Associate Director - Business Operations & Digital Enablement

Summary:

This role within Technical Operations’ Commercialization Capabilities and Strategic Projects function is critical for building and strengthening the business operations, data, digital tools, and performance insights that help Technical Operations leaders make better decisions, allocate resources effectively, anticipate risks, and execute with greater clarity as the organization advances toward commercialization and future growth.

This role creates an integrated view of Technical Operations priorities, capacity, risks, dependencies, progress, and performance, while identifying opportunities to simplify and automate how the organization works. Working across Technical Operations and with teams across Vaxcyte, this role will translate business needs into practical, scalable solutions that improve visibility, decision-making, and organizational performance.

The successful candidate combines strong business judgment with analytical, systems, and digital fluency. This is not simply a reporting or technology role; it calls for someone who understands how the business operates, can turn data into actionable insight, and can apply systems, automation, analytics, and AI to strengthen the organization’s ability to scale.

Essential Functions:

Business Operations & Portfolio Management:

• Build and continuously improve business operating practices that give leaders an integrated view of Technical Operations priorities, initiatives, capacity, risks, dependencies, milestones, and performance.
• Establish and support portfolio and capacity-management processes that enable proactive prioritization, resource tradeoffs, and leadership decisions.
• Support demand intake, strategy realization, and execution-readiness processes with business analysis, data, and decision support.
• Partner with leaders to identify resource constraints, emerging risks, cross-functional dependencies, and opportunities that need leadership attention.
• Develop scalable operating rhythms and business review mechanisms that connect strategy, portfolio performance, and organizational decision-making.

Performance Insights & Decision Support:

• Develop executive dashboards, KPIs, reporting, and operational insights that improve visibility and enable timely, data-informed decisions.
• Create shared visibility into priorities, risks, progress, improvement efforts, and performance where transparency improves execution.
• Translate complex operational data into clear insights, scenarios, tradeoffs, and recommendations for leadership.
• Establish sustainable performance-management practices that connect strategic priorities to measurable execution and business outcomes.
• Improve the consistency, accessibility, usability, and governance of data used for Technical Operations decision-making.

Digital Enablement, Automation & AI:

• Identify and implement opportunities to simplify work and improve productivity through digital tools, automation, analytics, and AI-enabled solutions.
• Translate business needs and process requirements into scalable digital solutions in partnership with IT, data, and functional teams.
• Lead or coordinate business-side requirements gathering, process design, adoption, and value realization for relevant digital initiatives.
• Promote thoughtful adoption of new tools and technologies by ensuring solutions address real business needs and integrate into existing ways of working.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend practical applications that improve operational performance, visibility, or decision quality.

Cross-Functional Integration & Capability Building:

• Integrate information and workflows across functional boundaries where execution depends on shared visibility and coordinated decision-making.
• Build repeatable business operations, analytics, and digital capabilities that remain sustainable as Technical Operations grows.
• Partner closely with the Principal, Business Process Management & Operational Excellence so process design, portfolio management, data, systems, and digital solutions reinforce one another.
• Build trusted relationships with leaders across Technical Operations and the business, balancing functional needs with broader organizational priorities.

Requirements: 

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Operations, Engineering, Data/Analytics, Information Systems, Life Sciences, or a related discipline; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive experience in business operations, strategy and operations, portfolio management, analytics, digital transformation, operational excellence, or related disciplines.
• Experience in biotechnology, pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical manufacturing, Technical Operations, or another complex regulated environment strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience building executive dashboards, KPIs, portfolio views, performance-management systems, and decision-support mechanisms.
• Strong business and analytical acumen, with demonstrated ability to translate complex data into actionable insights and recommendations.
• Strong understanding of business processes, systems, workflow optimization, data governance, and digital enablement.
• Demonstrated experience applying automation, analytics, AI, or emerging technologies to practical business problems.
• Strong cross-functional leadership, facilitation, and executive communication skills, with the ability to influence without direct authority.
• Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, evolving environment and balance near-term business needs with scalable long-term solutions.
• Other combinations of education and/or experience may be considered.