Director, IT Finance & Controlling (FICO)

At Gilead, we’re creating a healthier world for all people. For more than 35 years, we’ve tackled diseases such as HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19 and cancer – working relentlessly to develop therapies that help improve lives and to ensure access to these therapies across the globe. We continue to fight against the world’s biggest health challenges, and our mission requires collaboration, determination and a relentless drive to make a difference.
 

Every member of Gilead’s team plays a critical role in the discovery and development of life-changing scientific innovations. Our employees are our greatest asset as we work to achieve our bold ambitions, and we’re looking for the next wave of passionate and ambitious people ready to make a direct impact.
 

We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Gilead and help create possible, together.

Job Description
 

At Gilead, we’re creating a healthier world for all people. For more than 35 years, we’ve tackled diseases such as HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19 and cancer – working relentlessly to develop therapies that help improve lives and to ensure access to these therapies across the globe. We continue to fight against the world’s biggest health challenges, and our mission requires collaboration, determination and a relentless drive to make a difference.

Every member of Gilead’s team plays a critical role in the discovery and development of life-changing scientific innovations. Our employees are our greatest asset as we work to achieve our bold ambitions, and we’re looking for the next wave of passionate and ambitious people ready to make a direct impact. Join Gilead and help create possible, together.

Job Description

Gilead is seeking a highly experienced and strategic Director, IT  Finance & Controlling (FICO) to lead the global delivery, support, and transformation of enterprise finance systems. This role is accountable for the SAP S/4HANA Finance product landscape, with a primary focus on Finance and Controlling (FI/CO) capabilities and end-to-end Record-to-Report (R2R) processes.

As a key leader within IT ES&BP, this individual will drive solution strategy, ensure system stability, and partner closely with Finance leadership to enable digital transformation, optimize financial processes, and deliver scalable, compliant solutions across a complex, integrated ecosystem.

This role will report to the Senior Director, ERP Finance & Commercial Enterprise Solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead a global team responsible for SAP S/4HANA Finance (FI/CO) support, enhancements, and roadmap execution.
• Own end-to-end finance processes, including General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Asset Accounting, Product Costing, COPA, and Material Ledger.
• Oversee functional support delivery and ensure alignment with business priorities and enterprise standards.
• Drive finance transformation initiatives, including automation, AI-enabled insights, and close optimization.
• Manage production support, escalations, and ensure timely resolution of critical issues.
• Guide team adoption of best practices, upgrades, and future system capabilities.

Finance Solution Leadership

• Set the strategic direction for SAP S/4HANA Finance & Controlling solutions.
• Lead design, enhancement, and evolution of finance capabilities aligned to business and IT strategy.
• Ensure high system performance, scalability, and stability across global operations.
• Provide deep subject matter expertise across SAP FICO architecture, configuration, and integration.  Evaluating and recommending solution designs that optimize Gilead’s efficiency.
• Enable forward-looking capabilities, aligning with enterprise transformation goals.

Business Alignment & Stakeholder Engagement

• Partner with the CFO organization, Finance leaders, and cross-functional stakeholders to define and prioritize initiatives.
• Translate complex business requirements into scalable system solutions.
• Build strong relationships across Finance, IT, and business functions to drive alignment and value realization.
• Influence senior leadership by providing clear insights into system capabilities, risks, and opportunities.

Program Delivery & Governance

• Lead a global team responsible for SAP S/4HANA Finance support, enhancements, roadmap execution, and transformation initiatives.
• Oversee production support, including issue escalation and resolution of critical incidents to ensure business continuity.
• Establish and maintain governance frameworks, operating models, delivery standards, and KPIs for global SAP Finance delivery.
• Drive disciplined execution across large-scale ERP programs, ongoing support, and strategic transformation initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with SOX, GxP, and enterprise architecture standards, including adherence to financial controls and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee release management, delivery quality, and risk mitigation across enhancements and projects.
• Partner with change management teams to drive adoption, training, and overall business readiness.

