Why choose AstraZeneca Spain?
AstraZeneca Spain is a rising force in our global business. With headquarters in Madrid and our global hub in Barcelona, we’ve become an important international centre of excellence in the fight against critical disease. Boasting vibrant universities and business schools, the Barcelona ecosystem is a place where scientists can thrive. We attract a diverse workforce from across the globe, shining a beacon for innovation in a country that’s committed to clinical development.
We invite you to bring your talents to Barcelona where our respiratory medicine R&D and Global Marketing centre offers opportunities in R&D, IT, Commercial and HR. Or join us in Madrid and shape our growth in our BUs (Respiratory, Oncology & CVRM ), and a range of Corporate functions. Additionally, you can find sales roles throughout the country. Together, we’re contributing to a world-leading pipeline of therapeutics and delivering life-changing medicines to patients.
Who do we look for?
Calling all tech innovators, ownership takers, challenge seekers and proactive collaborators. At AstraZeneca Spain, breakthroughs born in the lab become transformative medicine for the world's most complex diseases. Alongside technical expertise, colleagues have the resilience, energy and collaborative mindset to change lanes, work with different teams and start projects from scratch.
Here, diverse minds and bold disruptors can meaningfully impact the future of healthcare using cutting-edge technology. Whether you join us in Madrid or Barcelona, you can make a tangible impact within a global biopharmaceutical company that invests in your future. Join a talented global team that's powering AstraZeneca to better serve patients every day.
Success Profile
Ready to make an impact in your career? If you're passionate, growth-orientated and a true team player, we'll help you succeed. Here are some of the skills and capabilities we look for.
Diverse collaborators
This is a speak-up culture that values collaboration. You’ll proactively bring your unique perspectives, experiences and skills to the table and seek the same from others. With our international team composition and the need for fast-paced collaboration, you’ll always be building new connections with colleagues.
Cutting-edge innovators
When you join us, you’ll be part of a team that embraces digital technology and data to transform the way we work and the work we do. Every day, you’ll help make history, empowered to ignite your creativity and build something enduring.
Resilient trailblazers
Here, the answers aren’t always available. So, you’ll need to bring a fearless, self-starter mindset to navigate uncharted territories. You’ll harness your ceaseless energy to discover and make the necessary connections with colleagues to shape the future and achieve maximum impact.
Agile movers
Seize ownership and excel with autonomy to enjoy the constant rush of ground-breaking discovery. Your ability to anticipate sudden shifts and adapt swiftly will prove critical as you make your mark in an environment that rewards initiative and resilience.
Responsibilities
Associate Director,StrategicProjectsand Organisational Enablement
Chief Medical Office, Oncology R&D
Location: Barcelona - Spain (3 days working from the office and 2 days working from home)
Position Overview
The Chief Medical Office (CMO) guides the enterprise to meet the needs of patients today and tomorrow. The CMO organization spans the enterprise and all stages of the drug development pipeline covering Global Patient Safety, Patient Science, R&A Quality Assurance, Bioethics and Clinical Trial Transparency. As the Associate Director, Business Planning & Operations, you will playan important roleby supporting the leaders in the CMO with the strategic planning of the mission and goals and enabling the execution of those goals by driving process improvement and optimization.
You will provide cross-functional leadership to ensure the sub-departments within the CMO areincreasing their performance inline with the greater CMO goals and priorities. You will be accountable for leading the sub-department leadership team meetings and face-to-face events. You will oversee their functional budgets includingmanpowerand non-manpower costs. You will partner closely with the Head of Business Planning and Operations for CMO, the CMO Finance Business Partner, the CMO HR Partner, and the CMO Communications Lead.
Core Accountabilities
Performance Improvement andExecution
Coordinatebusiness improvement projects across CMO, ensuring projectscomply withbusiness needs and progress according to established milestones.Implement new operationalinitiativesthat improve business performance and continuity in the complex, fast-moving CMO environment.Support CMO leaders to drive performance on the deliverables of the CMO groups, across SET areas
Work cross-functionally and across all 3 TAs (Oncology, Biopharma & Rare Disease) tohighlightopportunities for innovation and operational excellence in support ofCMO functions,proactively engaging with stakeholders.This role will be critical to supporting organizational transformation initiatives toestablishnew operating models andoptimizeteam outcomes.
Coordinate priority initiatives and cross-portfolio activities across multiple teams and regions,maintainingalignment within and beyond sub-departments, and fosteringperformance,collaborationand accountability.
CMO Resource Support and Budget Management
Oversee the CMO sub-department budget forecasting, resource planning, and work with the CMO Leadership Team (LT) to coordinate recruitment efforts. Support talent development, retention, and succession planning initiatives. This will include supporting open head countrequests, andmanaging the succession planning for the sub-department LTs.
