Senior Director, Portfolio and Operations R&D CC and AI COE

Role Summary

Senior Director, Portfolio and Operations is a strategic leadership role within Pfizer Digital, responsible for driving portfolio governance, operational excellence, and business operations across the organization. The role oversees continuous improvement and communications for the R&D Creation Center and AI Center of Excellence, leads Digital-wide Operations Planning, and manages support for the Digital Capital Budget.

Responsibilities

• Portfolio Governance & Strategy: Provide strategic oversight of portfolio governance and prioritization to ensure initiatives align with enterprise objectives and deliver maximum value.
• Operational Excellence: Drive operational planning and continuous improvement to streamline processes, enhance efficiency, and support organizational goals.
• Financial Management: Oversee financial stewardship for portfolio and operations, including capital budget management, forecasting, and performance reporting.
• Communications & Stakeholder Engagement: Lead transparent communication strategies and facilitate leadership engagement to ensure alignment and informed decision-making across the organization.
• Leadership & Collaboration: Offer cross-functional leadership, fostering collaboration and capability development to enable successful portfolio delivery and operational execution. Lead team of portfolio managers and change management colleagues.
• Team Culture: Cultivate an inclusive, high-performance team culture that promotes innovation, accountability, and engagement across all levels of the organization.

How You Will Achieve It

• Portfolio Strategy & Governance: Lead portfolio management team and oversee portfolio prioritization and governance processes, ensuring alignment with enterprise objectives and compliance with governance standards.
• Partner with category leadership and decision-analysis teams to evaluate portfolio performance, risks, and opportunities, enabling data-driven investment decisions.
• Implement processes for portfolio resource management, including dynamic funding and scenario planning to maximize value within budget constraints.

Operational Leadership

• Lead annual and operational planning cycles, integrating portfolio priorities with business objectives.
• Establish and monitor KPIs and milestones to track progress across programs and ensure timely delivery.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to optimize workflows, reduce costs, and enhance operational efficiency.

Financial Management

• Integrate portfolio management with finance capital and operating budget processes for the portfolio, including forecasting, variance analysis, and reporting.
• In partnership with Finance Director, proactively identify financial risks and opportunities, providing recommendations to senior leadership for strategic adjustments.

Stakeholder Engagement & Communication

• Serve as a chief of staff to VP, Strategic Initiatives and Delivery, facilitating town halls, leadership team meetings, and cross-functional communications.
• Develop and execute communication strategies to ensure transparency and alignment across internal and external stakeholders.

Risk Management & Compliance

• Conduct risk assessments for portfolio initiatives and develop mitigation strategies.
• Ensure adherence to regulatory and compliance standards across all operational processes.

Leadership & Collaboration

• Provide horizontal leadership across multiple business units, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing.
• Mentor and develop team capabilities to support portfolio delivery and operational excellence.
• Lead team of portfolio managers and change management colleagues.

Team Culture

• Foster Diversity and Inclusion: Champion initiatives that create a collaborative environment where diverse perspectives are valued and integrated into decision-making.
• Empower and Develop Talent: Implement strategies for professional growth, recognition, and engagement to build a motivated and resilient team.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline required, advanced degree preferred.
• 12+ years of pharmaceutical, healthcare, or other relevant project management experience.
• Exceptional interpersonal and engagement skills with the ability to establish relationships, influence decisions, and drive to business outcomes.
• Outstanding communicator, skilled storyteller, and experienced in delivering presentations to a variety of audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to develop talent and build effective teams; Passionate about growing, coaching, and mentoring others.
• Experience managing large complex dynamic budgets.
• Strategic and creative thought partner with ability to lead in co-creation and collaboration with Digital and business partners across Pfizer.
• Experience leading in large global distributed matrixed environments; skilled at utilizing resources outside of direct authority and executing cross-functional horizontal initiatives.
• Strong skills in analysis, critical thinking, planning, consensus building, facilitation, and negotiation; ability to learn a new business area.
• Excellent organizational skills, detail oriented, able to analyze large volumes of data and derive key data points and insights.

Education

• Master's degree (Preferred).

Additional Requirements

• Travel expectations will vary but you will need to be capable of travel within the region and globally.
• Work Location Assignment: Flexible.