Site Name: UK - Hertfordshire - Stevenage, Cambridge MA, UK - London, USA - Massachusetts - Waltham, USA - Pennsylvania - Upper Providence
Posted Date: Jul 17 2025
The pharmaceutical industry is undergoing rapid digital transformation, and our R&D Development organization is investing heavily in digital health technologies to revolutionize drug development. This new role,
Senior Director, Digital Health Innovation and Implementation, will be crucial in driving the adoption and successful implementation of these technologies within Development. This leader will proactively engage with Research Units (RUs) to identify opportunities, pilot new digital health capabilities, ensure seamless integration into existing workflows and implementation into clinical trials. This role is accountable for the scaled implementation of digital health capabilities across Development, ensuring success based on time, cost, quality, and other relevant metrics.
The successful candidate will bring a blend of technology, scientific and clin ops domain knowledge and will be an inspirational leader who is able to define the future, bring their own organization and the broader Clin Ops and RU organizations with them as they facilitate and enable optimal Digital Health and Digital Strategies and then to translate these strategies into operational excellent implementation plans and ultimately into the seamless delivery of these strategies into programs and studies.
Job Summary:
Senior Director, Digital Health Innovation and Implementation, Clinical Operations
Key Responsibilities:
RU Engagement & Pilot Programs: Proactively engage with Research Units (RUs) to understand their strategic priorities and identify opportunities to pilot and implement new digital health capabilities. Develop and maintain a framework for assessing, prioritizing, and implementing digital health solutions in alignment with individual RU strategies. Champion the adoption of new technologies within RUs.
Scaled Implementation & Accountability: Lead the scaled implementation of digital health solutions across Development, ensuring successful deployment and integration into existing workflows. Own accountability for the success of these implementations, measured against pre-defined metrics related to time, cost, quality, and other relevant factors.
Strategy & Roadmap Development: Contribute to and implement the overarching digital health strategy and roadmap for the Development organization, focusing on practical application and alignment with Clinical Operations platform strategies. Collaborate with the VP, Clin Ops Platform and Innovation Head and other stakeholders to ensure cohesive digital initiatives.
Portfolio Management: Oversee a portfolio of digital health projects, prioritizing initiatives based on strategic fit, potential impact, feasibility, and alignment with Clinical Operations platform priorities and individual RU strategies. Effectively manage project timelines, budgets, and resources.
Team Leadership: Build and lead a diverse and large team across the broad range of this group from strategic roles through to scaled delivery. Hiring, coaching, motivating a team of up to 20 individuals as well as being able to build deep, valuable and lasting relationships with other key groups across R&D. Enabling and facilitating delivery through direct and matrixed line relationships.
Stakeholder Management & Influential Partnership: Cultivate and maintain strong, collaborative, long term relationships with key stakeholders across Development and Clinical Operations, including Research Units, Clinical Operations teams, CMO and Tech. Act as a trusted advisor and influential partner to guide the adoption and implementation of digital health solutions.
Innovation & Evaluation: Continuously explore and evaluate emerging digital health technologies, assessing their potential to improve drug development processes, especially within Clinical Operations. Provide recommendations and insights to leadership on new opportunities and areas for investment. Lead a triage network to assess new digital health capabilities in the context of business needs and regulatory requirements. Actively communicate and advocate the suite of available capabilities and intended innovation direction.
Capability Building: Partner with relevant groups to develop and deliver training programs that enhance digital health literacy and skills within Development, focusing on Clinical Operations teams and RUs piloting new technologies. Ensure effective adoption and utilization of new technologies.
Performance Monitoring & Reporting: Establish metrics and rigorously track the performance of implemented digital health solutions. Identify areas for improvement and implement corrective actions as necessary. Report on performance and ROI of digital health initiatives within Clinical Operations and across Development.
Compliance & Regulatory: Stay informed about relevant regulations and guidelines related to digital health in the pharmaceutical industry. Ensure all implemented solutions adhere to regulatory requirements.
Qualifications and Experience:
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in a relevant field (computer science, information technology, life sciences, or related field).
- Experience within the Research and Development organization and a deep understanding of medicine/vaccine development processes, specifically within Clinical Operations.
- Demonstrated expertise in digital health technologies, including data analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, wearable sensors, and telehealth platforms.
- Proven track record of successfully implementing and scaling digital health solutions within a complex organization, preferably within Clinical Operations or a research setting.
- Exceptional leadership, team management, and influencing skills, with a demonstrated ability to foster collaboration, build consensus, and drive results in a matrixed environment.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Ability to effectively communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences at all levels.
- Proven project management skill and experience managing multiple complex projects simultaneously, including budget management and resource allocation.
- Strong understanding of regulatory requirements and industry standards* related to digital health solutions in the pharmaceutical industry. Experience working within a regulated environment is essential.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Advanced degree (MS, PhD, or MBA) is preferred.
- Strategic thinker with a strong grasp of operational realities in clinical development.
- Proven strength in delivery
- Inspirational, visionary leader
- Comfortable managing ambiguity and complexity in a dynamic R&D environment.
- Experienced in building or evolving control tower or performance management capabilities within R&D or Clinical Operations.
- Strong communication and storytelling skills—able to translate data into insight and action for senior stakeholders.
This role will report to the VP, Clin Ops Platform and Innovation. This reporting structure ensures alignment between digital health initiatives and the overall Clinical Operations platform strategy
Why GSK?
Our values and expectations are at the heart of everything we do and form an important part of our culture.
These include Patient focus, Transparency, Respect, Integrity along with Courage, Accountability, Development, and Teamwork. As GSK focuses on our values and expectations and a culture of innovation, performance, and trust, the successful candidate will demonstrate the following capabilities:
- Agile and distributed decision-making – using evidence and applying judgement to balance pace, rigour and risk.
- Managing individual and team performance.
- Committed to delivering high quality results, overcoming challenges, focusing on what matters, execution.
- Implementing change initiatives and leading change.
- Sustaining energy and well-being, building resilience in teams.
- Continuously looking for opportunities to learn, build skills and share learning both internally and externally.
- Developing people and building a talent pipeline.
- Translating strategy into action - a compelling narrative, motivating others, setting objectives and delegation.
- Building strong relationships and collaboration, managing trusted stakeholder relationships internally and externally.
- Budgeting and forecasting, commercial and financial acumen.
Why GSK?
Uniting science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together.
GSK is a global biopharma company with a special purpose – to unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together – so we can positively impact the health of billions of people and deliver stronger, more sustainable shareholder returns – as an organisation where people can thrive. We prevent and treat disease with vaccines, specialty and general medicines. We focus on the science of the immune system and the use of new platform and data technologies, investing in four core therapeutic areas (infectious diseases, HIV, respiratory/ immunology and oncology).
Our success absolutely depends on our people. While getting ahead of disease together is about our ambition for patients and shareholders, it’s also about making GSK a place where people can thrive. We want GSK to be a place where people feel inspired, encouraged and challenged to be the best they can be. A place where they can be themselves – feeling welcome, valued, and included. Where they can keep growing and look after their wellbeing. So, if you share our ambition, join us at this exciting moment in our journey to get Ahead Together.
GSK is an Equal Opportunity Employer. This ensures that all qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), parental status, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family medical history), military service or any basis prohibited under federal, state or local law.
We believe in an agile working culture for all our roles. If flexibility is important to you, we encourage you to explore with our hiring team what the opportunities are.
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