Director R&D EHS Program Lead
Pfizer
September 04, 2026
Remote friendly (Chesterfield, MO)
United States
Operations
Role Responsibilities:
- Serve as principal industrial-hygiene technical subject matter leader for GWE R&D; lead anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of chemical, physical, and biological exposure hazards across all sites.
- Act as a member of the GWE R&D Leadership Team and extended member of the Safety & Environmental Operations Leadership Team; drive actions to reduce EH&S risk and elevate performance.
- Design and govern qualitative/quantitative exposure-assessment programs (air, surface, personal monitoring; sampling strategies) and interpret results vs. OELs and OEBs.
- Lead hazard/control banding for potent compounds, high-hazard biologics/ADCs, and novel molecules; define containment strategies, engineering controls, and PPE.
- Provide oversight for ventilation, fume hoods, isolators, and containment systems; ensure performance verification and IH sign-off for lab/pilot operations.
- Support/implement IH risk-assessment methodologies with SEO; establish one consistent toolset/documentation standard across R&D sites.
- Ensure consistent laboratory safety programs across analytical, chemistry, biological, and other lab types.
- Lead a global R&D EH&S Community of Practice (10–12 experts); set priorities/deliverables and standards/tools/best practices.
- Represent R&D in enterprise EH&S programs; shape industrial-hygiene standards and secure governance/decision rights.
- Lead/sustain site-level EH&S risk registers; roll up into network-wide forward-looking view; establish action plans and escalate as needed.
- Advise scientific/operational leaders with practical IH solutions; balance exposure risk with business needs.
- Establish portfolio-level EH&S/industrial-hygiene performance reporting (exposure trends; leading/lagging indicators).
- Explore and implement AI to support EHS processes, risk assessments, change control, and metrics.
- Manage escalation, lead root-cause investigations, and communicate lessons learned after significant EH&S events.
- Represent R&D for EH&S vendor programs and lead EH&S/IH due diligence for BD/M&A.
- Develop talent/capability through the Community of Practice for bench strength and succession planning.
Basic Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in industrial/occupational hygiene, environmental/occupational health, chemistry, engineering, or related.
- 10+ years progressive industrial hygiene and EH&S experience in life sciences/high-hazard regulated environments.
- Deep industrial-hygiene expertise (exposure assessment/monitoring/sampling, OELs/OEBs, hazard/control banding, engineering-control evaluation) in lab/R&D.
- Director-level EH&S leadership across multiple sites/enterprise-level programs/communities.
- Ability to lead/influence outcomes without solid-line authority in a global matrix.
- Working knowledge of applicable EH&S regulations/standards (e.g., OSHA, EPA, ACGIH; biosafety/containment; process safety) across U.S. and international jurisdictions.
- Technical breadth across core EH&S disciplines beyond industrial hygiene.
- Excellent communication skills across locations/functions/cultures.
- Experience leading/supporting EH&S investigations and technical program development.
Preferred Qualifications:
- CIH (strongly preferred); CSP/CBSP-RBP or equivalent a plus.
- MS/MPH/PhD in relevant field.
- R&D/lab IH experience with high-potency compounds/ADCs, novel chemistries, BSL-3 and/or Select Agent programs.
- Experience with EH&S management systems/digital platforms and portfolio metrics reporting.
- BD/M&A EH&S due diligence and enterprise vendor/service program experience.
- Active professional-body membership with formal CPD requirement.
Physical/Mental Requirements:
- Ability to analyze data and synthesize global EH&S metrics; periodic access to labs/operations with PPE/containment protocols.
- Ability to perform high-judgment work; travel for walkthroughs/audits/inspections and use PPE.
- Daily virtual collaboration via video conferencing.
Work Schedule/Travel:
- Travel domestically/internationally to R&D sites (up to ~30%); flexibility for global time zones and occasional outside standard hours.
Work Location:
- Hybrid; may be based at a Pfizer R&D location (preference for U.S. East Coast).
Benefits/Compensation (if included in posting):
- Base salary range: $176,600–$294,300; bonus target 20% of base under Global Performance Plan; eligibility for share-based long-term incentives; comprehensive benefits including 401(k) with matching, paid time off, caregiver/parental and medical leave, and health coverage.
