Executive Director, CRM Innovation Labs

Role Summary

Location: East Hanover, NJ (on-site). The Executive Director, CRM Labs leads the innovation engine of the US CRM transformation. They set the vision for CRM Labs, build and lead a high-performing team focused on piloting, scaling, and operationalizing next-generation CRM capabilities. The ED partners with business and IT leadership to define innovation priorities, drive rapid prototyping, and embed best practices in agile delivery, governance, and change enablement. The role requires deep collaboration across the organization to ensure cross-functional alignment and successful transformation.

Responsibilities

• Lead the CRM Labs function to drive innovation, pilot new CRM capabilities, and accelerate enterprise transformation.
• Define and execute the CRM Labs strategy and vision in alignment with Novartis business goals and the broader CRM transformation roadmap.
• Drive meaningful impact as success in this role will be measured by granular innovation metrics, including ROI on pilots, speed and effectiveness of experimentation cycles, business value delivered, stakeholder satisfaction, cost savings, and efficiency gains.
• Build and lead a top-talent CRM Labs team specializing in innovation, prototyping, and agile delivery.
• Develop and implement best-practice frameworks for piloting, scaling, and operationalizing CRM solutions across diverse user groups and business functions.
• Establish and manage a governance structure for CRM Labs, ensuring clear decision rights, escalation processes, and accountability for innovation initiatives.
• Collaborate with business unit leaders, IT, IDS, and external partners to identify, prioritize, and deliver high-impact CRM pilots and innovations.
• Build and scale strategic partnerships with vendors, startups, and industry leaders. Experience scouting, evaluating, and integrating best-in-class solutions to accelerate CRM innovation and enterprise transformation.
• Maintain a deep understanding of CRM workflows, user personas, and platform capabilities (Salesforce, Veeva, etc.), as well as best practices across industries.
• Evangelize the impact of CRM Labs across the organization (e.g., stakeholder meetings, leadership forums, and Sales meetings).

Qualifications

• Experience: 10+ years of progressive experience in CRM innovation, product strategy, or technology leadership roles, ideally within pharmaceutical, healthcare, or enterprise-scale commercial sectors.
• Proven success leading large-scale CRM transformation initiatives, including piloting and scaling enterprise platforms such as Salesforce (including Agentforce), Veeva, Data Cloud, and sales and marketing solutions across diverse user groups and business functions.
• Deep expertise in emerging technologies—AI/ML, automation, Salesforce Data Cloud/Agentforce, and non-Salesforce customer engagement platforms—with a track record of running proof-of-concept projects and rapid experimentation cycles.
• Experience driving innovation in both Salesforce and non-Salesforce CRM ecosystems, including integration, migration, and optimization of multi-platform environments.
• Strong background in training delivery teams on new tools, platforms, and methodologies, ensuring successful transition of pilots into production.
• Experience operationalizing innovation frameworks, including agile delivery, rapid prototyping, and feedback loops with end users and stakeholders.
• Advanced knowledge of CRM data models, integration architectures, and performance management tools, with a focus on actionable insights and business value delivery.
• Experience with global CRM programs, including multi-region rollouts, localization, and scaling innovation across geographies.

Education

• Bachelor's degree in related field is required; Master of Science and/or MBA preferred.