Senior Specialist, Cell Therapy Vein-to-Vein Coordinator

AstraZeneca•Gaithersburg, MD

4d•$89,000 - $134,000•Hybrid

About The Position

AstraZeneca is making a significant investment in Cell Therapy, aiming to build a comprehensive portfolio across various modalities with the goal of delivering transformative treatments globally. The Senior Specialist, Cell Therapy Vein-to-Vein Coordinator plays a crucial role in managing the end-to-end patient and product journeys for autologous cell therapies. This involves orchestrating all stages from cell collection and shipping to manufacturing and final product delivery. The role requires precise coordination across a complex network of stakeholders, where proactive management and real-time decision-making are essential for patient outcomes. The position operates within AstraZeneca's Cell Therapy Global Supply Chain Vein-to-Vein Operations team, utilizing digital systems, milestone tracking, and established procedures. Collaboration with various internal departments (Clinical Operations, Patient Operations, Manufacturing, Quality, Trade Compliance) and external partners (depots, couriers, logistics providers) is a daily requirement to ensure the smooth progression of each patient journey. The role may be based in Gaithersburg, MD or Tarzana, CA and reports to the Senior Director, Global Logistics.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Life Sciences, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
5+ Years Experience in biopharma clinical or commercial logistics, supply chain, or cell therapy operations, with hands-on involvement in time-critical or highly controlled logistics environments or patient operations.
Working knowledge of GDP, GxP, and GMP requirements, including documentation accuracy and deviation awareness in regulated operations.
Strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple active cases, priorities, and timelines across time zones.
Demonstrated ability to apply sound judgment, follow escalation pathways, and respond effectively to operational issues including shipment delays, temperature excursions, and transport-related disruptions in a fast-paced environment.
Clear written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to provide concise and accurate operational updates to internal and external stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Cell therapy experience is strongly preferred.
Experience in autologous cell therapy, clinical trial logistics, or control tower / real-time monitoring environments.
Strong understanding of patient and order orchestration, COI/COC controls, and the execution requirements of specialized cold chain, cryogenic, or time-sensitive logistics.
Experience with cell orchestration platforms, courier or logistics service provider portals, and operational tracking systems.
Experience with Excel, Power BI, Tableau, or Smartsheet for operational reporting and tracking.

Responsibilities

Execute day-to-day Vein-to-Vein coordination across active patient and order journeys, supporting the full continuum from slot scheduling and apheresis collection through courier transportation, manufacturing, release, and final delivery.
Coordinate slot scheduling and booking activities in alignment with approved slot management rules, study requirements, and capacity parameters, including confirmation, adjustment, and rescheduling of bookings as needed.
Support patient and order orchestration by maintaining accurate visibility of active cases and ensuring key milestones, dependencies, and operational handoffs are actively managed.
Monitor product journey milestones in real time across collection, transit, manufacturing, release, and return shipment using cell orchestration systems, courier portals, and operational tracking tools.
Monitor and manage time-critical shipments in real time, identifying shipment delays, missed pickups or deliveries, temperature excursions, transit disruptions, and courier-related issues, and initiating escalation and recovery actions in line with approved playbooks.
Identify and respond to off-path events by applying defined escalation pathways and exception playbooks, and by coordinating with internal teams and external logistics partners to support issue resolution and continuity of care.
Book, coordinate, and monitor time-critical shipments across specialized cold chain, cryogenic, refrigerated, ambient, or on-board courier models as applicable to study and product requirements.
Coordinate with couriers, logistics providers, and internal stakeholders to support real-time recovery actions, investigation follow-up, documentation, and continuity of the active patient and product journey when transit events occur.
Maintain disciplined execution of V2V and COI/COC traceability requirements, ensuring accurate documentation, milestone capture, labeling, records, and chain of identity / chain of custody controls are preserved throughout the journey.
Ensure timely and accurate data entry in orchestration systems, scheduling platforms, and logistics partner portals to support real-time visibility, escalation, and reporting.
Provide proactive communication and status updates to internal stakeholders and operational partners, helping support a seamless and reliable customer experience for treatment centers and patient operations stakeholders.
Support investigations, courier follow-up, deviation follow-up, and corrective actions related to live operational issues and transport-related exceptions by providing accurate fact gathering, timeline reconstruction, documentation, and operational input.
Follow approved SOPs, work instructions, templates, and exception playbooks, while identifying ambiguities, recurring issues, or improvement opportunities and escalating them through the appropriate channels.
Support readiness, onboarding, mock shipments, and hyper care activities for new studies, sites, products, countries, or logistics lanes as needed.
Contribute to operational reporting and continuous improvement by maintaining accurate metrics, identifying trends, and sharing feedback on recurring operational pain points.