Application Instructions:
- Apply via Pfizer Careers; no other application instructions provided in the text.
- Serve as principal industrial-hygiene technical subject matter leader for GWE R&D; lead anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of chemical, physical, and biological exposure hazards across all sites.
- Act as a member of the GWE R&D Leadership Team and extended member of the Safety & Environmental Operations Leadership Team; drive actions to reduce EH&S risk and elevate performance.
- Design and govern qualitative/quantitative exposure-assessment programs (air, surface, personal monitoring; sampling strategies) and interpret results vs. OELs and OEBs.
- Lead hazard/control banding for potent compounds, high-hazard biologics/ADCs, and novel molecules; define containment strategies, engineering controls, and PPE.
- Provide oversight for ventilation, fume hoods, isolators, and containment systems; ensure performance verification and IH sign-off for lab/pilot operations.
- Support/implement IH risk-assessment methodologies with SEO; establish one consistent toolset/documentation standard across R&D sites.
- Ensure consistent laboratory safety programs across analytical, chemistry, biological, and other lab types.
- Lead a global R&D EH&S Community of Practice (10–12 experts); set priorities/deliverables and standards/tools/best practices.
- Represent R&D in enterprise EH&S programs; shape industrial-hygiene standards and secure governance/decision rights.
- Lead/sustain site-level EH&S risk registers; roll up into network-wide forward-looking view; establish action plans and escalate as needed.
- Advise scientific/operational leaders with practical IH solutions; balance exposure risk with business needs.
- Establish portfolio-level EH&S/industrial-hygiene performance reporting (exposure trends; leading/lagging indicators).
- Explore and implement AI to support EHS processes, risk assessments, change control, and metrics.
- Manage escalation, lead root-cause investigations, and communicate lessons learned after significant EH&S events.
- Represent R&D for EH&S vendor programs and lead EH&S/IH due diligence for BD/M&A.
- Develop talent/capability through the Community of Practice for bench strength and succession planning.
Basic Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in industrial/occupational hygiene, environmental/occupational health, chemistry, engineering, or related.
- 10+ years progressive industrial hygiene and EH&S experience in life sciences/high-hazard regulated environments.
- Deep industrial-hygiene expertise (exposure assessment/monitoring/sampling, OELs/OEBs, hazard/control banding, engineering-control evaluation) in lab/R&D.
- Director-level EH&S leadership across multiple sites/enterprise-level programs/communities.
- Ability to lead/influence outcomes without solid-line authority in a global matrix.
- Working knowledge of applicable EH&S regulations/standards (e.g., OSHA, EPA, ACGIH; biosafety/containment; process safety) across U.S. and international jurisdictions.
- Technical breadth across core EH&S disciplines beyond industrial hygiene.
- Excellent communication skills across locations/functions/cultures.
- Experience leading/supporting EH&S investigations and technical program development.
Preferred Qualifications:
- CIH (strongly preferred); CSP/CBSP-RBP or equivalent a plus.
- MS/MPH/PhD in relevant field.
- R&D/lab IH experience with high-potency compounds/ADCs, novel chemistries, BSL-3 and/or Select Agent programs.
- Experience with EH&S management systems/digital platforms and portfolio metrics reporting.
- BD/M&A EH&S due diligence and enterprise vendor/service program experience.
- Active professional-body membership with formal CPD requirement.
Physical/Mental Requirements:
- Ability to analyze data and synthesize global EH&S metrics; periodic access to labs/operations with PPE/containment protocols.
- Ability to perform high-judgment work; travel for walkthroughs/audits/inspections and use PPE.
- Daily virtual collaboration via video conferencing.
Work Schedule/Travel:
- Travel domestically/internationally to R&D sites (up to ~30%); flexibility for global time zones and occasional outside standard hours.
Work Location:
- Hybrid; may be based at a Pfizer R&D location (preference for U.S. East Coast).
Benefits/Compensation (if included in posting):
- Base salary range: $176,600–$294,300; bonus target 20% of base under Global Performance Plan; eligibility for share-based long-term incentives; comprehensive benefits including 401(k) with matching, paid time off, caregiver/parental and medical leave, and health coverage.
Application Instructions:
- Apply via Pfizer Careers; no other application instructions provided in the text.