Business Planning and Stakeholder Management
Support senior leadership teams through strategic planning, objective setting, and performance monitoring. You will ensure the sub-department goals are in line with the broader CMO vision and goals.
Track progress of goals and deliverables;you will report quarterly milestones up to the CMO scorecard and the broader organization scorecards.
Facilitate leadership meetings, coordinate annual planning cycles, and ensure measurable metrics and success criteria are defined for all initiatives. Build andmaintainrelationships across functions to ensure the deliverables align with broader organizational priorities.
Lead business and financial planning activities in partnership with Finance (e.g.,long-termand medium-term planning) and contribute to CMO-level planning in collaboration with the Head of Business Planning and Operations for CMO.
Work with leadership teams to set, lead, and communicate strategic priorities and goals (activities and budget), in close collaboration with portfolio, project and strategy teams,leveragingreporting and analytics tools to communicate results.
In collaboration with Communications, develop effective communication plans to drive understanding of strategy within the function and externally with key partners; ensure clarity of vision, priorities and deliverables across functions and regions.
Partner with HR and Communications to ensure teams areoperatingefficiently and support people development, ensuring CMO functions area great placeto work.
Lead the development of the annual scorecardsensuring input from all LT members; supervise all actions and critical initiatives to completion, reporting back to the LT on progress as needed.
Member of the Broader CMO Business Planning & Operations Network
As the Associate Director, Business Planning & Operations, you will be part of the broader CMO Business Planning & Operations network which includes the Sr. Director of Business Planning & Operations, the Global Business Support Coordinators, CMO Executive Assistant, and Operations Managers. The teamis responsible fororganization and execution of the travel and events for the Chief Medical Officer and the CMO LT. This team also supports all CMO-wide events such as Townhalls and Site Engagement events. As the Associate Director, Business Planning & Operations, you will oversee the travel budget and carbon allocation for the sub-departments in CMO.
Support preparation for critical internal and external meetings and presentations in partnership with Communications; contribute to CMO-wide strategic priorities working collaboratively with peers across the BPO network.
Essential Qualifications and Experience
Education and Experience
Bachelor's degree in relevant discipline
5+ years industry experience with a focus on project management or operations management
Strong knowledge of pharmaceutical development or biotech
Proventrack recordof supporting leadership teams or cross-functional teams
Strong ability to influence across organizational levels and functions
Demonstrated success in driving strategic initiatives and business improvements
Excellent written and verbal communication skills with ability to present to senior management and external stakeholders
Proven ability to manage through change and in a fast-paced environment
Strong attention to detail and quality standards
Experience supporting organizational change or business transformation initiatives
Date Posted
12-feb-2026Closing Date
06-mar-2026AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.
Reasons to Join
Thomas Mathisen
There are many things I enjoy when working at AstraZeneca, mainly the Speak up culture, the great colleagues that are in my teams, the great products that AstraZeneca provides to our patients and the challenging conversations I have around our medicines.
Christine Recchio
Working at AstraZeneca has impacted my life in such a positive way. I now have an improved work-life balance through creating my own schedule and time management, I feel a balance that I didn’t have before.
Stephanie Ling
There are a lot of reasons why I enjoy working in AstraZeneca, my colleagues being one of them. My team members and the managers have provided a great deal of guidance in helping me to be more confident in my daily work.
What we offer
We're driven by our shared values of serving people, society and the planet. Our people make this possible, which is why we prioritise diversity, inclusivity, balance and sustainability. Discover what a career at AstraZeneca could mean for you.
An award-winning company
We're passionate about being a great place to work, and 84% of our employees would recommend us as an employer. We've been recognised as a Top Employer in Spain, an EFR Family Responsible Business, and we achieved third place in Forbes Spain's Top 50 Best Places to Work list.
Inclusive environment
Diversity and inclusion are embedded in everything we do, and our different views, experiences and strengths enrich our culture. There's no salary gap at AstraZeneca, and the number of female employees has increased by four per cent over the last three years. We've also made all positions fully accessible.
Work-life balance
Your wellbeing means a lot to us, and we're here to support you through all of life's ups and downs. That's why we offer an unpaid leave policy, annual leave, reduced-hours timetables and a host of benefits, including a retirement plan, long service award, and health and travel insurance.
Sustainability initiatives
We're committed to harnessing the power of science to become a more sustainable business. We've reduced our carbon footprint by over 9,000 kg of CO2 over the last two years, and we lead the European GoGreen Project, which aims to introduce environmentally friendly options in our fleet of corporate vehicles.
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