Associate Director, Discovery Automation Strategy & Ops

About China Automation 

Beijing Discovery Center – a Lab of the Future — is AstraZeneca's build of a maximally automated, end-to-end wet lab in Beijing, run as one lab-in-a-loop with the Beijing AI Center's dry-lab capabilities. The build pairs AI-driven design with physical automation to accelerate candidate drug (CD) delivery and positioning AZ China R&D as an automation innovation hub, collaborating with fastest-moving automation partners in China. 

About the Role 

This role is the strategic and operational backbone of the Beijing Discovery Center. You sit alongside the cross-functional leadership team as a trusted thought partner and execution engine — making the build move faster through cleaner decisions, disciplined budget and milestone tracking, and clearer communication to sponsors and governance forums. 

Think of this as a Chief of Staff role for a capital build, with strategic thinking built in — not a traditional PMO function, but a force multiplier that turns an ambiguous, multi-workstream build into a single coherent narrative and tracker for leadership. At the start, the emphasis is operational: standing up the build's governance cadence, CAPEX/OPEX tracking, and vendor management processes so that milestone decisions do not depend on ad hoc coordination. As the build matures, the role is expected to take on more forward-looking work — shaping vendor and ecosystem partnership strategy alongside BD and Alliance Management. 

You will lead by doing — building the trackers, running the cadence, and personally chasing down blockers across physical automation, data automation, and engineering & facilities. You will be most visible when problems are ambiguous, cross-functional, or time-sensitive (a slipping trigger date, a budget variance, a stalled vendor decision), and you will personally drive resolution rather than escalate by default.   You will also prepare the analytical foundations, frame options, and drive key decisions (e.g., site selection, partnerships, CAPEX allocation) to a clear resolution.  

What You Will Do 

Build Governance & Program Management

• Own the operating rhythm of the Beijing Discovery Center build: cadence, agendas, and action tracking across the physical automation, data automation, and engineering & facilities workstreams 

• Maintain the build's single source of truth for milestones, translating trigger-based dates (blueprint readout, build start) into a tracker that names what slips if a trigger is missed 

• Drive CAPEX/OPEX transparency: maintain the cost model, reconcile discrepancies between bottom-up estimates and phased budget figures, flag variances, and translate spend data into clear narratives for leadership 

• Build the foundational operational infrastructure — templates, playbooks and SOPs — for the build's recurring processes (budget cycles, milestone reviews, vendor RFPs) so decisions don't depend on ad hoc judgment each time 

• Troubleshoot and unblock: identify bottlenecks in real time and personally intervene, whether that means facilitating a difficult cross-functional conversation, clarifying decision rights, or escalating with a structured recommendation 

Site, Vendor & Ecosystem Enablement

• Support site selection and readiness tracking across, partnering with Global Engineering & Real Estate on shell-readiness timelines and buildout milestones 

• Own the vendor engagement & management from scoping through selection, and track the automation equipment vendor landscape in partnership with technical leads 

• Support ecosystem partnership analysis — academic institutions and automation/AI companies — in close collaboration with China BD and Alliance Management, preparing structured recommendations for leadership 

• Flag China-specific compliance considerations early — data handling, cross-border transfer, procurement and vendor contracting — to legal and compliance, working alongside R&D IT and EDE where the build intersects with the Beijing AI Center's data automation workstream 

Leadership Communication

• Synthesize build progress, budget status, and open decisions into leadership-ready materials for internal governance boards, sponsors, and SLT reviews 

• Prepare sponsors and the Business Lead for key milestones and ensure trigger-based timelines and budget positions are framed clearly ahead of governance decisions 

• Draft briefing documents, pre-reads and slide decks that communicate clearly across scientific, engineering, and executive audiences. 

Requirements 

Experience 

• Bachelor's or advanced degree; life sciences, engineering, or business background 

• 3+ years of strategy consulting experience at McKinsey, BCG, Bain, or equivalent top-tier firm, or equivalent program/PMO leadership on a capital build or infrastructure program 

• Demonstrated ability to structure ambiguous, cross-functional problems and deliver clear, action-oriented recommendations 

• Experience with capital projects a plus: CAPEX/OPEX tracking, vendor RFP processes, or construction/engineering program coordination 

• Demonstrated track record of hands-on delivery: examples of personally building trackers, processes, or capabilities from scratch in a matrixed environment 

Skills 

• Exceptional structured thinking: comfortable with issue trees, hypothesis-driven analysis, and synthesizing complex, multi-workstream information into a clear narrative 

• Strong written communication: able to draft executive-ready documents, slide decks, and briefing materials independently 

• Financial literacy: able to build and manage CAPEX/OPEX models, interpret variances, and communicate financial status to non-finance stakeholders 

• Operational discipline: takes ownership of agendas, action tracking, and follow-through without prompting 

• Stakeholder management: credible with scientific, engineering/facilities, and executive audiences 

China-Specific 

• Ability to work in Beijing full-time (on-site) 

• Mandarin fluency required 

• Familiarity with the Beijing biotech, automation, or engineering/construction ecosystem is an advantage 

Mindset 

• Comfortable with ambiguity: the build's scope, timeline and governance model are still being finalised 

• Low ego, high impact: willing to do unglamorous tracking and coordination work alongside high-visibility strategic work 

• Curious about automation and drug discovery — working fluency will develop quickly on the job 

• Discretion and judgment: visibility into sensitive budget figures, site negotiations, and leadership dynamics across the build 

Nice-to-Have 

• Prior exposure to capital-intensive lab, facility, or manufacturing builds 

• Experience in biopharma or biotech R&D settings 

• Experience supporting senior leadership or governance forums (e.g., capital review boards) in fast-moving environments