Cross-Functional Integration

• Oversee integrations across the broader finance ecosystem, including:
  • Oracle FCCS (financial consolidation)
  • OneSource Tax
  • Breakaway
• Ensure seamless end-to-end process integration across procurement, tax, vendor management, workforce, and expense systems.
• Partner with enterprise architecture and engineering teams to support a cohesive system landscape.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation

• Champion continuous improvement across finance processes and supporting technologies.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, standardize, and automate workflows.
• Drive adoption of innovative solutions, including AI, advanced analytics, and SAP BTP capabilities.

• Drive improvements in cycle times, including close optimization and process efficiency.
• Capture lessons learned and embed operational excellence across Finance ERP delivery and support.
• Foster a culture of innovation, accountability, collaboration, and results.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Finance, Business, or a related field.
• Extensive experience with an advanced degree, or 15+ years with a bachelor’s degree, in Finance, IT, SAP, or ERP leadership.
• Deep expertise in SAP Finance modules (FI/CO), including: General Ledger, Record-to-Report, Financial Close, Fixed Assets, Accounts Payable / Receivable, Product Costing, COPA, Material Ledger, Consolidation / Group Reporting
• Extensive leadership experience managing global SAP or ERP teams and/or large-scale support organizations.
• Proven experience leading large-scale SAP S/4HANA implementations, transformations, and/or global ERP delivery programs.
• Exposure to SAP RISE or cloud transformation 
• Strong understanding of global Finance processes, financial controls, and integrated finance ecosystems.
• Experience with complex integrations across SAP and non-SAP enterprise platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to define and drive end-to-end R2R process design and optimization.
• Strong communication, stakeholder management, decision-making, and influencing skills.
• Ability to balance strategic priorities, compliance requirements, and operational execution with a strong focus on outcomes.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in Life Sciences or regulated industries.
• Knowledge of SOX, GxP, and compliance-driven environments.
• Exposure to RISE with SAP, SAP BTP, and cloud-based transformation initiatives.

• Background in Finance process optimization, automation, and digital innovation.
• Experience supporting enterprise finance capabilities across consolidation, tax, procurement, and expense domains.

Leadership Profile

• Strategic leader with strong business and technical acumen.
• Proven ability to influence CFO, CIO, and senior executive stakeholders.
• Experienced in leading global, cross-functional teams and programs.
• Strong focus on innovation, governance, and operational excellence.
• Collaborative, results-driven, and capable of balancing strategic priorities with operational execution.

• Operates with high accountability, execution discipline, and strong business partnership.

People Leader Accountabilities

• Create Inclusion - knowing the business value of diverse teams, modeling inclusion, and embedding the value of diversity in the way they manage their teams.
• Develop Talent - understand the skills, experience, aspirations, and potential of their employees and coach them on current performance and future potential. They ensure employees are receiving the feedback and insight needed to grow, develop, and realize their purpose.
• Empower Teams - connect the team to the organization by aligning goals, purpose, and organizational objectives and holding them to account. They provide the support needed to remove barriers and connect their team to the broader ecosystem.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)

It is the policy of Gilead Sciences, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates (collectively "Gilead" or the "Company") to recruit select and employ the most qualified persons available for positions throughout the Company.  Except if otherwise provided by applicable law, all  employment actions relating to issues such as compensation, benefits, transfers, layoffs, returns from layoffs, company-sponsored training, education assistance, social and recreational programs are administered on a non-discriminatory basis (i.e. without regard to protected characteristics or prohibited grounds, which may include an individual’s gender, race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, creed, physical or mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, medical condition, veteran status, and age, unless such protection is prohibited by federal, state, municipal, provincial, local or other applicable laws).  Gilead also prohibits discrimination based on any other characteristics protected by applicable laws.

For Current Gilead Employees and Contractors:

Please apply via the Internal Career Opportunities portal in Workday.