Director of CRO and Strategic Partnerships, Oncology Early Development

AbbVie’s mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience—and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio.

About the role

The Director of CRO and Strategic Partnerships will lead strategic and cross-functional partnerships across Oncology Early Development (OED), connecting external innovation, site networks, and emerging capabilities to OED priorities. This role serves as a business and operational lead for key partnerships, including CRO relationships and OED’s preferred site network, while driving process improvement, innovation adoption, and alignment across AbbVie.

Responsibilities

• Accountable for strategic partnerships within OED—including CRO relationships, OED’s preferred site network, and other key vendors—to advance early oncology strategies.
• Manage OED’s preferred site network, including strategy development, site engagement, key stakeholder management, content updates, and delivery of network ambitions aligned with OED's and AbbVie’s evolving site engagement goals.
• Support pilot-to-scale activities and engage innovation partners to operationalize innovation across OED.
• Develop and maintain successful relationships with strategic partners and senior leaders throughout the organization.
• Serve as the primary point of contact between vendors and OED and act as the point of escalation for teams to promote partner accountability, mitigate risks, and deliver operational efficiencies aligned with the strategic direction of the relationship.
• Effectively communicate progress, concerns, issues, and risks across the partnership portfolio that may impact projects, systems, or processes, ensuring effective solutions are implemented.
• Establish strong relationships, working in partnership with and influencing all levels of management and cross-functional team members, including Regulatory Affairs, Medical Writing, QA, CMC, Precision Medicine, and Therapeutic Area Medical Directors.
• Oversee vendor performance (including through KPIs) aligned with the strategic objectives of vendor relationships, with a proficient understanding of internal and external business environments.
• Establish OED’s partnership strategy and lead teams and senior leaders to develop and maintain successful and healthy vendor relationships supporting OED’s strategic objectives through team building, partnership health surveys, and more.
• Develop collaborative relationships with cross-functional stakeholders and vendors to identify and implement efficient, high-quality, compliant business processes (including executing and facilitating Joint Oversight committees) with a focus on continuous improvement and innovation.
• Drive the effectiveness of AbbVie's CRO partnerships through standardized governance, performance and KPI oversight, vendor issue trend analysis, and proactive risk mitigation, partnering with CROs and study teams to continuously improve delivery and operational excellence across the portfolio.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree (or ex-US equivalent) in a relevant field such as business economics or health administration; Master’s degree preferred.
• 12+ years of clinical development experience (and/or applicable work experience), including 6+ years working with global third-party vendors.
• Demonstrated high level of core, technical, and leadership competencies, including leading a global team.
• Proven experience in successful coaching, mentoring, and people management (remote management experience preferred).
• Excellent cross-functional partnership and communication skills; demonstrated leadership in working across an organization to achieve objectives and meet timelines.
• Considered a Subject Matter Expert in the application of standard business and clinical trial procedures (oversight, contracts, SOPs, ICH, global regulations, ethics, and compliance).
• Critical thinker with the ability to see the “big picture” to drive long-term strategy for the function and vendor portfolio.
• Strong written and oral communication skills; able to synthesize complex concepts and deliver messages clearly.
• Expertise in analyzing complex business problems and implementing innovative solutions.
• Ability to craft compelling business cases, sell new ideas, and influence functional and vendor direction.

Benefits

• Comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick).
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• 401(k) retirement plan.
• Eligibility to participate in long-term incentive programs.