Executive Director, Network Strategy Execution and Product Source Management

Job Description

The Executive Director, Network Strategy Execution (NS&E) and Product Source Management is responsible for setting the strategic direction and leading execution of global product source changes and network rationalization activities, where applicable. This role ensures delivery of business priorities, execution excellence, and alignment across a complex, global manufacturing network.

The Executive Director operates in a managerial capacity, overseeing a team of Directors and their respective teams to manage a portfolio of strategic sourcing change and network execution initiatives. This role partners closely with Manufacturing Operating Unit leaders, site leadership, and cross-functional stakeholders across Operations, Supply Chain, Quality, Regulatory, Technical, Finance, Global Engineering Services and other functions to ensure integrated execution and decision-making.

The ideal candidate brings deep knowledge of pharmaceutical manufacturing and enterprise operations, strong strategic and operational leadership, and the ability to drive accountability across the organization. The role requires compliance with company and divisional policies, ethical business practices, and applicable laws and regulations.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership

• Set the strategic direction for the product source management and network execution portfolio within NS&E.

• Lead execution of network rationalization strategies and global product source change aligned to enterprise and divisional priorities.

• Translate business objectives into actionable portfolio plans, priorities, and performance expectations.

• Ensure the organization remains focused on execution excellence, speed, quality, and business impact.

People Leadership and Development

• Lead, coach, and develop the organization.

• Build a strong leadership pipeline by actively developing current and future leaders across the organization.

• Provide regular feedback, coaching, mentoring, and career development support to direct and indirect reports.

• Create meaningful growth opportunities through stretch assignments, succession planning, and role development.

• Foster a culture of learning, accountability, collaboration, and inclusion.

• Assess organizational capability gaps and implement development plans to strengthen team effectiveness.

• Drive employee engagement and create an environment where people feel empowered, supported, and challenged to perform at their best.

• Ensure talent management processes are effectively used to recruit, retain, develop, and advance high-potential employees.

Portfolio and Program Oversight

• Oversee the integrated portfolio of network actions and global source change projects across the operating area.

• Ensure plans remain on track, risks are proactively managed, and dependencies are effectively coordinated across projects.

• Establish clear governance, reporting, and escalation mechanisms to support decision-making and execution.

• Ensure lessons learned are captured and applied across the portfolio to improve future performance.

Cross-Functional Partnership and Stakeholder Management

• Serve as a senior leader and primary escalation point for Operating Unit leaders and impacted site leaders.

• Build strong partnerships across Operations, Supply Chain, Quality, Regulatory, Technical, Finance, and related functions.

• Provide regular updates to executive sponsors, senior leadership, and governance forums on project progress, risks, and decisions required.

• Ensure transparent and effective communication across internal stakeholders to support alignment and action.

Business Case Development and Strategic Decision Support

• Support and guide the development of business cases for network evaluations.

• Evaluate strategic options using operational, financial, technical, and execution considerations.

• Ensure recommendations are supported by robust analysis, sound judgment, and alignment with enterprise strategy.

• Contribute to high-impact decisions affecting the long-term structure and performance of the manufacturing network.

Risk, Issue, and Performance Management

• Proactively identify risks, issues, and constraints that may affect portfolio delivery or business objectives.

• Drive rapid escalation, issue resolution, and mitigation planning for complex or high-impact problems.

• Ensure performance metrics are defined, tracked, and used to drive accountability and improvement.

• Maintain strong governance and disciplined execution across all team activities.

Process Ownership and Continuous Improvement

• Serve as the process owner for key NS&E systems and business processes as assigned.

• Ensure tier processes within NS&E are maintained, documented, understood, and followed.

• Drive continuous improvement in execution methods, tools, governance, and organizational capability.

• Promote standardization, efficiency, and best practice sharing across the team and broader network.

Compliance and Organizational Excellence

• Ensure all activities are conducted in compliance with company policies, divisional procedures, ethical business practices, and applicable laws and regulations.

• Model strong leadership, sound judgment, and a commitment to operational excellence.

• Reinforce a culture of accountability, respect, inclusion, and results-oriented execution.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree required

• Master’s degree preferred

Required Experience and Skills

• 15+ years of progressively responsible experience in manufacturing, operations, network strategy, supply chain, product source management, or related functions

• Significant experience leading senior managers, directors, or large global teams in a matrixed environment

• Deep understanding of pharmaceutical manufacturing, operations, and enterprise business processes

• Proven ability to lead complex, multi-workstream strategic initiatives from planning through execution

• Strong financial and business acumen, including the ability to evaluate tradeoffs and business impact

• Demonstrated experience influencing senior leaders and driving alignment across cross-functional stakeholders

• Excellent communication, presentation, and executive-level stakeholder management skills

• Strong problem-solving, decision-making, and risk management capabilities

• Demonstrated success in talent development, organizational leadership, and building high-performing teams

• Ability to operate independently with broad enterprise perspective and sound judgment

• Strong understanding of regulatory, quality, technical, and operational considerations in pharmaceutical manufacturing

Preferred Experience and Skills

• Background in Engineering, or a related discipline preferred

• Advanced degree preferred

• Experience in manufacturing network strategy, source changes, or site rationalization

• Experience in pharmaceutical or life sciences manufacturing leadership roles

Required Skills:

Budget Development, Business Case Development, Business Decisions, Corporate Ethics, Creativity, Decision Making, Enterprise Operations, Feasibility Studies, Negotiation, Organizational Capability, People Leadership, Performance Monitoring, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, Portfolio Management, Professional Integrity, Risk Management, Schedule Management, Stakeholder Communications, Stakeholder Management, Status Reporting, Strategic Leadership, Subcontract Management, Team Effectiveness, Technical Problem-Solving, Vision Casting

Preferred Skills:

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Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

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The salary range for this role is

$231,900.00 - $365,000.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

09/25/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.