior Director, Strategic Planning to join the North America Pharmaceutical Distribution (NAPD) Strategy team. Reporting to the Senior Vice President, NAPD Strategy, this leader will lead the strategic planning management system that connects long-range direction, business evolution, annual priorities, executive decision-making, and execution across NAPD. The role partners with senior leaders and teams to shape strategic choices, align perspectives, and create a coherent view of priorities, opportunities, risks, and progress. The Senior Director will serve as a trusted thought partner, planning architect, and integrator. The role brings structure to complex and ambiguous questions, translates market and business insight into actionable plans, and establishes the routines, tools, and governance needed to advance the NAPD strategic agenda. It helps leadership navigate strategic decisions and aligns long-term direction with near-term execution. The leader will develop a team of strategy professionals and influence across a large, highly matrixed organization. The position offers location flexibility across the United States. Candidates within a 50-mile radius of Irving, Texas, will work a hybrid schedule, with at least two days per week onsite at the Las Colinas office and remaining days remote; additional onsite time may be required based on business needs. Travel may be required up to 20% of the time. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without current or future employer immigration support or sponsorship.

Requirements

Degree or equivalent experience; a bachelor’s degree in business, finance, economics, healthcare, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
Typically 13 or more years of professional experience and 6 or more years of diversified leadership, planning, communication, organization, and people-motivation skills, or equivalent experience.
Demonstrated people-leadership experience, including coaching and developing strategy, planning, or analytical talent.
Experience leading enterprise-scale or business-unit strategic planning and managing multiple complex, cross-functional initiatives.
Ability to structure ambiguous issues, identify important drivers, evaluate choices and trade-offs, and develop pragmatic recommendations.
Experience translating long-range direction into annual priorities, initiative portfolios, milestones, metrics, and management routines.
Strong understanding of business models, P&L drivers, financial analysis, investment decisions, and value creation.
Exceptional written, verbal, facilitation, and presentation skills, including the ability to simplify complex topics and tailor messages to executive and operating audiences.
Proven ability to establish credibility, lead without authority, navigate competing perspectives, and drive alignment in a matrixed organization.
Track record of setting direction, developing talent, managing capacity, and creating an engaged, accountable, and inclusive team environment.
Ability to synthesize quantitative and qualitative information, test assumptions, and turn analysis into decision-relevant insight.
Currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without the need for employer support or sponsorship now or in the future.

Nice To Haves

MBA or another relevant advanced degree.
Experience in pharmaceutical distribution, pharmaceutical services, healthcare, payer, provider, life sciences, health technology, or an adjacent industry.
Experience supporting C-suite or senior executive decision-making and preparing materials for executive leadership or board-level audiences.
Experience with scenario planning, portfolio prioritization, transformation governance, strategic initiatives, or business-case development.
Knowledge of healthcare stakeholders, market dynamics, economic drivers, and policy.

Responsibilities

Lead NAPD’s annual and long-range strategic planning processes, connecting long-term direction, business priorities, financial objectives, and execution plans.
Partner with senior leaders to frame critical strategic questions, clarify choices and trade-offs, and align near-term priorities with long-term aspirations.
Integrate plans and perspectives across NAPD portfolios and financial plans, identify dependencies and gaps, and elevate issues requiring executive alignment or decisions.
Establish planning frameworks, standards, and deliverables that improve the quality, consistency, and speed of strategic decision-making.
Partner with strategy leaders and business stakeholders to incorporate growth, innovation, and business evolution initiatives into NAPD’s strategic direction and planning.
Ensure strategic initiatives and emerging opportunities are evaluated, prioritized, and connected to broader business objectives and resource decisions.
Identify overlaps, dependencies, risks, and gaps across strategic initiatives and surface matters requiring leadership attention.
Translate long-term strategic direction into actionable priorities, plans, milestones, and governance processes.
Support executive strategy reviews, planning discussions, operating reviews, Board materials, offsites, and other leadership forums.
Develop concise materials that frame decisions, communicate priorities, and drive alignment.
Synthesize input from strategy leaders, business stakeholders, and functional partners into insights, options, and recommendations.
Surface key decisions, unresolved issues, dependencies, risks, and trade-offs requiring leadership attention.
Design and lead planning and review cadences connecting strategy, priorities, execution, and performance across NAPD.
Incorporate business performance, market developments, and execution learnings into ongoing strategy and planning.
Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team of strategy professionals, establishing clear priorities and ensuring high-quality delivery.
Build trusted relationships and coordinate stakeholders across business, functional, and strategy teams to connect strategic priorities, planning activities, and enterprise objectives.