Associate Director, Quality Project Goverance (12 months fixed term)

AstraZeneca · Dublin

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This is what you will do: 

This role provides strategic leadership for the design, implementation, and management of a robust Project Governance Program across Alexion's Quality organisation. It ensures consistent governance standards, proactive risk mitigation, and strategic alignment that drive successful delivery of major projects and sustained operational excellence. The role combines PMO leadership, governance framework design, digital enablement, and change adoption to elevate project delivery maturity enterprise-wide.You will be responsible for: 

• Governance Framework Establishment: 

• Design, deploy, and maintain a standardised project governance framework that defines decision rights, escalation pathways, and quality gates across all major projects, ensuring consistency and accountability enterprise-wide. 

• End-to-End Project Delivery Oversight (PMO): 

• Own the strategic oversight of major project lifecycles—from initiation through closure—ensuring scope, schedule, cost, and quality objectives are met while aligning cross-functional teams to enterprise priorities. Lead portfolio reporting, risk and issue tracking, governance forums, decision support, and stakeholder coordination. 

• Risk-Based Decision Support: 

• Deliver integrated risk intelligence and performance insights to steering committees and project sponsors, leveraging predictive analytics and AI-enabled dashboards to enable proactive, data-driven decisions that protect project outcomes and business value. 

• Digital Project Management Enablement: 

• Champion the adoption and optimisation of digital project management tools (e.g., Smartsheet, AI-enabled dashboards, standard templates) to automate manual reporting, consolidate data, and improve portfolio visibility across the Quality organisation. 

• Capability Building and Change Adoption: 

• Drive the deployment of governance tools, training, and best practices across project teams, ensuring sustained adoption, cultural alignment, and continuous improvement in project delivery maturity. Provide coaching and facilitation to senior project leaders and stakeholders. 

• Performance Measurement and Continuous Improvement: 

• Define and track governance KPIs and quality metrics for major projects, translating lessons learned into systemic improvements that elevate delivery predictability and stakeholder confidence. 

• Technical Representation and Collaboration: 

• Represent QS&D at steering committees, Quality Leadership Team (QLT) forums, and cross-functional governance meetings; influence outcomes without relying on direct authority through strong stakeholder engagement and change leadership. 

You will need to have: 

• Degree in science, engineering, business, information systems, or a related field. 

• Minimum 7–10 years of project and programme management experience in a GMP pharma/biopharma environment, including supervisory/management experience. 

• Proven track record of designing and deploying project governance frameworks and PMO operating models within complex, multi-year, enterprise-wide portfolios. 

• Strong knowledge of business and management principles including resource allocation, financial management, and leadership of agile high-performing teams. 

• Proven ability to work in a matrixed organisation and influence senior stakeholders without direct authority. 

• Responsible AI use: Use approved AI tools effectively, write clear prompts, protect confidential/GxP data, and recognise AI limitations. 

• Critical evaluation and data literacy: Verify AI outputs against approved sources, assess data quality and bias and identify appropriate use cases for AI technology. 

• GxP risk and governance: Assess potential impacts on product quality, patient safety, and data integrity; where an AI use case is identified the human is ‘kept in the loop’ and is accountable for decision-making or interpretation of data and/or GxP guidance. 

We would prefer for you to have: 

• Ability to develop collaborative relationships across functions and sites to achieve functional, site, and company goals. 

• Familiarity with digital project management platforms such as Smartsheet, and emerging technologies including AI-enabled analytics and predictive risk dashboards. 

• Continuous learning mindset and willingness to adapt to evolving technologies, methodologies, and industry best practices. 

• Strong coaching, facilitation, and change leadership skills, with the ability to embed governance practices and drive sustainable adoption. 

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